Home - 30 Minute Crafts

Ninjago Sensei Wu Shirt

May 6, 2016 by Carolina Leave a Comment

Legoland California recently opened “Ninjago World”. We attended their preview day, and of course needed to make some fun Ninjago shirts! I made shirts for my boys, but didn’t want to be left out… so I made myself a Ninjago shirt as well – this is my Sensei Wu shirt (if you’re a big Ninjago fan, you’ll note that this is Sensei Wu DX).

To make a Sensei Wu Shirt you’ll need:

You’ll need:
Black Shirt
12×24″ Silhouette mat
Fabric Paint – Grey and White or Black and White
Freezer Paper
Gold Glitter Heat Transfer Vinyl
Paintbrush
Iron and Ironing Board

Use the Sensei Wu Silhouette Cut File to cut out the freezer paper and the gold heat-transfer vinyl. Make sure to REVERSE the gold lettering before cutting out the heat transfer vinyl!

Place a sheet of freezer paper inside the shirt to prevent the paint from bleeding through to the back of the shirt.

Iron the freezer paper stencil on to the shirt.

Paint the beard white, and the sash grey. I mixed black and white paint to make my grey.

Peel the freezer paper off BEFORE the paint dries. This prevents it from sticking when the paint hardens.

Allow the paint to dry, then fuse the Heat Transfer Vinyl in place. Here I am wearing my finished Sensei Wu shirt at Legoland – I was surprised not to get any comments about the beard I wore all day! HA!

Filed Under: 30 minute crafts, easy, fast and cheap, paint Tagged With: craftyanthology, lego, ninjago, shirt

Hanging Framed Planter

May 4, 2016 by Carolina Leave a Comment

Looking for unique decor? This hanging framed planter is the perfect thing! Plant flowers to brighten up your living space, without cluttering up table tops. This planter makes great decor indoor and outdoors – any place where your plant gets the sunlight it needs.

You’ll need:
Framed Planter
Paint (I used red paint and wax)
Paintbrush
Seeds or plant
Soil

Paint any sentiment or design on the frame you like. I went with the word “grow”. I also painted the edges of the frame for an extra pop of color. Allow to dry.

I waxed the wood to give it a nice glow.

The planter’s instructions call for planting seeds in the frame. This will give you the best success. I was impatient and wanted to add an already flowering plant. I carefully pulled open the moss, and tucked the plant in, then carefully moved the moss back as much as possible.

Hang the planter in a sunny spot to enjoy!

Filed Under: 30 minute crafts, easy, paint Tagged With: frame, plant

Smashed Penny Bracelet

May 3, 2016 by Carolina Leave a Comment

Smashed pennies are a favorite souvenir in our family. My boys love picking out the design, choosing the perfect penny, and then smushing it with brute strength! I love how inexpensive they are. For 51 cents I’ve made my boys happy. The challenge is what to do with the smashed penny afterwards? Put them in a box, a bag, or a drawer? That just won’t do! So I turned this smashed penny from Legoland into a fun smashed penny bracelet!

This post contains affiliate links which help support this site at no cost to you.

To make your own smashed penny bracelet, you’ll need:

Smashed Penny (this one is from Legoland)
Metal Hole Punch
Faux Leather cording
Jump Rings – 4 small, 2 large
Jewelry Clasp
Jewelry Pliers

Start by cutting a hole into the top and bottom of the smashed penny.

Using a small jump ring through the hole, attach a large jump ring.

Cut a piece of leather 4 times longer than you need (The exact length is going to depend on the size of your wrist, the size of your large jump rings, and the size of your clasp. Start with twice loosely around your wrist, you can always make it tighter later.), and string a large jump ring through it.

Fold in half, with the jump ring at the fold.

Put the two ends through a jump ring on the smashed penny.

Put one end through the original jump ring, and tie an overhand knot to secure.

Repeat for the other side, and attach the jewelry clasp.

Your smashed penny bracelet is complete!

You can adjust the length of the straps by untying the knot, and retying. Cut off any excess. If you’re concerned about the knot coming loose, add a few drops of krazy glue or gorilla glue to help keep the knot in place.

