QUICK TIPS ARCHIVE
Add some fall flair to an upholstered chair by draping the back of it with a pretty dollar store kitchen towel in a coordinating colour.
Make an easy fall decoration with a 7″ white salad plate and a wall sticker, both from Dollar Tree. I didn’t use Mod Podge here, as I plan on changing up the design for each new season.
I have some recessed shelves without a door in my spare room that I use for linens. Using a found branch and two large Command style hooks, I created a curtain rod that goes well with the forest print curtain panel I have.
Think of the outside of your refrigerator as a blank canvas. Add fun and interest to it with this easy idea.
Find a sheet of wall sticker designs you like and add them to the side of your fridge that could use a bit of colour.
I added mine to the side of my fridge, as it faces out into the living room area. It’s now much nicer to look at than just all that white!
Newsletter reader Catherine Hayes-Sheen sent me this idea for using phone holders as pull handles on storage boxes. She uses the ringed phone holders for this purpose, as well. What a neat idea!
Got an idea you want to share with others? Let me know! marlenealexander2327@gmail.com
Rub on transfers are an easy way to add a bit of personality to everyday objects. I used one from a recent Dollar Tree sheet to decorate the nightlight in my bathroom, which is also from Dollar Tree.
Keep out some of your Christmas decorations to make a winter scene that you can leave out until spring.
Found this little beaded pumpkin at Dollar Tree. Because the wood base is flat, I thought I’d turn it into a candle holder with an orange LED tea light.
Easily dress your LED candles for fall by using autumnal stickers. These leaf stickers are some I had in my stash. You’ll want to either use one large embellishment per candle or arrange several small ones around the candle’s circumference.
Stickers are easily removable, so your LED candles can always be seasonally dressed.
Similar to the previous idea that filled this ginger jar with greenery, this utilizes my stash of dollar store sea shells for a still more summery/nautical look. I don’t remember why, but I had previously painted a couple of shells and I think they add some additional interest in this display.
Small greenery balls and some green moss in a clear ginger jar, makes a pretty display for spring and summer.
A small pretty gift box, especially one in an interesting shape, make a great pedestal for a favourite decoration. I found this box at Dollar Tree.
This artwork was easily made using three 4 x 4 pictures of different butterflies I found at Dollar Tree. I simply cut the ribbon hangers off of two of them and glued them together to make one long piece. It fits nicely on a narrow wall between the kitchen and laundry room. You could also glue the frames together horizontally.
Make a quick Easter centrepiece using a small tray, some Easter basket filler, treat-filled Easter eggs and a couple of bunny figurines. Add some contrasting florals to complete. After dinner, guests can choose an egg to get a candy treat.
Use some butterfly window clings on clear vases to make attractive candle holders for spring and summer. See Summer Decorating Using Candles and String Lights for more summer lighting ideas.
You can use outdoor garden objects indoors by gluing some felt to the bottom to protect furniture and floors. This piece was heavy enough to make it useful as an attractive doorstop.
Even if you only buy calendars to use the artwork for crafts, save the cardboard squares that come with them. They make a great way to store your twinkle lights. I simply tape the battery box to the cardboard and wind the lights in rows around it, taping the end of the light string down to finish. You could also write where you use them right onto the cardboard.
You can make a quick tabletop mirror with a hexagon frame and a hexagon mirror, both found at Dollarama. This can be easily done by removing everything from the frame, painting it if you like, prying the back off of the same shape mirror and inserting it into the frame.
These glass jars with bamboo lids were found at Dollar Tree. They make for great storage in the bathroom. I used some individual floral stickers I found at Dollarama to dress them up.
Store your dishwasher tabs in a plastic cereal container. This makes them easy to access and protects them from moisture when stored under the sink. Dollar stores sell these containers in larger and smaller sizes.
On my recent travels, I bought the round blue pill case at Dollar Tree to carry my supply of vitamins in. The sections were barely big enough for my needs. I recently found the clear craft organizer in Dollar Tree and thought it would be a better option for carrying pills, as the sections are larger. The top comes off so you can wash it before use and you could use a permanent marker to write the days of the week on each section’s lid, if that’s important for you.
You can buy special clips to label your baskets. My idea is to use bag clips and label them yourself. Use bag clips that have a smooth surface, design the labels you need on your computer and print. Then it’s just a matter of cutting them out and gluing the labels onto the bag clips. Any glue would probably work, but I opted for Mod Podge and coated the whole clip, as well as the label.
If you have neat printing skills, which I don’t :(, you could even write directly onto the clip using a Sharpie. These bag clips are about 3 1/4-inches long and I used a font called Algerian and sized it at 18.
