New Year's Goals

"I have a strong psychic belief that the world will end on New Year's Eve"

(Ghostbusters II; 1989)                  

I wonder how many of us failed in your last year’s resolutions?  Well, I did for sure. It turns out that it does not take much to make them more likely to achieve next year. Most of us probably compose the goals the wrong way and that’s why we forget about them by the end of January. In today’s tutorial I want to show you how to make our goals more achievable using paper, scissors and a little bit of modern psychology, the basics of which I had a chance to learn during my university courses. Scientific texts quoted here come from the book "Improving interpersonal skills" written by Hanna Dolna, who is the coach at interpersonal training at my uni, during which, I learned how to properly formulate goals, and not just business ones.

Jingle Bells, Jingle Bells

 "Mr Yoinks, I CAN HEAR THE BELLS!"

                                                                                        (Lakier do włosów; 2007)

For a long time I wanted to create some kind of bells but I couldn’t find anything with the right shape to recycle. I was trying to use deodorant caps or toilet paper tubes but the effect wasn’t satisfactory. My salvation came when I saw those perfectly shaped bottles at the mall. I think my mother is still wondering what I had in mind when I popped out of the kitchen and shouted “Don’t you throw away those bottles! I can see bells in them!” with madness in my eyes… Tee hee.. Anyway, I am very proud of the effect and I’m going to hang them on my window. I think it can also be a good addition to Christmas wreaths.

In(cr)edible Gingerbreads

 "You can't catch me, I'm the Gingerbread Man!"

                                                                                                                                 (Shrek; 2001)

I suppose I won’t surprise you with this new tutorial. It’s December after all – there are hundreds of Christmas tutorials on the Internet and that number is still growing ;). Since salt dough is an easy-to-get material, I decided to show you how you can make gingerbread decorations. But beware! This tutorial is highly dangerous for family foodies, ‘cause they can break their teeth by mistake. For their own good, best if you warn them about making this kind of gingerbreads ;).

Doily Christmas Tree

 "How could you have Christmas without a Christmas tree, Mom?"

                                                                                                                                         (Home Alone 2;1992)

I can say – making this Christmas tree really made my day. I wanted to create something that I haven’t seen on crafting blogs, so I searched a lot of them to make sure I won’t copy someone else’s idea. So far I haven’t found anything similar. I bought this polystyrene cone, but I wasn’t sure how I’m going to use it. The idea came quite quickly, when I saw those paper doilies. I grabbed the scissors and this is what I ended with.

I Love Cooking – A Recipe Notebook

"What do I always say? Anyone can cook!"

                                                                  (Ratatouille; 2007)

I have seen many ideas for recipe notebooks but none of them met my needs. They often were made of regular school notebooks which discredits their practicality in a kitchen environment… It’s common knowledge – kitchens get messy during work and the paper cover would get covered with greasy stains in no time. Besides, I really don’t like having a limited number of pages ‘cause any additional recipes would have to be kept loose. Therefore, I want to show you a new generation of recipe notebooks – with a 100% washable cover, with adjustable number of pages and with recipes easily sorted by type. Basically, with every feature I look for in such notebooks. I’m going to donate four of those notebooks to a charity fair in my town.

Syringe Pen

"The colour of the pen! That I hold in my hand is Rr.rr.ROYAL BLUE!"

                                                                                                        (Liar, liar;1997)

Today's tutorial was inspired by a student from my uni, who has got a quite unusual pen - something like this. Upon closer inspection, it turned out it isn't what I expected - it just pretends to be a syringe, but in fact there is a normal ballpen inside it. But, it has inspired me to further experiments, which were succesful and ended with my new blog entry. I especially recommend this tutorial for medical students :)

Levitating Pumpkins

"It's Halloween, I guess everyone's entitled to one good scare."

                                                                (Halloween H20: Twenty Years Later;1998)

Halloween is not very popular here in Poland but every year more and more people start celebrating this joyful day, mostly teenagers. Every year there are more and more Halloween stuff you can get at shopping centres, so maybe someday it’ll be an integral part of All Saints’ Day. That’s why I decided to make a Halloween tutorial for you.  I’m sorry for the quality of the photos but I had to come back to my job and I don’t have a lot of free time. That’s why there are differences in light – some of them were taken in the morning and some in the evening. But nevertheless - Happy Halloween!

Happy Bookmarks

"A FROG?! In love with a PIG?!"

