The Magazine of The Sierra Club
We always like a good excuse to get creative with DIY and upcycled crafts, and March is National Craft Month — the perfect opportunity to get inspired for a full month. Of course, March also symbolizes the coming of spring, so whether your window shows a blanket of snow or the first signs of blossoms, get ready for one of the most beautiful times of year with these bright and colorful crafts from across the web.
Garden hose wreath
There’s a good chance you have an unused garden hose lying around, and this is just the project to turn it into something beautiful. Jill, the blogger behind Create. Craft. Love. and self-proclaimed wreath enthusiast, crafted the wonderful spring-inspired garden hose wreath pictured. Get creative with the embellishments — try out wildflowers or plants from your garden, colorful gloves, or anything else that symbolizes spring to you.
Butterfly wall decor
To spruce up the inside of your home, look no further than this great wall decoration from Susan of the blog Living with Punks. Use any kind of paper lying around your house, and don’t worry if it has something printed on it. This can create a cool look too, and you get a pretty way to use paper that may not have been reused otherwise.
No-sew fabric flowers
Jamie, also known as Scattered Thoughts of a Crafty Mom in the blogosphere, understands that the sewing machine can be scary. Thankfully, these adorable fabric flowers only require basic folding and hot glue gun skills. There’s nothing to be afraid of! Use them to dress up an old headband, make them into a brooch, or use as decor for gifts and around the house.
Upcycled springy globe
Globes can be an under-appreciated accent piece in a room, but this project will ensure that your old globe never goes unnoticed again. My Sister’s Suitcase blogger Holly gives great step-by-step photos and instructions for how to turn a globe into a flower-adorned work of art. This easy craft will brighten up a room the second you finish.
Chopstick vase
If the waste produced by disposable chopsticks has ever annoyed you, you can save those sushi-grabbers from the trash can by making this elegant vase. This craft calls for attaching the chopsticks to a glass jar, ensuring your newest flower-holder is stable and sturdy. Anyone who walks in the door will be wowed with your craftiness.
Colored cabinets
While cleaning up your kitchen, you may have noticed that your cabinets could use an upgrade. Elsie, one-half of the blog A Beautiful Mess, decided to pep up her kitchen by painting the inside of her cabinets a bright color. This easy project will surely add some zest to your home and the vibrant hues will infuse spring into every day.
Silverware fish chime
Do you happen to have any bent or shabby-looking spoons gathering dust in your utensil drawer? Give them new (aquatic) life with this fish chime made out of spoons. While this project does require some handy-person skills, your spoon guppies will look adorable and add a nice accent to your yard or porch.
Button flowers
Whether you’re a dedicated crafter or someone whose clothes just don’t like to cooperate, chances are you have a drawer full of different kinds of buttons somewhere. Rebeka of blog Artsy-Crafty Babe came up with the perfect project to turn stray buttons into fun and quirky flowers. So layer up those buttons and make way for adorable pins and hair accessories.
Upcycled key rack
So you’ve been working on your spring cleaning, and all of a sudden you come across a drawer full of keys that haven’t been used in years and probably don’t open anything useful. Sound familiar? If so, check out this great key rack made from old keys and a piece of wood. It can be used for any kind of quick storage by the door — animal leashes and collars, jewelry, small bags, and (of course) your keys.
Paper towel roll flowers
Spring cleaning probably has you using nearly every cleaning product around, and if paper towels are included in your list, then check out this craft. Nicolette, the woman behind momnivore’s dilemma, was inspired by some other bloggers to rescue her paper towel roll from the recycling bin and turn it into beautiful and fun flowers. Add a pop of color with gems or paint and your house will be spring-ready in no time.
--Top image by Create. Craft. Love.
Jessica Zischke is an editorial intern at Sierra. She is currently studying environmental studies at Dartmouth College, where she also works as a staff writer for The Dartmouth newspaper.
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