You can easily repurpose those low glass jars that contain beauty creams. Simply peel off the labels, wrap a bit of ribbon around the grooves at the top to conceal where the lid screws on. I used some burlap ribbon I had on hand. Then just pop a tea light in there and you’ve got a pretty candle holder.
The batteries that you find at dollar stores are find for things like flashlights, but if something will be running for long periods of time, like this aroma diffuser from Dollar Tree, you’re going to go through a lot of batteries. It’s better, in this case, to buy the best batteries. It will save you money in the end.
Use the new harvest miniatures at Dollar Tree to fill a cloche for fall.
Okay, so suddenly you need candle holders for your taper candles, but you discover that you’ve used all of your six inch candle holders in tiered trays or for other projects. Not to worry. Just hunt up a couple of votive candle holders, hold your taper candle in the centre of it and fill in around the candle with stones or sand. Voila!
I’d found these striped taper candles at Dollar Tree a few years ago and, as I’m still in beach decor mode, I thought I’d use them to illustrate, as they put me in mind of lighthouses.
Don’t throw those credit card-sized advertising magnets out. You can use them to add to the back of things like this calendar pad, so you can attach it to the fridge or a magnetic board in your office. I used two such magnets on the back at the top of this calendar pad using strong glue. I let the glue dry overnight and now I have an easy way to keep my days organized in my home office.
FYI, I found this calendar pad at a dollar store, too.
I got tired of having to repaint my metal bistro table every spring to cover up rust, so this year I decided to cover it in contact paper. It’s easy to wipe clean and looks good paired with my dark green chairs. If you’d like to try this, choose whatever pattern best suits your outdoor decor.
A long window cling makes a quick and pretty decoration on a tall cylinder vase. Simply cut the length needed and wrap it around the base of the vase. A white candle helps to highlight the lavender flowers.
These window clings were found at Dollarama.
Did you know that you can replace the batteries in your dollar store solar lights? The plastic piece under the top of the light removes easily. Then, all you need is a small screwdriver like the kind used to repair glasses to remove the two screws on the back. Once the battery is replaced, replace the backing containing the battery, being sure to line up the holes where the screws go.
These solar lights take AAA rechargeable batteries, which I haven’t found to be readily available in stores. These are from Amazon and were already charged and ready to go.
If you’re tired of losing socks in the wash (Lord only knows where they disappear to!), here’s a solution. I found this large mesh laundry bag at Dollarama for $2.50. It’s 18″ long by 14 1/2″ wide, ample room for a week’s worth of socks. There’s also a smaller version of the same bag.
You could use one bag for each member of the family if you need to, and never worry about the washer leaving you with odd socks ever again.
If you’re looking for an easy way to dress up a plain white frame for Valentine’s Day, try this idea. I used a sheet of puffy heart stickers that came in three different sizes to create a pattern all the way around this 8 x 10 inch frame. You can use whatever type of sticker you have on hand.
An easy way to dress up a plain dollar store Christmas sign is to add embellishments to it like this gold pick. See more ideas like this in this article.
If you like to reuse your table confetti from year to year, storing it in a travel soap holder before you pack it away, is an easy idea. To make sure the lid stays on, I simply put an elastic band around it.
Phone rings are certainly nothing new but, as I recently discovered from a fellow crafter, they’re good for more than just using on your phone. If they can hold the weight of your phone, they can certainly be used to hold the weight of light objects you want to hang on the wall. Is that not a nifty idea? Gonna try this for one or two of my fall crafts.
Love the scalloped edges on this 4-inch ceramic mushroom from Dollar Tree. It struck me that it’s just the right size to make a great fairy house for my collection . All it needs is to have a door and a couple of windows drawn on it.
Decorative mirrors are a great way to help fill a wall space. The large one was found at Dollarama and the two smaller ones at Dollar Tree. Together, they’re enough alike to make a lovely grouping.
If you’ve ever wondered what to do with those empty plastic chocolate boxes that seem too useful to throw out, here’s an idea. Simply add a drawer knob to the lid and fill it with cotton balls or Q-Tips to use in the bathroom.
We’ve all seen these plastic picture frame holders at the dollar store. It occurred to me that one of these would also make a great stand for your tablet or smart phone. Then you can more easily watch movies or type in Word with a wireless keyboard.
Fresh flowers are a wonderful addition to any room. Unfortunately, they’re not long-lived. When the bouquet gets to be past its prime, there are usually a few blooms that still look good. Fill a clear low vase with water, snip the heads off and float one or more of them in the water for continued enjoyment. You may want to add some decorative stones to the bowl or a piece of greenery from the same bouquet.
