Salad spinner fireworks
Not only does this spin art D.I.Y project pop visually, with its alluring dramatic swirl, it also has a fun hacky dimension as it´s made using a basic salad spinner. The ingenious hack consists in placing a custom-cut paper at the bottom of the spinner and then dripping paint while giving it a spin. Check out the great D.I.Y tutorial in the Scrumdilly-do! blog – here
Have fun hacking!
Hats off!
Hats off to this bright and lightheaded idea: The Bowler Hat Pendant. The Bowler pendant lights, designed by British designer Jake Phipps and named after “Jeeves and Wooster”, have received a warm welcome as a hacky statement piece, equally cool hung alone or grouped together.
The retail price is about €200, but I´m thinking some straightforward D.I.Y action could score you the look for next to nothing since hats tend to be a dime a dozen at your local thrift store. You´ll also need a lamp cord+socket (make sure the socket is for low-temperature bulbs, also always make sure there is no risk of overheating!). These days there are a lot of options, including different coloring of textile cords.
Bowler Hat Table Lamp
The Bowler hat is merely an example of a great hat-to-pendant remake, of course any other old hat would do the trick just as well, how about a fedora version?
A brief history of the Bowler Hat
The bowler hat was devised in 1849 by the London hatmakers Thomas and William Bowler of hat makers Lock & Co. They had been commissioned by a William Coke, a customer who designed a close-fitting, low-crowned hat to improve protection against low-hanging branches while on horseback. When Coke arrived in London on 17 December 1849 to collect his hat he reportedly placed it on the floor and stamped hard on it twice to test its strength; the hat withstood this test and Coke paid 12 shillings for it.
The bowler also became the most popular hat in the American West (there called the ”Derby”), both cowboys and railroad workers preferred the hat because it would not blow off easily in strong wind, or when sticking one’s head out the window of a speeding train – Read more here…
Pics from here:
Just in (suit-)case…
It´s easy to stumble across beautifully aged vintage suitcases these days. I like them, sure, yet, with no specific long-term area of use other than the decorative ”it-item” du jour, it seems most of them will stay put in that market corner…unless, that is…some creative hackers come up with a straightforward way to re-use them…
I´m thinking the upcycled pieces by Cape Town based studio ReCreate and designer Katie Thompson might have facilitated the vintage suitcase shift upward in the thrift store hierarchy…Or, what do you think about these suitcase re-makes?
Skillful upholstery and turned legs complement precious cases.
ReCreate don´t stop at chairs. The upcycled suitcase line also includes tables and storage units. I grew particularly fond of these tables, but more plenty more varieties can be found in the ReCreate website – pay them a visit here for further inspiration.
All pics (except top) from ReCreate
Pallet Hack 2.0?
These hacks might not be the most D.I.Y friendly ones, but I´m thinking they could plant some small seeds of inspiration…
Featured above here is the art by Vancouver based artist Aaron Moran (born 1986) who has a trademark hacky, and amazingly cool style (scroll down for some more glorious creations of his). I´m thinking his graphic patchwork style could inspire some hacking action. Whatever application of this assemblage D.I.Y idea that would come to your mind, I suggest you grab your miter box and start working on some old floorboards or pallet wood….
Some masking tape, pen & paint will come in handy to get a graphic paint job. Of course, we could never come remotely close to the stunning things Aaron makes – but we could let him inspire some hacky creations of our own – Now, enjoy these pics, from Aaron´s website:
All pics from Aaron Moran website For more, visit Aaron´s website here
Brand New Branches
Rising tall, with arms stretching out as if to serve, the shapes of trees & branches are naturally endowed with excellent coat rack skills. Of course, hacking branches into various forms of racks is no new hack idea, yet new takes on the old trick renders it full of fresh hack-appeal. As we do not all have access to fallen trees in our back yards, I´ve also gathered some clothes rack ideas where a fallen branch or a couple of twigs will suffice to get you ready to make, among other things: Hanging Clothes Racks, Rods, Coat Racks & Coat Hangers…- Enjoy!
More is more
Fallen tree+Paint. Like the quirky style? Get more of it in my previous post on talented designer Nic Parnell
”If a tree dies, plant another in its place”/ Carl von Linné
Any old place I can hang my hat is home sweet home to me /William Jerome
Au Naturel
Natural branches+black rope.
White washed
Irregular branch+white paint. DIY Tutorial here
Another painted example, using chains to lift the rod, D.I.Y tutorial available here.
