It’s my hubbys first fathers day. So I wanted his gift to be special. I’m not really one for custom mugs or keychains and neither is he. We both love sentimental stuff, so I came up with three easy DIY fathers day gifts. What’s even better, is that the majority of them cost me less thank $10! woop woop!!

DIY Baby Handprint T-shirt

This is something that is SUPER easy to do! Because I’m a super detailed person, there are actually 2 ways you can do this. So I’ll list out both ways for you.

OPTION 1: With a Printer and Digital handprint
OPTION 2: Using fabric paint, you can either put the handprint directly on the shirt, or onto the transfer paper. If using the transfer paper and paint, let dry, then follow the steps from step 5 onwards.

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MATERIALS

Ink for baby Handprint
T-shirt (light coloured like grey or white)
Iphone or camera
Editing software like Photoshop
Ink Jet Printer
White t-shirt transfer Paper
Cardboard

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STEP 1:

The first thing you’re going to want to do, is to actually get your babies or kids handprint. This can be messy and/or fun depending on the age of your child. For me, J is 5 months old and had no idea what we were doing. Plus he’s not in control of his limbs, so it got very messy. But alas, we got the handprint.

STEP 2:

Take a photo of your handprint with your camera or iphone. It’s really important to make sure you keep it clean, and get the photo in good lighting. You want the handprint to look as black as possible and the background to look as white as possible.

STEP 3:

Transfer the photo to your computer, and then using editing software (I used photoshop) edit your picture so that it’s high contrast and brighter. There are probably other ways to digitise a handprint, but I just did it the way I know how to. Here is a before and after picture. I just cropped the best handprint and copied and pasted it into a new A4 document in Photoshop. Once it was in the new document,I edited the brightness and contrast so that the handprint was crisper and clearer.

STEP 4:

Print the handprint (or footprint) onto your transfer paper. PROTIP: Before you print onto the acutal paper (cus it can get expensive if you muck up) test it on a normal A4 piece of paper to make sure the colouring looks good as well as the placing of the handprint. And also mark the plain A4 side so you know which way to put the transfer paper into the tray when you’re ready to do so.

STEP 5:

Cut around the handprint as close to the design as possible. You want to leave around a 1-2mm border.

STEP 6:

use a hard work surface that is level and will not react to heat. Don’t use an ironing board as the image may distort when fused due to the flexibility of the surface.

Adjust your iron to the cotton setting and turn off the steam function. Let the iron heat up fully. Low temperature or the use of steam will affect the transfer result.

Make sure the T-shirt is flat on the surface, place some cardboard between the front and back layers of the shirt. iron for several seconds on the area where you are going to put the transfer (this removes any moisture in the fabric)

STEP 7:

lay the design printed side down and begin ironing in a smooth consistent circular motion, applying heavy pressure. Use the heal of the iron as this area has the highest temperature and allows consistent wide-range pressure.

As a guide, for a transfer the size of a baby’s hand (aprpox a quarter of the size of an A4 sheet) apply pressure for 25-35 seconds. (probably a good idea to read the instructions of your own transfer paper as they may differ to this)

once the area is warm to touch, slowly peel a corner of the backing paper off first to check the results. Do not let the project cool before peeling because the adhesive will remain on the paper. If the transfer looks opaque, re-position the backing paper and apply further heat. The aim is for the transfer to be clear before removing the backing.

DO NOT WASH FOR 24-48 HOURS. 

DIY Custom iPhone Case

If you thought the t-shirt was easy, WAIT until you try this DIY iPhone case (it could be any case really)

OPTION 1: Use a computer to generate a design
OPTION 2: Create a stencil of the phone case, and then get your craft on by sticking and pasting photos, patterns and shapes as you please.

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MATERIALS

photos and patterns to use for the design
clear phone case
scissors
glue
thick cardstock

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Step 1:

Design your cover in editing software on the computer, alternatively you can design it like a collage on a piece of card, cutting and gluing it just the way you like.

