Plaster Letters

You might think these plaster letters are going to be really hard to do, but they are very easy. I've worked quite a lot with plaster and I love it! Find the tutorial here.

Vampire Emergency

Hilarious wall decoration for those who love the vampire craze. Click here for the instructions.

Pot of Gold Cupcakes

How awesome are these?! I went through a rainbow phase in my teens and I don't think I've ever gotten over it. The rainbows above are made from cookie play dough...very cute. Find the recipe here.

Woven Summer Placemat

I love the fun colours and texture of this woven t-shirt placemat, and you can make your own my using this how-to.

Summer Sandals

I could have really used these comfy looking sandals (made using old flip-flops and t-shirts) on my hols - I took 4 pairs and could only stand to wear 1 pair for more than an hour. My poor misshapen feet ha

Have a look at the tutorial here.

Wrapped Hangers

These are hangers that every crafter needs to add some luxury and colour to their life (and wardrobe)! Go here for the tute.

Henna Your Hands

I've always loved the look of Henna but the only time I tried it, I did a free-hand design which looked awful! But I'm definitely going to follow this tutorial next time, so I can create a proper intricate and amazing design :-)

Love Logs

I think this project is so cute, and would make a romantic gift too. You do need a wood burning tool to do this particular make, but I'm sure there are ways around it, such as carving the design or painting it on.

Click here for the how-to.

Look Closer

So, can you guess how this portrait is made? Look here to find out if you're right :-)

Under The Table & Dreaming

I found a website the other day called 'Under the Table and Dreaming' and thought it had some great ideas on it for projects. Lots of craft and DIY makes, including the wooden nautical buoys shown above.

Click here to have a browse.

Tube Wine Rack

This simple and stylish wine rack is make from mainly just a sturdy cardboard tube and grey felt - easy peasy!

Find the tute here.

Heart-Shaped Dress Cut-out

I think this heart cut-out adds the cute factor to any dress, and it's not so difficult either.

Crochet Ripple Pattern

Click here for a nice tutorial on creating a wavy effect in your crochet pieces. Looks great in rainbow colours doesn't it?

Chocolate Mousse

Mmmm this chocolate mousse looks delish - and you can find the recipe here.

Stationery Set

Find out how to make this charming stationery set by clicking here.

DIY Clothes Hangers

I love these homemade clothes hangers made from wire wrapped in fabric strips - so pretty! You could of course just use pre-bought wire hangers and wrap those in fabric to make it simpler if you like :-)

Go here for the tutorial.

Flowerpot Desserts

This recipe may just be my favourite ever; a flowerpot dessert with cake, ice-cream and - get this - crushed Oreo cookies to look like soil. Awesometastic. And as if it couldn't get any better, it has a flower on top!

Cute Floor Cushion

Find the how-to for this fun and unique cushion by clicking here.

Cookie Monster & Elmo

This tutorial has found an extra fun use for pom-poms - by making them into Elmo and the Cookie Monster! So cute :-)

Shibori DIY

Shibori is a Japanese term for methods of dyeing cloth by binding, stitching, folding, twisting, and compressing.

There are many different techniques for creating different patterns, and I bet it would be really fun trying to invent your own. Go here for the how-to.

I'm Back!

Hiya! Back from Tuscany today and it was really good (excellent description there...) - I've taken over 1000 photos so I think I got a bit snap happy! I'll post my favourite on Flickr as soon as I can and post more details later. And I've come back to over 300 followers - a big jump - so thank you to every one of you, as that has made me smile :-)

Thanks to anybody who posted a comment wishing me a happy holiday too!

Funny Baby Wig

This fun wig is made from just a beanie hat and a feather boa and you can find the how-to here. You could make a wig like this for adults too of course, and it would be fab for Halloween fancy dress!

How to Create Clone Photos

Clone photographs are where you take multiple photos of a person in different poses and then put them all together into one shot for a cool effect - and I bet they're good fun to shoot too!

Go here to see how it's done.

Jam Jar Lanterns

These magical lanterns are made using just jam jars and wire, and they would look beautiful at any outdoor evening event. Go here for the very clear tutorial.

Apothecary Labelled Towels

Click here for some free apothecary style labels which you can use to decorate vintage bottles, or (as shown above) print onto a cotton sheet and sew them on towels for an interesting look.

Simple Knitted Sheep

This knitted sheep project is a perfect first make for beginner knitters - all you need to knit is a simple square, no fancy techniques are needed at all.

Ice Cream Treats

Go here for 60 recipes for amazing looking desserts, including the above 'chocolate chip ship' - with a cupcake for the crow's nest!

Stencilled Wellies

This tutorial has so much potential because you could repeat the pattern all over the boots, or just freehand doodle all over with a Sharpie pen. Certainly makes a plain pair of boots more fun!