Simply Hooked
Natural branch+2 hooks
For Toddler treasures
Natural branch+string
Easy Peasy Towel rack
Piece of drift wood+hooks
For Precious organizing
Twig+Paint+Small hooks. Like the painted twigs? More of those in this previous post
Drifty gem
Gettin´ Twiggy with it
Frame+Pieces of twig+Glue+Screws. Go to D.I.Y tutorial here
Tweak´a´Twig Clothes Hanger
Coat Hanger Head+Twig. You don´t really need a tutorial for this one, do you?
Further applications…
The variety of stuff you can make with some branches are endless. The scope of application stretches far beyond the wardrobe. I´d like to finish off this post by sharing some pieces by designer Sebastian Errazuriz, who works a lot with the branch aesthetic. He works with Baltic plywood, but i´m thinking his pieces might inspire some real-branch hacking action to make shelves and tables inspired by his quirky cool creations.
Good Luck Hacking!
Pics came from here: Painted Tree Coat Stand/Hat Rack: NicParnell Black & White Coat Stand: West Elm White Wash Clothes Rack: LoveAesthetics via OneFellSwoopDesign Pastel: Apartment Therapy Simply Hooked: MintDesignBlog via Fossil.com For Toddler Treasures: TheHappyHomeBlog via ShannonEileenBlog Easy Peasy towel hanger: DriftyGems Etsy Shop Precious Organizing: APair&ASpare via Fossil.com A drifty Gem: DriftyGems Etsy Shop The ”Au Naturel” clothes rack: Joanna Fowles via SeeSawDesigns via PoppyTalk Getting Twiggy with it hanger: Cantilever&Press Etsy Shop Clothes Hanger: DorNob.com Further Applications: Sebastian ErrazurizMixtapes revisited
Remember these? Back in the days, cassette tapes were the epitome of pop culture, the heart beat of the Walkman era. Then came the advent of sharp and shiny Compact Discs, and these analog ancestors were tossed into landfills or dark corners of the attics of the world. Today, multiple media generations later, these great-great-grandparents of MP3 and of iTunes seem to have no place what so ever in the world. However, some sharp ScrapCyclers out there have come up with innovative re-use of this pop cultural icon, making a sliver of the analog heritage live on in the era of digital, take a look at these great DIY ideas involving any number from 1 to 7200 cassette tapes…
House
Emmett McNamara a student of the Edinburgh College Of Art made TapeHouse in 2010, using no less than 7200 cassette tapes organized by organized and arranged according to color and even to some extent by genre, read full story over at InHabitat.
Chairs
Simply adding a ”woven” cassette seat or back to a chair frame makes an instant statement. Looks can be varied depending on coloring of the cassettes and the shape of the chair frame. I´m thinking spray-painting a cassette chair in a monochrome color would look great too.
A common technique applied is a kind of weaving, where cassettes are laced together by what to me seems to be plastic
White Cable Ties – like these ones from Amazon.
Purse
DIY tutorial for the Cassette Tape Purse available here
Mirror
A round mirror, a bunch of cassette tapes, some spray paint and some glue could score you a DIY look-a-like to this mirror from Umbra, spotted at ElleDecor made from 35 chrome-plated vintage tapes lining a round mirror
Lamps
The same type jointing technique is used when making these lamp cubes. Looks can be varied in a great many ways. You´ll need 36 tapes to make a cube like this one:
Chandelier
DIY tutorial on a cassette tape chandelier available here
Wallet
Re-using an old cassette to make a wallet is a crafty trick that has gained some success. A great tutorial is available here
Notebook
Tape Dispenser
Idea from this UK-based company.
Pencil Holder
A few cassettes and some glue will score you a pencil holder, this one is from this Etsy shop.
Room dividers
Close to 1000 cassettes were used in creeating this room divider/cupboard. It shows the effect of using cassettes as wall cladding.
D.I.Y Stenciled Pillows
Pillows, strangely we can´t seem to ever get enough of those. Their popularity might stem from the simple fact that they´re the key to any quick fix, new pillows it seems, have the visual influence to change a look of an entire room. But instead of going loco and buying new pillows, you can easily pimp your old ones with a little help from fabric paint & stencils…
In this post I´ve gathered a bunch of inspirational pics of stenciled pillows from around the blogosphere, along with links to hack tutorials, hope the selection will get your DIY juices flowing, this is the perfect weekend mini-makeover project - Enjoy!
Golden Coral
A beautiful & elaborate DIY tutorial on this pillow with stenciled coral pattern here.