                                                          (Muppets take Manhattan; 1984)

Autumn is far from being the most cheerful time of the year. Each of us has fresh memories of the summer and we don’t have a warm welcome for the cooler months. Of course, they also have some charm of their own, but autumn is mostly associated with passing away, reflection and quiet contemplation. Rainy evenings are a perfect opportunity to catch up on books you haven’t read. As for adding some optimistic aspect to your meeting with reading, I’ve decided to show you how to make happy bookmarks. I hope their happy faces will chase away the autumn blues. It is also a nice tutorial for kids, because they usually get bored on rainy days.

Homemade Patches

 "You don't need a patch on your arm to have honor."

                                                                           (A Few Good Men; 1992)

How many times did you find yourself in a situation when it was impossible to find any merch of your favourite band because it’s not very popular? How many of you wanted a patch with your favourite game or anime but you’re short on money at conventions? It happens to me very often. In today’s tutorial I want to show you how to make a patch with your favourite logo using just a piece of denim and paint. It is also a perfect tutorial for punk rock fans, since handmade patches would be a great addition to their outfit.

Kitchen Hooks

"Eat your cereal with a fork, and do your homework in the dark."

                                                                                      (Pump Up the Volume; 1990)

This photo has inspired me to make cute cutting board hooks as a wedding gift for my bestest friends. Unfortunately, after a lot of effort, I failed - it was impossible to bend my forks without a vice. So I changed the idea a little bit and the final effect you can see above. And for the wedding - it was so... lovely. My friend was the loveliest bride! The food was delicious, the band did a great job with the music, the bride's wedding dress was amazing. They both looked so happy and I was happy for them too. I hope it all was just like they imagined.

Fluffy Cornflowers

"Can I get the icon in the cornflower blue?"

                                                                         (Fight Club;1999)

Once again I failed with adding new notes. And I promised! Unacceptable! But really... recent events are making me unable to find any time to add new ones. So there's a litany of the reasons of delays for those of you and I hope you'll forgive me: I am writing the first chapter of my master's thesis, I was on vacation, I was looking for job, I got the job I like, I got a ticket and I was felt down, I'm preparing for my friend's hen party and wedding, I had birthday, I was looking after my dying pet... So it was pretty much 50:50 for nice and bad events. And in today's tutorial - new ideas for chenille stems.

A Fluffy Tulip

"Tip-toe through the tulips with me."

                                                                                               (Q&A;1990)

Sorry for the long break but I have so much to do now. In today’s tutorial (and a few next ones), I decided to use the chenille stems I got for my birthday. It’s a tutorial mainly for kids but I’m sure adults can find some fun in it as well. I’m going to catch up with my overdue tutorials, so probably there will be next one next week, also with fluffy flowers.

A Handy Drawing Pad

"Did you do all these drawings, Doctor?"

                                                                                      (Silence of the Lambs;1991)

I have got my first e-mail with a tutorial request in June. I was very happy to know that someone likes my blog and find it interesting. The request concerned a drawing pad, which the author of the e-mail had found on the Internet. I have send her a preliminary version of the tutorial but I didn't have time for posting it here. This week I finally found time for completing this project. The final version vary from what I send as an answer, but the result should be the same. It is also a good opportunity to learn the patchwork technique.

Kitty Hairband

"Everybody wants to be a cat.."

                                                   (Aristocats;1970)

Recently, I have noticed a new trend among the teenagers interested in Japanese culture – cat's ears. They're supposed to be „kawaii” and adorable, but those I found are, for me, too fluffy and too extravagant so I decided to make simpler ones myself. They can be used as a hair decoration for teenagers, as an element of a costume for kids or an interesting addition to your sexy outfit. Once again the basic knowledge in crochet will be needed here (for the new readers – you can find very comprehensible tutorials for basic stitches in „A vernal hair accessory”).

CD Photo Frame

"Did you get your precious photos?"

                                                                  (Blade Runner;1982)

My younger sister and I had got lots of various magazines with CD-ROMs when we were kids. But they took up a lot of space so I decided to put them in the CD sleeves. The empty jewel cases have been lying on the shelf for a long time, 'cause I thought they would be useful someday. And "someday" is today! I was thinking of transforming them into photo frames and realization came last week. Check it out - it's fast and easy!

Daisy Dukes with the Dixie Flag

"The South will boogie again."

                                                                                                                      (The Simpsons Movie; 2007)

For a very long time I have been thinking about shortening my pants due to a shortage of my summer clothes. I wanted to make a tutorial about it too, but it's not very impressive to write something like "cut off the pantlegs and congrats - you did it it in 3 seconds"... So I came up with a little enrichment - painting the pockets. I really like country music (and I mean the real thing, 'cause "this modern pop country ain't country at all"), so I decided to paint the Dixie flag on my shorts as a tribute to Daisy Duke. But it's my choice - the same way you can paint other flags.

