By Upcycling

T-Shirt Yarn

Create soft, sturdy T-Shirt Yarn from old T-shirts. The craft possibilities are then endless | suzerspace.com

I’ve been pretty vocal about my love for upcycling , and I really do have a thing for cardboard, but some time ago I saw a craft that involved cutting t-shirts into yarn and I haven’t really been the same since. 

The t-shirt yarn is super heavy duty, and since it comes from old t-shirts it is washable and generally is a color palette you already like (since they were shirts you or a loved one were wearing previously).

The process to make t-shirt yarn  is easy, although a little tedious. First you need the right kind of t-shirt, and I’m not sure why, but Mr. SuzerSpace’s donate pile always has the “good” ones, and my pile rarely does.

CLICK HERE TO KEEP CRAFTING!

Faux Debossed Gift Tags

Duct tape and a cereal box become faux debossed gift tags in this Pinterest Challenge post | suzerspace.com

Welcome to the February Pinterest Challenge Blog Hop, hosted by My Pinterventures. The purpose of this Pinterest Challenge is to motivate all the participants of this hop (and you too) to not just pin, but to make it happen!

If you’ve visited me here at SuzerSpace before, then you must have realized I really like lettering, and I really, really, really like to make things with the cardboard. So when this pin crossed my feed that featured both, you can guess that it was going on my “must make soon” list.

One picky note – the Pin and the post call these Embossed gift tags, but as a working member of the printing industry, I have to point out that these are actually Debossed. Embossing is when you press up an image from the back side and it stands UP. Debossing is the opposite – you press an image INTO an object. So mine are faux debossed gift tags!

Francesca at Fall for DIY created these using specialty duct tape, but I’m more of a #usewhatyouhave kind of crafter, so I went with the tried and true silver kind. We have a big roll of the super duper sticky stuff that lives in the basement, right near the dryer vent that cannot be easily connected to the basement window. The evildoer who previously owned our home made several very interesting decisions (ask me about the built in cabinet for a refrigerator that is not a standard refrigerator size some time).

My favorite craft stock of a cereal box is just perfect for these – thin enough to cut easily, thick enough to not get all bent up once finished.

KEEP READING FOR MORE CRAFTING FUN!

An Unbearably Cute Door Hanger

Create an unbearably cute door hanger out of cardboard | suzerspace.com

This post contains affiliate links which means I may make a small commission from the sale of a linked item. For more information, see my disclosure policy.

I wasn’t actually planning on making another door decoration so soon – the Let it Snow Snowman was doing a great job holding down the fort as an after the holidays theme.

But there was a little problem. It’s been the coldest and snowiest winter in years, and I began to fear I had brought it on with that snowman. Sort of a “be careful what you wish for” situation.

So I decided to make a new one, with a twist. I’ve made this bear door hanger have special three dimensional hands which let him carry things, so he can stand for several months and keep current with events and holidays.

These door hanger projects are really simple, and extremely inexpensive which makes them a great learning craft. Practice is what brings better skill, and cutting and painting on cardboard means less pressure to get it right. If the project turns out as a flop, either paint it over and start again, or just toss it and find another piece of cardboard.

click through to make this cute door hanger

The T-Shirt Sleeve Hem

The short story on too long t-shirt arms is that a quick t-shirt sleeve hem is all you need to make a cast-off item wearable again | suzerspace.com

I’ve been a pretty small sized person my whole life. That’s not a humble brag, it’s just the truth. I’ve topped at at just a little over 5’2″, and I have a slim build, and that means I know the wonders of hemming pants.

But you know what never occurred to me? All those ill fitting shirts I own? I can fix those, too. Just by changing the t-shirt sleeve hem.

To be really honest, this is started of those procraftinating projects. You know, where you are supposed to be doing something real and serious, and somehow your mind wanders and you find something much more fun to do instead.

In this case, I was supposed to be purging my closet of things I don’t wear. This wasn’t some New Year’s resolution to be more Marie Kondo style. No – it’s more like I live in a house built in 1950, and shelves and closet space are at a premium.

So I came across my shelf of long sleeve T-shirts, the ones I never wear. I’ve tried to get rid of them before, but some hold memories in their artwork, and yes, I know you can make pillows or quilts with them, but I didn’t. So I decided this was going to be the year I let go, and I put them in the donation box.

Aaaaaaand then I pulled one out and tried it on. And the lightbulb went off. The reason why I don’t wear it is because it has those cuffed sleeves, and because the sleeves are way too long, the cuff causes the arm to pouf out and I look and feel ridiculous.

The short story on too long t-shirt arms is that a quick t-shirt sleeve hem is all you need to make a cast-off item wearable again | suzerspace.com

What if I hemmed the sleeves? Is a t-shirt sleeve hem a thing?

Turns out it’s thing. Click here to read more

Painted Monster Rocks

Turn rocks into fun monsters with just a little paint and a lot of imagination | suzerspace.com

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read my disclosure policy here.

Welcome to the third Tuesday of the month (What? How is that possible?), which means it is Pinterest Challenge Blog Hop Time hosted by My Pinterventures.

The purpose of the Pinterest Challenge is to motivate all the participants of this hop (and you too) to not just pin, but to make it happen!

Sometimes I like to work on really intricate crafts with lots of pieces, measuring and patience. And other times, I really just want to do something that looks to be really easy and fun.

Enter this month’s pin –

I’ve had it on my board for a while, with a bunch of other painted rock pins.

Side story – Mr. SuzerSpace and I like to walk to a neighborhood grocery store on Saturday mornings. The route takes us past some of those Little Free Libraries and a super cute little stand that is called “The Art Tree” which operates on the take-a-penny leave-a-penny principle in that you are supposed to leave an object of art if you make one, and take one when you need one.

Conveniently, the stand is near a schoolyard full of rocks.

I think you can guess where this is going.

Continue reading…