Must-have monogram
Lovely tutorial for this tangerine number available here
Pretty Pigeon
Awesome tutorial from blogger TiffanyRuda available here
Oh-so-cute Owls
The stenciled owl pillow was spotted here.
Pic from Flickr user Kamatrice
Fabulous in French
TheHeartofTheSeaHome.typepad.com
Fly with me
Scrabble Pillows
Words of wisdom
Wit & Whistle features a fabulous DIY guide on how to fill your old pillow with words of wisdom here.
Urban inspiration
A tutorial for the stenciled vespa pillow available here
Pillow talk
Spooky Style
Lattice pattern
A great tutorial on how to achieve the geometric lattice print below can be found here.
Geometric
How-to DIY guide on making this stenciled geometric print here.
Good Luck Hacking!
D.I.Y Bottle Lamp Ideas
Glass bottle lamps are fun way to accessorize your home! The variety of looks and shapes of bottles and shades out there make customization easy. I´ve gathered a few below to get your hacker juices flowing, hope you´ll find a way to make your very own & unique version. A Cork Stopper Lamp Kit
This Cork Stopper Lamp Kit
Breezy Blue
Quirky Cool
Crisp & White
Turn a Keepsake Wine Bottle Into An Instant Lamp with the Cork Stopper Lamp Kit
Seriously Black
Blue Swag Lamp
This lamp idea was spotted on Etsy. A great looking blue lamp has gotten its bottom cut off. They´ve used a fluorescent bulb (you´ll have to use a low energy/low heat one to avoid over heating) and plugged a chain & the electrical cord into to the cork end of the bottle.
Rustic Charm
RepurposedVintageFinds.blogspot.com
Multiple Minimal
Red Red wine
A red shade adds intensity to the hacked red wine bottle.
Bottoms up…
Keeping labels on these spirit bottles creates a boozier look…
Tipsy Together
Grouping bottle lamps creates a great sculptural effect.
Turn a Keepsake Wine Bottle Into An Instant Lamp with the Cork Stopper Lamp Kit
If you haven´t got a old lampshade lying around to be re-used, here are some IKEA ideas.
D.I.Y Hall of F(r-)ame
Stashes of odd, glassless frames are often abundant in thrift stores. Given that, they´re a dime a dozen which makes them great hack raw material. Spray painting a bunch of them in either a monochrome color or a monochrome finish creates great potential for an artistic, interesting (and cheap!) sculptural focal point in your home. This might well be the ultimate ”drab to fab” project…I´ve gathered some pics from around the web, to show you the variety of styles that can be achieved & to get your ScrapHacker juices flowing – enjoy!
Green frame gallery by MarthaStewart, pics to the right by Etsy Shop BeautiSHE
Whitewash Wonder
Going for white is a classic option which will add crisp & sculptural edge to any room. The DIY process is really straightforward: 1.) wash dirt & grease from frames 2.) use a white base coat paint 3.) Finish off with paint in your favorite color…I found some pics over at NaturalHome&Garden to inspire DIY action! The pic of a finished hallway project was spotted over at TheDecorologist.
Thrifty Glam
Mix a couple of painted frames with a couple of ”raw” ones…
Pic: VintageRevivals
Mix & Match
Mix shapes and harmonizing hues for some interesting results.
Pics from Etsy Shop BeautiSHE
Gothic Black
The high-gloss black finish adds instant drama.
Pic from Etsy Vendor BeautiSHE
Cute Coral
A shade like coral revives the most gloomy frames.
Pic: Confettistyle.wordpress.com
Gloriously Green
A project showing great results with frames painted along a green/yellow color scheme.
Pic: Martha Stewart
Hope you found the post inspiring! Best of Luck Scrap Hacking!
Taking baskets for a dip
Reinventing old baskets and raffia totes have never seemed as thrilling as after seeing some amazing re-makes by crafty DIY fashion blogger A Pair & A Spare, the DIY team at MarthaStewart and the creative folks over at Poppytalk. The idea is to take your old basket for a DIY dip in an amazing color of your choice. A Pair & A Spare opted for popping neon and used spray paint, adhesive and old fashion mags to score the amazing transformation, complete tutorial here…
Team Martha chose to go for a classic palette and dyed their IKEA Byholma totes (among others) in classic white & red…
Pic showing the DIY process including actual dipping & dying, click here for full tutorial
Poppytalk featured some awesome examples of basket dye re-makes from Free Peoples store decor, click here for more
Link to original hack posts: A Pair & A Spare Neon DIY for Harpers Bazaar Martha Stewart Basket Dip Dye PoppyTalk Free People Dip Dye Lamp Shades Good Luck Hacking folks!With this inspiration, go grab those old baskets and treat ´em to some TLC (Tender Loving Color)!