Bind Your Own Book

These instructions show you how to make your own book by neatly binding together sheets of paper. You can use some decorative paper to personalise your book - in this case, vintage wallpaper was used for some retro chic :-)

Crafty Lazy Susan

This is a great idea for crafty types - attach mini buckets or pots to a lazy susan and voila! Fun and organised storage.

Click here for the tute.

Friendship Necklaces

I love these funky, tribal-style necklaces, and they're simply made by wrapping embroidery thread around rope. Have a look at the how-to here.

Smile :-)

Source: Charlie Stinchcomb.
If you want to smile or cheer up, then head over to my page of happiness here, where I've put a lot of cute, funny and heartwarming videos, plus inspiring quotes and ideas to cheer you up if you're feeling down. Hope it makes you smile!

Chicken Parmigiana

 Click here for a brilliant step-by-step recipe for Chicken Parmigiana which details each step so it's perfect for a beginner like me - and it looks divine too of course!

Paper Pinhole Art

This artwork has been created using a pin/thumbtack to pierce holes through paper in a pattern. It's easy and looks great, plus I think it would be a good technique to use on other paper projects such greetings cards.

Go here for the how-to.

Table Legwarmers

I love the idea of knitting little legwarmers for your table and chair legs - and if you knit, I'm sure you can easily work out how to do them :-)

Photo source.

Paper Clone

If you've got a lot of time on your hands, then why not make yourself a paper clone! I think this would be really fun to do, and it's the kind of project I love.

Click here for the Instructable.

World's Largest Skateboard

I really, really want a go on this lol I hope it catches on like Zorbing has :-)

Go here for more details.

Fabric Cacti

I've always had cacti instead of flowers because I think they're interesting, and also because they are much easier to keep than flowers (which always seem to mysteriously die in my care). But something that is easier to look after than a real cactus is a fake cactus!

Click here to see how you can make one.

Cherry Crumble Cake

This crumble cake is a yummy way of using up cherries - especially if you've grown them yourself this Summer (although the birds have got all of ours :-/ lol)

Learning French

Source: Smlp.co.uk
Along with Italian, French is a language which I hope to be adequate at in the future, so I've compiled a list of common phrases and words to help people communicate on their French holidays, plus links and videos to help people who would like to learn more advanced French. I hope you find it useful - click here to see the page.

Monster Longies

If you can knit, these knitted longies would be a brilliant gift for any toddler you know - they're so cute!

Go here for the instructions.

Pet Collar & Leash

Click here for a great tutorial on making a very professional-looking collar and leash for your pet.

Natural Playdough

I love the colours of this homemade playdough, and they're all made using natural dyes from beetroot, raspberries and rose petals, amongst others.

Go here for the recipe.

Glam Sleep Mask

This sleep mask is so cute and feminine, and I love the eyelashes!

Find the free pattern here.

Faux Gold Pendants

I love these fun pendants, and they're simply made by painting cheap plastic toys!

Go here for the instructions.

Pea Pod Necklace

This little felt, bead and wire pea pod pendant is so adorable, and you can easily make one yourself by following these instructions.

Mirrored Plant Boxes

These trendy, modern flower boxes are very straightforward to make, and you can see the tutorial here.

Learning Italian

Source: Sunshinecity.
Before I went to Italy for my hols (as you're reading this, I'm probably in a non-air-conditioned car on the way to Italy!), I thought I'd brush up on my Italian. I compiled all of the most common words and phrases on this page, along with lots of videos and links.

I hope you find it useful :-)

Cheese Pinwheels

I think these rolls look delicious, and they're simply made from pizza dough, butter and cheese. Mmmmmm.....Find the recipe here.

No-Sew Rag Rug

All you need to do is braid strips of fabric together like shown above, and you'll have made your very own squishy rag rug! Go here for the tutorial.

I'm Off!

I'm setting off to Tuscany (Italy) for nearly 3 weeks today, for my first foreign holiday since I started this blog... So exciting!

We're driving down there which will be fun lol (we drove to Venice years ago and it was interesting and brilliant scenery, but the driver (dad) was rather stressy to say the least, we didn't - and still don't - have air conditioning, and Italian drivers like to use their car horns A LOT!). We're getting a sat nav this time so I can only hope it helps because nobody can map read!

My (not-so) little brother is looking after the house while we're away, so we could come back to find it's been turned into party central haha

I'm taking some watercolours and a sketchbook because I really want to teach myself to paint while I'm there, so we'll see whether I actually do any when the beach is calling :-)

I'll post my photos when I get back, and don't worry about the blog - I've scheduled daily posts for when I'm away...Ciao!

Rainbow Cocktail

This is definitely a 'wow' looking drink, don't you think? The secret is to make ice cubes in the colours of the rainbow - so clever!

Click here for more details.