Give a plain lampshade a quick boost with a couple of rolls of decorative trim. This corded trim has faux leaves weaved throughout. One roll contains 6 feet, 6 inches of trim and costs $1.50. One roll would be sufficient for a smaller lampshade. I used a clear-drying glue to secure the trim to the top and bottom edges of this larger shade.
Dress up plain vases and other objects using stickers from the dollar store. In this case I used part of a set of laptop stickers. Get more ideas from Sticker Situations.
Make your own battery-operated lantern using a candle lantern you have on hand and a set of battery-operated lights. I used this set of blue butterflies from my summer stash. I pulled a few of the lights up through the top of the lantern, rested some of them between the bars at the top of the cage and spread the rest out around the base.
Tuck as much of the cord inside the lantern as you can, leaving just enough so that the battery pack can be attached to the bottom of the lantern using Velcro or Command strips. That way, you can hang the lantern up and still
have easy access to the on/off switch, while keeping the battery pack pretty much out of sight.
Every spring, I get masses of pretty yellow primroses blooming in my garden and I wondered why I couldn’t bring some inside to enjoy, just like any other flower. Trouble is finding a vase small enough! The solution: a shot glass. It’s the perfect size for holding tiny flowers like these.
Here’s an easy idea for Mother’s Day that’s sure to please. Just buy a pretty pot at the dollar store, a flowering plant, (I found this pretty pink geranium at my local grocery store garden center for $3), and you’ve got a gift that will serve double-duty.
Just put the plant, still in its plastic pot, into the dollar store ceramic pot and tuck some Spanish moss around the top edges. Add a butterfly pick or some other embellishment, if you like. Mom can plant the flower in her garden this spring and reuse the pot for another plant either inside or outside.
Choose an appropriately-sized flower pot or planter, fill it up with stones (I’ve used small ones here) and just stick your succulent picks in to make a pleasing arrangement, varying the heights. Easy to do, easy to change!
Keep all of your instruction manuals that are related to the TV in a plastic folder like this from the dollar store and tuck it in behind the TV. Then, when you need to check the TV, game system, or Bluray manual, you won’t have to dig through a file cabinet or drawer to find what you’re looking for.
Make a fragrant sachet for drawers and closets by filling a few of those drawstring gift bags from the dollar store with your favourite potpourri. This would also make a thoughtful gift for Valentine’s Day.
The natural elements all around us are free for the taking and make for easy fall decorating. Here, a combination of small pine cones and acorns in an attractive dish makes a quick and easy decorating accent for fall and winter.
If you’re living in a rental apartment with a boring back splash area, try using over-sized wall stickers to give the area some colour. Vinyl wall stickers won’t leave a sticky residue when removed and can be wiped down with a damp cloth, so kitchen splatters shouldn’t be a problem. When you get tired of one pattern, these stickers can be easily replaced for a totally new look.
Each sticker sheet has six large decals on it. I found these at Dollar Tree.
Add a little inexpensive bling to your curtains by using a dollar store necklace as a tieback. Experiment with different types of necklaces to get a look that’s right for your curtain and room décor.
Tissue boxes sit out in the open in our homes, so we want them to be attractive, as well as useful, especially in places where visitors may see them. I usually buy my tissues in packages of six and sometimes there’s a box or two that I don’t like the looks of, for one reason or another.
Here’s an easy fix: Cut two-inch strips of wrapping paper or scrapbook paper and tape or glue them around the outside of the tissue box. (I recommend gluing to ensure that all the edges lay flat.) I found this mirror-like paper in my scrapbook paper stash and used it to glam up a plain tissue box for the powder room.
Did you know that you can use a mug warmer to release candle scents? Well you can! I tried it and
it works great, especially when you have someone in your house who is leery of open flames. 😉 Of course, you only want to do this with candles in glass containers.
All you need is a package of plain shower curtain rings and a bag of craft accents to make your own version of fancy shower curtain rings. Be sure to use a strong glue to adhere the accents to the rings. (Hot glue melts in the heat and humidity of a bathroom.)
Use your imagination to come up with the right accent for your particular bathroom décor, keeping in mind that they should be waterproof, of a comparable size to the ones you see for sale in stores and not too heavy.
Read Tub Time to see more easy bathroom upgrades.
I’ve been using this desk organizer on the kitchen counter to hold things I use often. Keep scissors, pens and pencils, note paper and even small tools handy and within easy reach. It’s also a great place to store take-out menus that you use often.
If you’re traveling this summer, put together a first aid kit with supplies from the dollar store. Besides these shown, you can find alcohol wipes, diarrhea medicine, muscle ache patches, medical tape and more. Use a small lidded box to store everything.
To save space, remove things like bandages from their original containers, taking just a few for your travel kit. You could also add a few cotton balls, cotton swabs and/or cotton pads stored in a small zipper seal bag.
