happy april! normally this would be an odd month to introduce a new calendar into your life, but this handy little guy is perpetual, which means “good anytime”, forever and always. we ran across something similar at a thrift store a while back and thought it would be an easy, and super customizable project that could be made using little more than an empty peanut can and some paper. we’ve provided some downloadable templates, but you could mix it up with all sorts of fun font and color combinations. In addition to the rotating strips for day of the week, month of the year, and date, we thought it would be fun to add an option for mood as well. this being april 1st and all…we had to go with “nutty”.

have fun!
derek & lauren

CLICK HERE for the full project instructions after the jump!

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this past week i have been passionately involved in nineties movie madness on best week ever, where the public can vote on the ninetiesest of nineties movies (go clueless!). the relevance of this to my diy is that in my mind, altoids are a very nineties food. if there was a nineties food bracket, i think altoids would go right to the top with dippin dots and blue m&ms. but for being so trendy in the nineties, altoids have definitely stood the test of time, and the tins are so fantastically useful that i am making them the diy material for the month of april. the best tins for these projects are old altoids tins, because somewhere along the line altoids changed the design so that the logo is now embossed on the cover. but fear not, because the old ones are easily found in thrift stores and there are also spin off brands like myntz, sucrets, etc. that have smooth tins. so grab a bunch and start passing out the mints! happy crafting! -kate

CLICK HERE for the full project instructions after the jump!

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to say that craftynest is a wealth of fantastic diy projects would be a massive, massive understatement. monica ewing, formerly a designer for sunset magazine, now runs a fantastic blog called craftynest where she shares some really spectacular diy projects. there were too many to even pick a favorite so i thought i’d share a few of my favs in honor of diy day. just click the links below each image to read monica’s step-by-step instructions. thanks monica and jess!

diy project (above): paper silhouettes (love these!)

diy project: bamboo veneer flowers + ikea lack table

diy project: modular bookshelf

diy project: hemp pendant lamps

we do our best to keep our ikea impulse buys to a minimum, but the other day we were flying through, looking for something else, when we came across a stack of ridiculously cheap (in every sense of the word) clocks. the clock mechanism alone was worth the $1.99, and we figured that at the very least it would give us something to play around with. once we got home we took the clock apart, and using some leftover fabric and a bit of spray paint, transformed it into a one-of-a-kind timepiece. we ran with a country-crafts vibe, but you can use any style of fabric to easily create something to perfectly accent your home.

have fun!
derek and lauren

CLICK HERE for the full project steps after the jump!

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this is the last installment in the paint projects. over the years of apartment dwelling, i have amassed a fairly large collection of house paints, some of which i’ve hardly used. i decided to create some quick “objet d’art” with a few random knick knacks lying around. this is an easy way to create a little sculpture collection out of thrift shop finds; dipping them all in the same color can create a unified statement. or if you want them to be more functional, you can fill them with sand or rocks and use them as paperwieghts or bookends. happy crafting! -kate

CLICK HERE for the full project instructions after the jump!

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for those of you with little ones, this diy project might come in handy. jennifer hagler at a merry mishap posted a great tutorial on making crocheted cozies for glass baby bottles. they’re quick, easy, affordable and practical. click here for the full instructions!

tax time is fast approaching, which means many of us are busy kicking ourselves (once again) for our lack of financial organization. every year we swear we’re going to keep track of all our expenses and hold on to every receipt. well, it’s our belief that if you create a system that is simple and aesthetically pleasing, you can trick yourself into forming smart money-managing habits. we recently picked up a box of airmail envelopes from the dollar store and transformed them into this handy receipt organizer using a hole punch and some binder rings.

happy organizing!
derek & lauren

CLICK HERE for the full instructions after the jump!

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