If designing on the computer just create it as a large square; we’ll cut the iPhone shape out later.

If you’re designing it by sticking and gluing, cut the piece of card that you’ll use as your base out into the shape of your phone. Do this by tracing your phone or current phone case.

Step 2:

Print off your design (preferably onto a thicker card stock) and then trace the case shape and cut it out.

Take care when cutting around the space for the camera.

Step 3:

Insert your design into the clear phone case. You can leave it as is; or you can secure it with a bit of glue (glue may affect how it appears through the case)

DIY Personalised Line Art

Again, this tutorial can be done in a few ways. The first way is to create the line art digitally (which is what I did) but the second way it could be created, is by using a good old fashion Artline pen to trace the original photo onto a new piece of paper.

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MATERIALS

photo for tracing
digital software such as Photoshop (or just an Artline pen if tracing by hand)
A4 Frame

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Step 1:

Pick a photo that you would like to trace. You can either trace is manually with an art line pen or do it digitally.

Step 2:

If tracing digitally, open the photo in photoshop, change the opacity to 50%. Then add a new layer and label it “tracing”. Create a new layer and change the opacity to 50%

Using the brush tool (with a thin pixel setting like 1-3px), trace an outline of the picture. Once you’re happy with the trace, delete the layer of the photograph.

Step 3:

Then copy and paste the hand tracing onto a new A4 document in Photoshop. Print it out. You can print it onto normal paper, or onto a thicker card for a higher quality finish.

Step 4:

Pop the A4 print into your photo frame, and voila – you are done!

The line art drawing is actually for my father-in-law as it’s his hand in the picture. Jasper is his first grandson and he loves him so much, so I think this will be the perfect gift for him!

I can’t wait to give hubby the t-shirt and phone cover (I did buckle, and buy him a few extra goodies too, but he’ll have to wait for fathers day to see what they are)!

The post 3 last minute DIY Fathers Day gifts that don’t suck appeared first on Megzie.

I made about 30 bags with the following quantities. The labels on the bags were made using a template I created in photoshop and printed on some round labels. 

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WHAT YOU’LL NEED

1. Foil lined brown bags (You can get them online from ebay)

2.  2 cups granulated sugar

3. 2 cups brown sugar

4. 8tbs coconut oil, melted

5. 4tbs vanilla extract

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Step 1

I’d suggest that, if you’re going to make labels for the bags, that you stick them on first when the bags are laying flat. That way you’ll avoid any creases once the bags are full of the scrub.

Step 2

It’s as simple as combining all the granulated sugar, brown sugar, coconut oil and vanilla extract in a big bowl.  

Step 3

Use a spoon and mix all the ingredients well until you get a good consistency. Then transfer to the foil bags (or an airtight jar) and store in a cool, dry place.

How cute did they look at my baby shower. For more snaps of the big day, you can check out the post here.

To apply this scrub, simply apply to wet skin in the shower or tub and then rinse off and dry with a towel. It should leave your skin feeling both exfoliated (the sugar) and moisturised (the coconut oil).

Enjoy!!

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Don’t get me wrong, you get some gorgeous crackers out there, but the really nice ones (that don’t have the tacky yo-yo’s and magic fish inside them) can really set you back some. What I love about this DIY is that YOU can choose the gifts that go inside. I actually did this last year, and bought custom gifts for each person that I knew they would love. This year, I was a bit time and budget poor, so I opted for a simple joke and choccie inside. Which I still think is better than some of those cheesy gifts (no I don’t need another set of miniature  playing cards – thank you very much!)

Alrighty, enough chit chat. Let me show you how to do this.

