Geometric gift box tutorial

The sky is blue, the sun is shining and the schools have broken up. It can only mean one thing - wedding season is upon us once more. We've just fallen for this wedding favour box DIY.

The gurus at HeyLook created a little range of geometric favour boxes for Ruffled, which can be created from the templates provided.

Is it just us, or are regular gift boxes looking terribly old-fashioned all of a sudden? We can't imagine making a whole wedding party's worth, but we think for a special gift these are definitely worth the effort.

Upcycled chests of drawers round-up

Ever since we blogged about furniture upcycling company Out of the Dark last week, we've been noticing loads of cool and creative ideas for renovating old furniture all over the net. Here's a mini round up of our favourites. First to earn a mention is Chi Chi Studio's hand painted chest of drawers. Her delicate bird and branch motif has transformed a boring piece of furniture into an unexpected work of art, and we love that blogger Kristin hasn't just gone down the safe route with a solid colour.

Second up, we have a question for you. Have you ever considered wallpapering anything other than a wall? No, us neither. Beautiful prints, interesting textures and a wonderfully quirky concept put Bryonie Porter's wallpapered furniture firmly on the list.

Finally, because we love a good tutorial, is interiors blog Twice Lovely. The blog is filled with furniture upcycling ideas, but our favourite is this on-trend chevron print chest of drawers DIY, which uses masking tape for a quick and easy stencilling effect.

You may have noticed that another chest of drawers has sneaked its way into this post. This is another of Ann Marie's ideas, and we've included it as proof that transforming an old dresser can be as straightforward as adding a lick of paint and some beautiful new handles. Sometimes, simple really is best.

Show your photos some love

Are any of our readers budding photographers? We found this fab heart bokeh tutorial which we can't wait try out. For those of you with a confused look on their faces right now, the term bokeh refers to the quality of the areas of a photo which are not in focus.

Rebekah from A Little Bit of Sunshine has a heart bokeh filter to create a background of delicate hearts in her photographs. The best bit of this tutorial is that all you need is some black card and tape, and you can use any shape you want (we're leaning towards stars, if you're interested). Pop over to A Little Bit of Sunshine to find out exactly how to make your own.

Give your house a home sewn touch

Home Sewn Home is making us all nostalgic. Sally Walton has gathered together 20 craft projects that will give our homes a lovely, home-made, vintagey feel.

Tutorials are aimed at beginner to intermediate sewers, but there's also a section of tricks and techniques that make up the basics of sewing. The kind of useful things our our mums tried to teach us as kids before our attention spans were up to it!

Psst ... See those beautiful totes below? They're from Home Sewn Home author Sally Walton's ethical bag company Carry-a-bag, and they're all made from vintage fabrics and printed by hand. Definitely worth a peek!

Grab a colour block tote

Okay, confession time. We have a whole pile of 'bag for life' bags tucked at the bottom of our cupboards. We buy them thinking 'what a great idea, I can use this forever'. Next time we go shopping, where's the bag? At home. So we buy a new one. Which isn't planet-friendly at all.

We've decided to take the matter in hand and fashion a new shopping bag that we love so much that there's no way we can forget about it, and this colour block fabric tote from Fellow Fellow (guest posted on Say Yes to Hoboken) will do the trick nicely.

It's not simple, but blogger Claire has provided a really thorough tutorial with so many photos it must be foolproof (right?).  The best bit? It's lovely enough to use as a day bag all summer long!

Revamp your old furniture

Out of the Dark is a furniture restoration company with a difference. An extension of charity Street Dreams, Out of the Dark  works with disadvantaged young people to restore unloved pieces of furniture, teaching valuable practical and business skills along the way.

Now, Out of the Dark is taking the time out to help us make our scruffy old furniture look brand new again, too. If, like us, your sanding / painting / cleaning / varnishing / waxing skills leave something to be desired, and you're about in the Marlow area next Thursday 19th July, drop into their furniture restoration workshop for some DIY tips.

Check out their website and online shop to fund out how you can get involved.

