Freebies: Ribbons, Buttons, broken jewelery, broken watches, embellishments on clothes...

When I get new clothes they often have a ribbon which needs to be cut off, you know the one that helps hold them on the coat hanger in the shop. I save these. I use them for all sorts of things, scrapbooking, cardmaking, crafting, gift presentation, a collection of them would make a lovely gift for a crafty friend.

Gifts often come with ribbons, I collect and use these too.

Clothes going in the rag pile? Check for useful buttons, ribbons, embellishments (machine embroidered patterns/ images make great patches, and can often be hot glued to lids/ boxes etc.)

These can be collected and used, sold or gifted. ( www.etsy.com has loads of crafty geniuses just waiting to get their hands on your broken watches, jewelery etc ... many would love to swap their talent for your goods.)
 This recycled gem is "steampunk" style.
  (google "steampunk" images to be delighted and amazed).
This would make a great "DIY" kit gift for childrenGot any of these laying around? Decorate clips with left over nail polish, embellishments, scrap paper or just blank labels, place in cellophane bag tied with upcycled ribbon, include a picture so the recipient knows what the gift is for.
 Click then scroll down to  find this easy "back to school" or "picnic" or "storage" giftable item (great to add to a hamper, fun and novel).

The key here is collection and storage. Have a system which makes it easy to collect, store and find when you need it.

Expect the system to evolve over time, all good ones do. Here are a few ideas to get you thinking. Remember, easy to access/ find what you are looking for is the key. Think display style storage, then hide that in a box or cupboard.

 
UPCYCLED-PAINT-POT-STORAGE-STOOL-DECOUPAGED-WITH-BEANO-COMICS
old crib turns into easy, cheap small space organisation station. Placed inside a cupboard it could become an organisation station, avoiding clutter and keeping things on hand for when you need them.


Make use of wall space.

Tea. If you are gifting for a tea lover possibilities abound.

A few basics to keep in mind.                     Before you start upcycling china:                       * Is it collectable? Valuable? (This includes sentimental value) or irreplaceable.

* Is it yours, if it is a family heirloom and you are in care of it, are you sure you are right to change it?

If in doubt check first.

 Find out how Mandi made this tea-cup-clock

find these 2 ideas and 8 more here. 

Now you should...in theory... be able to click on a picture to link to the tutorials. 

Flavoured Sugar. Gourmet at it's simplest.

Thank you Sarah AKA the Vanilla bean blogger for this inspiration.

A very sophisticated, adult version thanks to Maria Hunt. Above.

* Flavoured sugars go well with clean second hand glass containers.
* Have so many presentation possibilities.
* Are easy to make from items "on hand" and can be made in advance using "left overs" eg: orange, lemon, lime zest Excess fresh herbsetc.

Freebies: "Disposables", containers, junk mail, food scraps, egg shells, coffee grounds and all that weekly waste.

Egg Shells: Make a great gift for gardeners. 5-ways-to-use-eggshells-in-your-garden. Now write (or print) a nicely presented how to guide, add pictures if you like. Egg shells can be added to a hamper or simply wrapped in old newspaper with twine. (try to find gardening pictures in the paper.) If you don't go through them then ask at a local cafe.

Coffee grounds: Make a great gift for gardeners. 5-ways-to-reuse-coffee-grounds. "Eggshells and coffee grounds go hand in hand. They are gardening’s BFF’s. They are a natural fertilizer and a One-Two Punch pick me up for your veggie garden or your houseplants. Eggshells provide calcium and coffee grounds provide nitrogen." As quoted from here. Thank you Shari, and I'm glad to read your Son is safe, what a fright. (To find out what that is about feel free to read the top of the page linked above.)

Technology associated gift for free? YES! Find this and other great ideas at http://www.upcyclingthegift.com/2013_01_01_archive.html
find directions and more inspiration here.15-minute-make-magnetic-storage-tins. This box remake and more here.

These two pictures and loads more inspiration/ information can be found here.

This truck idea and more here.

A great how to guide on planting in just about anything can be found here. I hope this has given you inspiration.

Freebies: seeds, printable seed packets, and more.

Here you can find these and other seed packets to print. Even if you do not grow your own, do you ever buy interesting veggies? Often these seeds can be saved, growing information is available easily online.
 Loads of helpful practical advice here.

Blanks use less ink, and can have personalized photos added. They can be found (and many more) here.


Swap what you have with other like minded people to add to the variety. Add to gift hamper with coffee grounds, egg shells etc.

Here are some with quotes.

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seed tabbed index card printables here.

Included with these is a simple guide to a homemade seed organizer.

Free printable Tea bag envelopes for foiled or loose Tea here.

http://www.howtosaveseeds.com/

 (explains itself really, easy to follow, well indexed.) 

Learn how to make seeded paper, ready to plant here. This site is called Jen's DIY Lifestyle. Jen writes "I live in Kansas with my husband, 2 dogs and 2 cats. I've always been into crafting and DIY home projects. "   Her site is well worth a look. (Note to self, must visit again).

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How to make seed tape here. All you have to do is lay the tape in a groove about 1cm deep and lightly cover with soil. Keep moist and before you know it the seedlings have emerged at just the right spacing.                                                                   

Find out how to make these here.

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Find out how to make these here. 

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Many gardeners LOVE old wheel barrows. They crave them. They put them on their "one day" list. Some collect them. Not just old wheel barrows but all sorts of "old" containers are coveted by gardeners. Have a look around. these will make great gifts. Fill with seed packet kit, coffee grounds, egg shells...even rocks...

                                                                   http://lifeonthebalcony.com/three-diy-garden-inspired-gift-ideas/

I hope this has given you some great ideas. It's given me some :)

Freebies - Jars

Some useful items we throw out, or recycle. How to make the most of these with simple habit changes.

Step 1: Collection (the easy part.)

Baby jars are great, know someone with any to spare? If not asking around at local daycare's, preschools, community boards, second hand stores, will get you plenty. Coffee Jars, bed and breakfast businesses, offices, large households, community boards, second hand stores. Pasta jars/ jam jars etc the list of possibilities is almost endless.

Step 2: Ready and waiting (get organised. This is the important part, you want to be able to grab them and use them without stuffing around.) 

Removing the labels How to remove labels from jars guide here. I would add that unlike the picture you should wear pants or use a towel to protect yourself from getting burnt when using the hairdryer method. Personally if it's taking ages, stubborn and I don't totally LOVE the jar then I put it (clean) in the recycling bin.

Two storage boxes are useful here, one for clean, waiting to remove label jars, one for "blank canvas" ready to use jars. A third with make ahead, when you are in a crafty mood jars is also handy. These store well in sheds etc. Keeping lids off jars, in an upcycled ice cream/ takeaway etc container prevents mold in moist jars. (A quick side not on allergies, if you know someone with peanut butter allergies then keep this in mind and avoid cross contamination.)

Step 3: Use them,  if the collection is getting too big consider gifting them to a local charity second hand store, a local school (often used by schools for craft items) or community group or church. Or even selling them at your next garage sale. (Great around harvest season as everyone is on the lookout, de-labelled and clean jars are prized.)


Looking for ideas?  Victoria Johnson who made this can be found here, sorry no directions available. www.sometimescrafty.com has this cute baby food jar christmas tree.www.republicofsucculents.com

18 ways to upcycle jars to gifts here.  
upcycleextreme.blogspot.co.uk had this great and stylish idea (below). I love the way she sorts the lid issue.
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http://madamedeals.com/gifts-in-jars-foaming-bath-salts/
Here.
Found this on pinterest, couldn't find the original for directions but thought I'd share the inspiration anyway.