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WHAT YOU’LL NEED

1. Wrapping paper (make sure it’s thin and ‘tearable’
2. Cracker Snaps (you can find them online eg Amazon or Ebay)
3. Toilet roll tubes
4. Goodies to fill the cracker with
5. Christmas jokes
6. Scissors
7. Tape (double sided is best)
8. Ribbon

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STEP 1

Start off by cutting your wrapping paper into squares. The best way to measure this is to use the cracker snaps. You’ll want to make sure that there is enough paper (about an inch) each side of snap. See pic below.

STEP 2

Take your goodies and pop them into the toilet roll tube, along with the cracker snap. Make sure that the snap is evenly centred.

STEP 3

Place the, now filled, toilet roll tube onto the bottom your square piece of wrapping paper. Leave about an inch from the bottom so you can tape it to the roll to keep it secure.

STEP 4

Start rolling the paper upwards until you get to the top, make sure you keep the paper as straight as possible.

STEP 5

Using double sided tape, secure the two pieces of paper together.

STEP 6

Using your hands, twist the ends of the paper and then secure with some ribbon at each side.

And voila, you’re done! See that was super simple! These are a great addition to any Christmas dinners you might be having, they make for great decorations too.

Let me know what you think! Would love to see some snaps if you decide to make your own crackers too!

Happy DIYing and Merry Christmas!!

The post Simple DIY Christmas Cracker appeared first on Megzie.

Aw man, I can’t get enough of marbling stuff on Pinterest! It’s all I see! I’m in love. I actually bought some white eggs because I wanted to have a go at marbling myself, but because we’re packing for America and tying up all our loose ends I just haven’t had the time. So I’ll have to live vicariously through my favourite pins this week.

Image 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

Why not give marbling a go for yourself?

KEEP READING

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The post THIS WEEK I’M LOVING | MARBLING appeared first on Megzie.

I’ve been wanting to do a chalkboard something for a while now. I’ve had the spray paint sitting in my craft cupboard and decided that I’d make a USA map cheese board for our USA farwell party we had the other day.

This was the one of the most simple DIYs I’ve ever done.

MATERIALS NEEDED

Wooden chopping board
Black chalkboard spray paint
A4 Paper
Scissors
A weight, or double sided tape to hold the paper down

METHOD

1. find an image of the USA map (or any other shape) that you would like to use

2. trace around it, and cut it out so that you have a stencil

3. lightly sand the wooden chopping board, prime depending on the chalkboard paint you have

4. lay the stencil down, and weight or tape it to avoid leakage. Spray from 15-20cm away

5. let it dry

6. use some chalk to color in the shape and then wipe it off, this will avoid ‘burning’ of writing for the first time

7. Serve up some cheese and crakers and write a quirky message on your chalkboard!

KEEP READING

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Let’s all take a moment to pause and appreciate the treasures you can find in thrift stores! I found these wooden tray’s the other day for 50c each – bargain! I just knew that I could make them awesome, and so the retro painted wooden jewellery tray was born.

Materials & instructions are below

MATERIALS

Small wooden trays (mine were all the suits of a deck of cards – so cool!)
Acrylic craft paint
Washi tape
Paint brush
Sandpaper
(optional) Mod Podge

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Start by using the washi tape to create the outlines of your retro shapes, you can’t really go wrong here. If you want the shapes to go all around the tray make sure your tape goes all around

2. Using the sandpaper, sand the exposed wood so that it’s ready for painting

3. Paint! Go nuts with the color. Depending on the brand of paint you’re using, you may need a couple of coats, I did two, probably could’ve gone three

4. Let it dry

5. Remove the washi tape to reveal your retro wooden jewellery tray!

6. If you’d like to protect the paint from chipping paint a coat or two of mod podge over the whole tray

7. Fill trays with all your lovely jewellery!

Related articles across the web

• Modern Breakfast in Bed Tray From Copper Pipe
• DIY Thrift Store Cake Stands
• DIY Gold-Dipped Plant Pots
• How to Use Washi Tape to Revamp Your Furniture
• Big Art! 11 ways to fill a Wall without Spending too much

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