/ScrapHacker
D.I.Y String+Nail Word Art
Nail & String word art projects have always been around, but the trend has been on the rise recent years, with projects featured in Anthropologie stores and other craft inspiration hubs. The German Fraufertig blog features an awesome illustrated D.I.Y tutorial to get you ready for some word art action.
Hack ingredients are the following: 1.) Wood back board cut to size and painted in color of your choosing 2.) round-head nails 3.) thread in your favorite color(s) and lastly, 4.) cut-out letters printed (from your computer) in a font you like. Tools you´ll need are a pair of scissors, a hammer, a ruler and some masking tape. These are the steps, as featured in the Fraufertig blog here:
Step 1
Grab your printed letter cut-outs, your painted wooden back board, your nails, your thread and get ready….
Step 2
Use masking tape to fixate the letters. For a neat look, make sure they´re spaced symmetrically.
Step 3
Punch the nails into the outline of the letters.
Step 4
When you´ve nailed the outline of the letters, remove the cut-outs, and start working that thread…
Step 5
Once you´ve got a threaded outer contour in place, go loco and create whatever pattern you feel like.
Step 6
If you have some patience, you could score this intricate, interesting look…
Step 7
Enjoy the awesome results!
All pics are from the Fraufertig blog – Visit original blog post here!
Party Hack Nepali Style
There are exactly as many special occasions in life as we choose to celebrate, that´s why we should all cheer up our festive spirits with some awesome, party boosting D.I.Y. This morning I came across the most glorious tutorial via the awesome OhHappyDay-blog. Pretty pics and fun-loving results make this project tutorial a real gem in the online D.I.Y jungle. Thanks to Brittany of OhHappyDay for the inspiration (all pics from OhHappyDay) – Go here to see the tutorial which features not only these great pics but also great words to guide you through the D.I.Y process. Below are some pics from the tutorial to get your D.I.Y juices flowing…
The Nepali Ceiling Hanging D.I.Y
Hack ingredients
Step-by-Step
Ta-daa!
All pics by Brittany from OhHappyday.com, click here for original post.
Inside a (w-)hacky hotel
Michelberger Hotel in Berlins oh-so-hip Friedrichshain area is one of my favorite spots. As it´s full to the brim of hacky inspiration, i´ve featured the hotel and its decor in many previous ScrapHacker posts. In this one you´ll find my best pics of the great interiors, divided into 15 idea stacks, each with one hacky deco takeaway. But hey – pay some attention to detail and you´ll surely find ideas in every corner of every pic.
Idea 1. Odd chair orchestra
An eclectic ensemble of chairs & stools achieve a hacky harmony when put together.
Idea 2. A flirty flower
A single flower with some attitude goes a long way.
Idea 3. The fringed pendant lamp
The fringed pendant lamp is a great D.I.Y idea. Check out my previous DIY hack tutorial here.
Idea 4. Social seating
Creating one long seating area makes socializing effortless and natural.
Idea 5. Mad mag lamp shades
The mad mag lamp shades creates a popping focal point, and relieves some of the muted austerity. Check my previous post featuring a DIY tutorial here
Idea 6. Pop-culture gabion sideboards
The gabion sideboards are a fun hack. Filled with old books (that cost nothing at a thrift shop), they add some retro sentimentality to the room. Check out my Gabion Sideboard DIY hack tutorial here
Idea 7. Room-in-a-room
The cabin like structure built by the entrance adds intimacy and protects from breezy currents of air from the door.
Idea 8. Musing to music
Musical instruments are shamefully cheap to buy these days. They add instant warmth to any room.
Idea 9. Stretchy lamps
Lamps stretching out from the walls, seem to seek connection and invite conversation. Coming over with a good book have never seemed so appealing.
Idea 10. Frizzy lamp shade
The frizzy lamp shade is the cousin of the fringed lamp shade and the mad mag lamp. To make this one, use a document shredder.
Idea 11. Slotted gabion shelving
The gabion book case creates individual slots for the books, creating a isolating wall, as well as a graphic effect. Some social seating and a dash of yellow brighten moods.
Idea 12. Trunk towers
Trunk towers evoke the anticipation of traveling.