Friendship Bracelets

"This is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.."

                                                                              (Casablanca; 1942)

I remember making such bracelets on a summer camp (I was 11 then) as they became very popular among the girls, including me. We made a great team so we traded them with each other and in the end I came back home with dozens of such bracelets.
Today’s tutorial is made for a special request from a ten-year-old Iza, who recently became interested in making Filofun bracelets. She also liked my embroidery floss bracelet I never take off and she wanted to know how to make one. Due to lack of time to show it to her personally, I decided to make a tutorial here. The pattern is not complicated and it is only one of hundreds of possibilities of weaving.

Make your own flowerpot!

"He's plastered!"

                                        (My Favorite Year;1982)

Recently, I've been thinking hard how I can use an old plastic bottle and I quickly came up with an idea to use it for making a flowerpot (and a tealight holder). Nowadays, almost all bottles have various grooves on them, so patterns can turn out really nice. I'm really satisfied with the effect, so I want to share it with you. The same way, you can use a paper (or plastic) cup (like those from vending machines) - an example of  it you can see at the end of today's tutorial.

Nuka Cola Earrings

"These earrings are a form of torture."

                                         (Made in America;1993)

In March, I was at Pyrkon in Poznań, one of the polish conventions, where I found Nuka Cola earrings on one of the stalls. I loved them until I saw their price - 25 $! They were obviously overpriced! I decided to make a pair myself since it's not that hard. It is also a perfect tutorial for my blog plus I can protect you all from ripoffs like that. It takes only few minutes to make them so feel free to use it.

A May Crate for Mom

"You're right, no human being would stack books like this."

                                                       (Ghostbusters; 1984)

My mom loves books but her bookcase is usually a mess, ‘cause she reads many books at the same time. That’s why I came up with the idea to make something that could keep them in order even when they’re not on the bookshelf. If you can find a small crate in a nearby marketplace, in this tutorial I will show you how you can make it into an elegant bookstand. It’s a perfect occasion to learn the decoupage technique. And since soon it’s Mother’s Day in Poland,  it’s my proposition for a present.

Butterfly on a stick

 "Do you know? God paints every color on a butterfly with His finger."

                                                                                                         (The Ultimate Gift; 2006) 

I've always liked butterflies - their colors and patterns on their wings have always amazed me. As a child, I could sit for hours in the garden and watch them as they drink flower nectar. I used to take caterpillars home to watch them growing and to learn what butterfly would emerge from the chrysalis. After some time, I learned their names thanks to a guide my grandma had gave me. But I was really sad when I found out that some species live only for a few hours is an adult form. The beauty is so faint ... Therefore, in today's tutorial I’m going to show you how to make a decoration - a butterfly, which will live longer and will be pleasing to the eye every day.

Striped Bottle Vase

"Do you have a vase? A vaaase??"

                                             (You've Got Mail; 1998)

Today, I’m going to show you how you can make an old bottle into an original colorful vase for flowers from your husband/fiancé/boyfriend. Besides its useful functions, it is also an interesting element for a house decoration. This idea comes more or less from my art class in primary school (I remember making paper Easter eggs using crepe paper like in this tutorial). That’s why I urge children to make one, too.

Vault Clock

"Sign up at your local Vault Shelter today!"

                              (Fallout; 1997)

I'm sure that everyone of you have at least one object that you hate with all your heart. It can be an unwanted present or something that reminds you someone you don't want to remember. If a clock is one of them, today's tutorial is going to show you how you can change it. I found one sometime ago. I won that in some crappy raffle...It almost has been thrown away, but then I came up with a little make over for it. If you like the Fallout series, I'm sure you'll like this Vault Clock too.

Brotherhood of Nod Keyring

"I am the future. The Tiberian Sun has risen!"

                                                  (Command&Conquer: Tiberian Sun; 1999)

Charms have this in common, that they often detach, leaving the split ring as a souvenir. I have dozens of such rings and I bet you also have at least one. It can be used to create your own, unique keyring. In today's tutorial I’m going to use the Brotherhood of Nod logo from the Command & Conquer video game series.

Cell Phone Warmer

"Winter must be cold for those with no warm memories..."

                                                                                           (Sleepless in Seattle; 1993)

Well, winter season is history now but since it looks like a jumper for your phone, I’m used to call it a warmer. You can also call it a phone-case, so it won’t be associated only with cold months. This is a tutorial for those who can crochet, but also for those who want to learn this technique, since the pattern is simple and easy. It uses only the single crochet stitch, which is basic for crocheting and perfect for beginners.