Customize your first aid kit according to your family’s needs and be sure to replenish anything you use after each outing.
Got too many snack boxes taking up space in your cupboards? Reduce the space need to store them by using a cheap plastic box to store the snack bars in. Then recycle the cardboard boxes.
This storage box is about 9 1/2-inches long by about 6 1/2-inches wide and can store at least three boxes worth of snack bars. Use these lidded boxes for storing other things and stack them to save even more space.
You can throw some mood lighting together quicker than you can say, “summer party,” by putting clear glass stones in a small glass bowl and nestling the top of a cheap solar light into it.
Now that the weather is getting warmer, many of us want to hang our clothes outside. I love the fresh smell my clothes get after they’ve been hanging outside to dry! But there’s a problem. With small backyards being the norm these days, we are limited to using portable clothes racks, rather than a clothes line. On a windy day, these racks tend to tip over.
Here’s a solution using garden staples. The picture on the left is a 5 1/2-inch long garden staple. These staples come in a package of ten for $1.50 at Dollarama. The picture on the right shows how you can use three or four of these staples to anchor your clothes rack into the ground so it won’t blow over on a windy day.
A row of three dimensional flower stickers placed around the middle of a vase makes a quick and easy way to decorate a candle holder for spring and summer.
In years past it seems that everyone had coloured covers for their toilet seat lids that matched the bath rugs, but that trend has since fallen out of favour. Still, if you’d like to add a little extra colour to your bathroom, try using some wall stickers. These came on a large sheet for two bucks at Dollarama.
A word of warning: These wall stickers will be more of a challenge to remove from plastic and porcelain than if they were on a wall, where they can be easily re-positioned, so be sure you get the design you’ve chosen where you want it the first time as they may stretch and tear when you’re trying to re-position them.
Arrange different shapes of cork trivets on a wall to create an outside-the-box message centre. Trivets are thicker than the usual cork board so you can be sure push pins won’t scratch walls. Use a saw-tooth hanger on the backs and hang them on nails.
The embellishments are 3D stickers also found at the dollar store. I’m always surprised by how many surfaces stickers will adhere to.
Label your closet bins using pictures, rather than writing on labels. Stickers work well. For instance, if you have dog gear in one basket, like I do, you can always find stickers with dogs on them. Or, if you can draw or have a talented relative in your family, put a hand-drawn picture on the label. In my case, my son Curtis helped me label the bin with extra hats and gloves in it and made another label that designates all things related to shoes, such as laces, polishes and spray protectors.
Keeping such things all in one place makes them easy to find when you need them.
Someone gifted me with apple-scented potpourri years ago. Although the scent is long gone, the potpourri is still attractive. For contrast, I’ve added some elements from other vase fillers, such as the cream-coloured paper flower, as well as some pine cones and faux acorns. Served up in a wooden bowl, it makes an attractive decoration on a coffee table that will last throughout fall and winter.
Here’s a quick and easy party favour for your next fall party: Simply wrap regular-size chocolate bars in scrapbook paper. Here, we’ve left the ends open. Place a faux leaf on top and secure it in place with baker’s twine as you wrap the chocolate like a gift. Tie a knot in the twine, leaving the ends long.
Print messages such as “Thankful for You!”, “Give Thanks” or place names, if you prefer, onto a sheet of address labels and cut them out. Apply messages or names to small tags, add a small embellishment like the leaf confetti shown here and tie the label onto the ends of the baker’s twine.
If you’re like me, you hate to throw out reusable gift bags but what can you do with a bunch of paper wine bottle bags? I mean, you don’t gift someone with a bottle of wine everyday. If you have a collection of these tall paper gift bags, here’s the answer. Just cut them down to a shorter size (however tall or short you want), leaving about an extra inch at the top to fold down on the inside of the bag and use a one-hole punch to make holes for a ribbon or decorative cord handle. Voila! A gift bag that’s wider than your average small gift bag and great for smaller gifts.
Organize your craft supplies and make them easily accessible by using a lazy Susan. We cut a piece of non-slip shelf liner to fit the top of this 10-inch glass lazy Susan and added six mini glass canisters to hold small craft pieces like buttons, tacks and other small pieces. These small canisters come in a set of three for two bucks. Place a square votive candle holder in the middle to store things like sharpie markers and paint brushes.
Pull out a few of your votive candle holders, fill part way with birdseed and nestle bird-shaped tea lights into them. This is a quick, easy and very affordable idea you can use for casual entertaining this summer. You can buy a small bag of birdseed for a buck at Dollarama. The bird tea light candles are from there, too.
See more summer candle ideas here: Light of the Party.