Filed Under: 15 minute crafts, easy, fast and cheap, jewelry, kids Tagged With: bracelet, penny, smashed penny

Monogrammed Gate Decor

April 29, 2016 by Carolina Leave a Comment

Sometimes, working with different craft companies, I’m sent surprises in the mail. Fun, happy boxes with craft supplies for me to try. Recently, Plaid Crafts sent me a box of their new chalk paints, along with this fun Sea Turtle Monogram from Unfinished Wood Co. to paint!

I’ve been working on updating the garden of our 1950’s Bungalow here in San Diego, and thought that this sea turtle would make the perfect beachy garden decor to hang on our garden gate. It is a very simple, and dare I say foolproof, project. You don’t need to be an expert painter or crafter to get an awesome result!

You’ll need:

Wooden sign
Waverly Chalk Paint in “Ocean”
Waverly Wax in “White”
Paint Brushes
Rag or old dish towel

Paint the sign and allow it to dry. Make sure to get in to all the cracks.

Once the base coat has completely dried, paint on the wax. The first brush stroke will make you think “oh my goodness, this is way too dark and I’ve completely ruined it!!” But, you haven’t. You’re fine. Use the rag to wipe away the wax while its still wet, giving your sign a beachy, coastal look.

Go around all the edges and sides, adding additional layers of the wax if you like, until you get the look you want. Allow to dry completely, then hang on your garden gate, or wherever you welcome visitors!

Filed Under: 30 minute crafts, easy, paint, Uncategorized Tagged With: Monogram, sign, wood

Ringed Crystal Bracelet

April 27, 2016 by Carolina 1 Comment

This bracelet is great to make with any stone that has holes on both sides. Look for crystals, beads, and other stones that have been pre-drilled this way to make this great center jewel bracelet. You can adjust this design to make a necklace as well!

To make this bracelet you’ll need:

Jewelry Chain
Jewelry Clasp
Large circle
Crystal with holes drilled on two sides
2 Pinch Clip Bails
Jewelry Pliers

Put the circle into the bail, then attach the crystal.

Repeat with the other side.

Thread the necklace chain through the loop at the top of one of the bails. Trim, and attach one end of the jewelry clasp.

Repeat with the other side, attaching the other side of the jewelry clasp.

Your bracelet is complete! Because the circle isn’t held firmly in place by anything, it moves freely around the crystal. This movement makes this a very fun piece of jewelry to wear. You can dress it up or dress it down – this simple statement piece pairs with any outfit.

Filed Under: 15 minute crafts, easy, jewelry, simple Tagged With: bracelet, craftyanthology, crystal

Seed Packet Pots

April 25, 2016 by Carolina Leave a Comment

Even if you have a black thumb, you’ll enjoy making these adorable seed packet pots! It is a great way to gift a small plant, so that the recipient knows exactly which seeds are planted. These little pots would make a great part of a spring table setting, either as part of a centerpiece, or at each place setting! You could put the names of your guests onto plant markers and insert them in the pots. These will be even cuter when the plants start to grow, but either way they’ll add color and interest to any space!

You’ll need:
Small Pots
Soil
White Paint
Seed Packet (and copies of the seed packet front)
Mod Podge
Paintbrush

Paint your pots white.

Allow to dry.

Cut out the images from the seed packet photo copies.

Paint a liberal amount of Mod Podge onto the back. Allow 30-60 seconds for it to soak in.

Place on the pot. Smooth out image as much as possible.

Add a coat of Mod Podge over the top of the image. Move quickly and do not go over the same area multiple times – you don’t want to smudge the ink.

Allow to dry, then fill with soil and plant your seeds.

Filed Under: 15 minute crafts, fast and cheap, paint, paper, quick, simple Tagged With: garden, plant, spring

Starlight Monogram

April 22, 2016 by Carolina 1 Comment

A night light is an essential part of any child’s room, but it doesn’t have to be boring! This starlight monogram is an easy way to add soft light to a space, and personalize it as well!

Supplies:
Paper Mache Letter
Battery Operated Twinkle Lights
Paint in your choice of color
Drill
Pencil
Scissors
Craft Knife

Start by drilling holes into the face of the letter. You can do the sides, too, but I just did the face. Drill as many holes as you like – more holes will make for more light.

The cardboard will come up off the letter as you drill. Use a pencil to push it back inside.

