Craft Tips

I can think of one craft tip where you use the meat trays from the grocery store and cookie cutters to make tree decorations or package decorations. Cut them out using the cookie cutter and a craft knife then decorate them using paint or glitter or a watercolor maker. Use a hole punch to make the hole where you want it to hang from the tree. Another craft tip using meat trays and cookie cutters or a child’s coloring book is to cut out using scissors or craft knife the shape you want and decorate it punch the hole in it and then flour a cookie sheet and put the meat tray decorations into your oven at 200 degrees until they shrink and lay flat. Be care taking them out, they are very hot. Use the fish hook for pierced ears and you have a cute set of earrings or a small chain and you have a bracelet or necklace.
Carol Martin, McAlester, OK

I graph my material I'm using for a project just like the pattern is graphed. I use plain sewing thread and graph 10x10 squares . You then need to work underneath the thread with each cross stitch or you might not be able to pull it out when the project is done. This saves so much time and I find I don't make near as many mistakes. It's easier to count large squares than hundreds of tiny squares.
Shirley Hamilton, Healy, KS

Here are a few of my craft tips that help me keep a little more organized. I save baby wipe containers. The ones that are shaped like a cylinder and have a hole in the top. I put a skein of yarn in each one and string the yarn through the hole. This makes it easier for me to get to the yarn and keeps it tangle free. Instead of saving all of my craft magazines, I tear out the pages that have ideas and patterns on them that I like and punch holes in them and put them in a three ring notebook. It is much easier to look in one notebook for a particular idea or pattern than all those craft books.
Ginger Harrison, Cross Lakes, WV

Did you get out your decorations and all your bows are crushed and/or wrinkled? Just straighten them out and curl them the way you want them with your curling iron! Works on flocked bows too!
Louannda Larson, Clinton, IA

When saving leftover custom-mixed paint put it in a corner of a small plastic bag and twist tightly, seal with a twist tie. When you need to use the paint prick a pin hole in the bag and squeeze.
Sandy Packard, Middleton, WI

I work a lot with narrow satin ribbon of all colors. The individual spools can be annoying to keep up with when your hands are already full with the craft you are working on. To organize these spools, I take a regular wire hanger, untwist the top, string each spool (grouped by color) through the hole on the wire and re-twist the wire top. Ribbon ends should roll off the spools in the same direction and be attached to the spools with a straight pin or tape. It is convenient to use and can easily be stored by the hook top of the hanger.
Jeanie Cheeseman, Columbus. OH

I cross stitch a lot! I find it convenient to use a toothpick holder for needles. The stand up straight, and you don't get stabbed with them near as much or as hard. Also, you can put floss or thread in a film canister and label it with the color or number. This doesn't take up much space and keep colors together well.
Christina Christie Amarillo, Texas

I often have to leave crochet items for extended periods (three teenagers, and I'm a college student), this often means that I loose track of where I am in the pattern. I find that placing a sticky note paper on my pattern helps to keep track of where I am at, and when working with patterns that are in rounds, I mark the beginning of the round with a plastic bread closure. They won't harm the thread, and are easy to find.
Bonnie Goldhammer, Mansfield, AR

Hi. Just thought I would tell you my tip---When doing any kind of needlework where you need to pull a needle through the material (such as crochet & cross-stitch) keep a large rubber band close by and you will have little trouble pulling the thread, as it will give enough gripping power to pull through most of the projects. This is especially good for people with arthritis or carpal tunnel.
Sandra Seymour, Taylor, MI

Craft Tip: Another craft tip I have for use of the foam meat trays is to use them for patterns for stenciling and quilting. They are stronger than cardboard and don't bend, and also are a lot easier to trace around. Thank-You.
Peggy Marcy, West Leyden, NY

Here is my crafting tip. I take an old phone book and remove the front cover and use it as a rest for my glue gun. Then is the glue drips, it's on the paper--tear off the top sheet and you have a new clean surface to work with. Works great with other messy projects too like mixing glues, testing your brush for stenciling, etc (you get the idea) It's a great way to recycle an old phone book and to keep you crafting center neat and clean.
Denise McCall, Columbus, OH

I use a lot of ribbon in most of my crafts and we all know how difficult can be to keep all that ribbon on the spool. One of the neatest things I've discovered for my ribbon is to cut off the legs of pantyhose and put the spools in them. One will hold as many as you like and they will not unwind as the hose snugs up against the spool. You can see the color you want and reach down the inside of the hose and get it very easy. IT'S GREAT!
Shara George Lynnwood, Washington

If you work a lot with colored wrapping paper (origami, paper covered boxes and picture frames, etc), don't throw out the leftover paper scraps -they might be useful for your next project. If you are afraid that your workplace will soon be covered by a heap of paper, do the following: put all matching scraps into a plain envelope and glue a one piece to the front- this way you will know what's inside without opening the envelope. Then you can organize all the envelopes in the hanging files or just simply arrange them in a box.
Ruslana Zitserman , Kent Ridge, Singapore

My craft tip is to cut the top off a 2-liter soda bottle, and store your glue bottle in it to keep the glue in the tip and ready to go.
Sue Oskam Budd Lake, NJ

I have a mini glue gun that just did not want to stand up when I set it down on the table. I simply took a small piece of scrap styrofaom (2-3 " square by 1/2' deep) and when I set the gun down, pushed the feet into the styrofoam. No more falling over!
Jeanne Meiler Lancaster, NY

I use a lot of ribbon in most of my crafts and we all know how difficult it can be to keep all that ribbon on the spool. One of the neatest things I've discovered for my ribbon is to cut off the legs of pantyhose and put the spools in them. One will hold as many as you like and they will not unwind as the hose snugs up against the spool. You can see the color you want and reach down the inside of the hose and get it very easy. IT'S GREAT!
Shara George, Lynnwood, Washington