Idea 13. A round reception desk
The round reception desk means you can ask questions coming from any direction. This feels refreshingly communicative and inviting, far from the rigid desks of traditional hotels.
Idea 14. Terrific tile
Gleaming tile walls may be 2011, but hey, I think they´re still pretty cool. Note the cool lights!
Idea 15. Come out and play
The playground outside will make any grown man (or woman) cry from joy. With the ping pong, the bright pops of color and retro pattern, you feel like 12 all over again, energetic and ready to play.
Visit Michelberger Hotel
D.I.Y TeaCup Candles
D.I.Y Teacup candles make great gifts or decorative pieces. The raw material needed to make them cost next to nothing, making them a fun and accessible D.I.Y hack. I made a collage from pretty examples by to show you the creative possibilities in using different colors of wax and using different styles of cups and crockery.
Pics from Flickr user ecram1 – Visit her Etsy Shop here
Talented Bay Area based (& worldwide available) wedding photographer Meg Perotti has many tricks up her sleeve. She recently shared a wonderful illustrated tutorial on how to make your own recycled teacup candles. As teacups are a dime a dozen at any local flea or thrift store, this is a accessible and doable D.I.Y idea. The hack ingredients are: Old tea cup, Wax, Wick, Wick stabilizers, Crock pot, Skewers. Now lets enjoy Megs lovely pics for the step-by-step tutorial D.I.Y Teacup Candle Tutorial:
Step 1. Old tea cup + Wax
Step 2. Wick + wick stabilizers
Meg used cotton as it was best for soy…She use a a tiny amount of hot glue to adhere the wick to the base of the teacup.
Step 3. Crock pot+Skewers
Meg used a crock pot with a tap for easy pouring. Do make sure your pot is on a sturdy surface for this step.
Step 4. Fill em´up
In order to keep the wick in place while pouring, Meg used regular BBQ skewers.
Step 5. Enjoy – Ta-daa!All pics from Meg Perotti Read more about Meg here
Globe-al recycling
A fresh post by Mike of awesome D.I.Y blog Blue Velvet Chair features a great selection of 18 D.I.Y ideas for globe re-makes – I´ve gathered my Top-5 pick below, but make sure to pop by Mikes blog for the full show. I think this hack is a reminder of something very important:
”Shape your world or someone else will” / Gary Lew
Stencil hack globe
Pic from Aesthetic Outburst Blog
Split Globe Light Pendants
Pic from BoominGranny Etsy Shop
Recycled Map Origami Globe
Pic from BookBW Etsy Shop
Split Globe Wall Clock
Pic from WomansDay
D.I.Y Chalk Globe
Pic from BeachBungalow8
All pics via Blue Velvet Chair – More D.I.Y globe ideas here
Smells like Tin spirit
Being able to hack trash-worthy tin jars to covetable items proves Scrap Hack mastery. Found the most amazing blog post that gathers no less than 50 inspirational ideas to get you started with some tin-jar hacking of your own! I selected my favorites below – but do make sure to pop by the awesome Under The Table & Dreaming blog for the complete line-up!
Hope you´ll enjoy these re-use ideas:
Can Piedestal stand
The hack design consists of two plates and a a jar!
{source: Sweet Paul Magazine}
Table Centerpiece
Cans in different shades of shimmery copper creates a stunning effect.
{source: Jayne Weddings}
Flower vases
Beautiful flowers & beautiful typography makes a great combo.
{source: Rachel Ray Magazine}
Tiered Can Tower
This idea could be varied in an infinite number of ways.
{source: Better Homes and Gardens}
Getting the hang of it…
3-in-1: Pretty, neat, tidy!
{source: Country Home}
Lamp Shade
A punched big can lamp shade creates a lively light effect.
{source: Mariposa Avenue}
Punched Lanterns
Pretty & Simple.
{source: Design Sponge}
Tin Jar Wall Art
Warhol really turned those Campbell cans into art icons….
{source: Brain Patrick Flynn Houzz}
Tin Jar Robots
Love these little creatures!
{source: Disney Family Fun}
Tin Jar Totem Pole
So cute.
{source: Disney Family Fun}
Tin Jar Table Decor
Some wrapping paper & labels are all you need to make these little darlings.
{source: Sweet Paul Magazine}
Can organizer board
Organized bliss!
{source: HGTV}
Thanks a bunch to blog Under the Table & Dreaming for providing an awesome Line-up. All pics were sourced via original post here