Cut a hole in the back where the battery pack for the light will go. You can cut a small hole for the switch if you like.

Use this hole to pull out any of the internal support. If you don’t pull these pieces out, you won’t be able to push the lights all the way to the ends of the letter.

Paint the letter with your chosen color of paint. Use the pencil to help get the paint into the holes.

Once the letter has dried, tuck the lights in. Turn them on to make sure you’ve reached all parts of the letter.

Your letter is ready to hang, twinkle, and keep the monsters away!

Filed Under: 30 minute crafts, easy, kids, paint, quick Tagged With: craftyanthology, light, lights, Monogram

Blinged Stapler – Sparkly Office Supply Tutorial

April 20, 2016 by Carolina Leave a Comment

This Blinged Stapler is the perfect gift for an office-mate, or anyone who likes things sparkly. Though, who doesn’t love a sparkly stapler, right? This could make a great Mother’s Day Gift, Office Professionals Day Gift, or you can make one yourself… because we could all use a little more sparkle in our lives! Want to learn how to make this blinged stapler? Let me show you…

Supplies for Blinged Stapler (this post contains some affiliate links, which help support this site at no extra cost to you):

Crystals
Hot Glue
Stapler

When you buy your crystals, consider what kind of crystals you’d like for your Blinged Stapler – I used a variety pack with several sizes of round silver flat-backed crystals. You can add more interest by using multi-colored crystals or even crystals in different shapes. This fun project can get very funky when you add different colors! And if you’re going to add some quirky office supplies to your desk, you can control the level of quirkyness you want!

To show you how the crystals are placed, I’ve made this super short video. Watch it once, and you’ll know how to make your own. If you’re worried about glue-gun burns, or the glue cools too quickly, you can use a liquid adhesive designed for multi-media projects, like Aleene’s Max Tacky Adhesive. You might need to work in sections, and let the glue dry before starting a new section.

Blinged Stapler Video

Filed Under: 15 minute crafts, easy, fast and cheap, video Tagged With: bling, crystal, office, office supplies

Book Earrings – the Perfect Book Lover Gift

April 18, 2016 by Carolina 3 Comments

These Book Earrings are the perfect gift for the reader in your life! They’ll be super excited to declare their love for all things bookish with these easy-to-make earrings that are actual tiny books! These books have individual pages that you can write small notes in if you like, or draw tiny pictures, or you can leave that up to the recipient.

Book Earrings Supplies:

(this post contains affiliate links which help support this site at no additional cost to you)

Earring Wires
Eyepins
Jewelry Pliers
Miniature Books (similar here)
Craft Glue
Small Binder Clips

Start by twisting the bottom of your headpin into a spiral. This doesn’t have to be perfect or fancy – it is going inside the book, and will be hidden in the final book earrings. It just needs to be smaller than your mini book.

Check the fit of the spiral in the book. The eye should come out right at the top of the spine. Make any adjustments as needed.

Put glue between two pages. Not so much it squishes out everywhere – just a few dabs is fine.

Put the eyepin back in, and close the book. Wipe away any glue that runs out, and secure with a binder clip.

Add the earring wire.

Repeat for the second book, to make a second earring.

Allow to dry, and your earrings are done! If you like, you can draw small pictures, add little notes, or just leave them as is. You can even suggest to the recipient that they can add their own notes. Perhaps a reading wishlist?

These book earrings make great book club gifts, teacher gifts, or gifts for a friend who loves to read. I made these for Marissa from Rae Gun Ramblings, who loves to read more than anyone else I know. You should absolutely check out her site for all her cute crafts and projects… but also the best reading recommendations. She never steers me wrong!

Filed Under: 15 minute crafts, easy, fast and cheap, jewelry, paper Tagged With: book, earrings, reader

Alien Spaceship Reading Light

April 15, 2016 by Carolina Leave a Comment

Do your kids love searching the skies for flying saucers? Do they believe that aliens are living among us? If you have a UFO fan, they’ll flip for this fun Alien Spaceship reading light! With a few supplies, and a little bit of time, you can make this fun reading light for your child’s room… or your own!

You’ll need:
Battery-operated light source (this is an LED light set designed for a mason jar
Air-dry clay
Silver Paint
Paintbrush
Black Marker
String
Scissors