Make a custom rose trellis

Today, we've got a proper garden project for you to get stuck into. When blogger Annalea from Hope and Honey moved house, she inherited an unruly rose bush along with it. After struggling to find a trellis that was strong enough, the right size and didn't cost the earth, Annalea went about making her own.

Annalea's rose trellis DIY  uses cedar framing and mesh fencing, and lets you build a sturdy structure that fits wherever you want it to. Top marks to her for showing some true Simple Things spirit!

Say a simple thank you

Whether its to your mum for looking after the kids for that extra couple of hours, or a friend for making you feel better when everything is going wrong, sometimes everyone needs to say a proper thank you.

We thought this thank you gift idea from You are my Fave was really lovely. Next time you want to show your gratitude, wrap a freshly baked (whether by you or your local baker) loaf of bread in a simple tea towel and tie it with a pretty ribbon. If it's something really big, you could even add a jar of jam.

Roll up a picnic blanket tote

Remember the handy cutlery wraps we blogged about a while ago? Well, we've found something else to add to this summer's picnic kit - an all-in-one picnic blanket tote.

The best picnic blanket tutorial around comes from the girls at Craft Buds. It's our favourite because it has a waterproof underside, so we can lay it out on damp ground without getting our trousers wet, and  it rolls up into a self-contained tote, so it's easy to stash for the sprint back to the car when the heavens reopen! Perfect for British summertime, we say.

Dip something in paint

Anyone who’s anyone is dipping things in paint at the moment. From furniture to jewellery to clothing, it seems there is nothing that is safe from this trend. Here’s our round up of the best dip-dyed DIY projects.

First up is Martha Stewart’s dip-dyed baskets, which we think may have been responsible for kicking off the whole craze off. Turns out, woven straw plus bright white matt paint equals summery design heaven - who’d have thought?

Second to make our lust-list is House of Earnest blogger Erin, who’s brought the trend to the kitchen with her dip-dyed wooden utensils. For this how-to, make sure you use non-toxic paint (Erin’s chosen high gloss food safe shellac) and only dip the handle end to minimise chipping.

Last but not least is this dipped wooden bead necklace tutorial from Laura Parke. Okay, technically these are painted, not dipped, but the effect is the same. We’re torn between neon shades (so cool as a contrast to the wood) and summery pastels. We may just have to make two.

Knock up a folding tripod stool

Want to see our latest picnic essential? This folding tripod stool, which will help us relax in style when we're worn out from rambling through the countryside. We love the smart tan leather, we love the old-fashioned design and we especially love the fact that we can fold it up and sling it over our shoulders when we're on the move.

Matt from Design*Sponge assures us that it's possible to knock up our own using some study dowel and a few hardware essentials. Pop over to the blog to see how it's done.

Hang up a Mason jar planter

Is there no end to things you can do with a Mason jar? We've already expressed our love for Mason jar chandeliers, now we're thinking of going green and upcycling them into a wall planter, à la Not Just a Housewife.

Blogger Stacy had a brainwave in the midst of a peach-canning spree, and knocked up this quirky Mason jar wall planter using leftover jars, some wood and clamps.

If you're worried about drainage (admittedly, it might be a bit of an issue), fill your jars with water, add some pretty flowers and you'll have your very own floral wall display!

Camp out in a homemade pup tent

Rigging up a makeshift hidey-hole must be some sort of rite of passage.

Everyone we've spoken to has fond childhood memories of fashioning a lopsided tent out of some old sheets, the edge of a sofa or two, and 'camping out' indoors until their parent's had had enough of the mess in their lounge.

ReadyMade has gone one step better and knocked up their very own pup tent, using an old sheet and some wooden rods. If you're feeling up to it, pop over to the ReadyMade blog to find out how they did it. Your kids will love you for it, trust us.

P.S. If you're having problems with the pictureless instuctions, pop over to craft blog cakies where there's a similar A-frame tent how to, with helpful photos to make things a little clearer!

Personalised toasting forks for Father's Day

We think dads may be the most difficult people to buy for. Unless yours has a genuine penchant for golf-themed socks or novelty mugs, you’ll be having problems deciding what to buy for Father's Day.

Well, blogger Miranda of One Little Minute’s suggestion is personalised toasting forks, and we have to say we think it’s a great idea.

A little light DIY (of which your father will surely approve – honestly, it’s a win/win situation) and you have a unique gift that’ll add a lovely personal touch to this summer’s BBQs. Pop over to Miranda’s guest post on Design Mom to find out how to make your own.

Stitch some mitre-edged cloth napkins

There’s no denying that cloth napkins add a special touch to a meal. Crafty blogger Elisabeth from My Growing Home has created a helpful guide on how to sew linen napkins, guest posted over at Design Mom.

She’s included special instructions on how to sew mitre-edges for a super-neat professional finish. We won’t lie, the photo guide looks a lot more like origami than we’re entirely comfortable with, but we're assured that it’s far simpler than it appears.

We love the quirky charm of mismatched napkins, and hate wasting material, so we’ll be using this tutorial as an excuse to dive into our stash of fabric scraps.

Button up a shirt cushion cover

Cushion covers are pretty easy to make, right? If you can make anything, you can make a cushion cover. Impressively, Ducks In a Row has managed to simplify the process even further with her upcycled shirt cushion cover DIY.

No fiddling around with zips or buttonholes, no painstakingly hand-stitching the final seam. Just sew around your cushion pad and unbutton! (Pop over to Ducks in a Row for proper instructions, we definitely missed a few steps there...).

These will look fab just as they are, but it's also really easy to make a kids' version. Blogger Chrissann has customised hers by tucking some surprises into the pockets - check out the cute love heart, retro pocket watch or for the more tech-savvy infant, a felt Blackberry!

Craft yourself a piglet tea towel

We’re always on the lookout for ways to put our stamp on our homes and we think we may just have found the perfect idea.

This piglet tea towel tutorial from Elsie Marley is a great way of adding individuality without compromising on functionality – after all, it’s no good if it doesn’t dry the dishes and can’t be thrown in the washing machine!

Elsie has included a simple how-to and we're pleased to find that it requires hardly any effort (and minimal artistic skill!) to achieve such a professional-looking result.

Wash away the winter with citrus salt scrub

This year’s spring has been so long coming, it’s taken us a little by surprise. Now the sun is shining and there’s blossom on the trees, and our pasty arms and legs are nowhere near ready to be revealed to the world.

We’re hoping this citrus salt scrub DIY will save us from a spring spent sweating in leggings and long sleeves. Pop over to the Martha Writes blog to find how to mix up your own batch of exfoliator, which will banish dead skin and give it a zingy lemon boost. Alright sun, we’re ready for you.

Craft a blackboard bottle marker

Chalkboard paint seems to be having a moment this season. In a world of laptops and kindles, the combination of white chalk and blackboard has an element of old-school cool. Our pick of the chalkboard projects is this upcycled wine bottle DIY from craft blog Mary Janes and Galoshes. We're not quite sure what we’d use these for (blogger Taylor suggests wedding table markers), all we know is that we adore the unexpected combination of shape and surface.

Grab an empty wine bottle – we know you have one – and pop over to Mary Janes and Galoushes to see how its done.

Light up your life with Mason jar lanterns

We like a bit of nifty upcycling, but we’re even bigger fans when the new product looks even better than the original. Etsy seller Boots and Gus is an impressive example of how to do upcycling the right way. Designers Jeff and Mark have filled their shop with wonderfully quirky chandeliers fashioned from vintage Mason jars.

If you’re not ready to commit to a full-blown light feature in your living room, Blogger Chez Beeper Bebe has gone for a more toned down approach and transformed her old jars into tea light lanterns for the garden.

Gorgeous aren't they? Want to find out out how she made them? Then pop over to her blog for a printable how-to.

Made this? We would love to see a pic on our Facebook page.