Discover the expert in you.
Discover the expert in you.
Coming home to find your running shoes in a mangled mess is never a happy experience. When your pup gnaws on and eats everything you own, it can be infuriating. Before getting angry with Fido, you’ll need to figure out what is causing his destructive chewing. Otherwise he may swallow something dangerous and wind up in the hospital.
The outside of a cardboard box of any size makes the perfect roof for a doll house if decorated properly. Decorate the outside of a cardboard box for a dollhouse with help from an expert with an extensive background in drawing, including a college education at Columbia in Chicago in this free video clip.
Getting tight mason jar rings off is something that you can do right at home with just a few basic tools. Get tight mason jar rings off with help from an artist and crafts expert in this free video clip.
Decorating a mask made out of cardboard requires you to have access to just a few basic tools. Decorate a mask made out of cardboard with help from a crafts expert with over fifteen years of experience in this free video clip.
You can decorate small craft boxes in a number of visually interesting ways depending on your preferences. Decorate small craft boxes with help from a crafts expert with over fifteen years of experience in this free video clip.
You can make a Valentine mailbox art project out of a regular old shoe box and a few other key tools. Make Valentine mailbox art projects out of a shoe box with help from a crafts expert with fifteen years of experience in this free video clip.
Not all Valentine crafts need to be endlessly complicated. Make simple Valentine crafts with paper plates with help from a crafts expert with fifteen years of experience in this free video clip.
You can make a great Rudolph the Reindeer craft using mason jars and a few other choice tools. Make a Rudolph the Reindeer craft with mason jars with help from a crafts expert with over fifteen years of experience in this free video clip.
Gallon milk jugs make great tools to use for planters for a number of different reasons. Learn about the ways that you can use gallon milk jugs for planters with help from an experienced nursing professional in this free video clip.
The holidays can be a highly anxious time for many people, especially people with insecure friends who try to judge you with unrealistic modern sensibilities. Is that cookie you just ate vegan or organic or locally made? Was it cut into a religious shape or a secular one? How many have you had and will they ruin your breath in case there’s mistletoe? Will you even submit yourself to the misogyny of standing under the mistletoe? Did your playlist just do a Christmas song at a holiday party, or were you trying to be ironic? Sometimes you wish your holiday…
Like me, this sock creature loves cold weather. Summers in the rural South where I live are awful. We have enough mosquitoes to swing a major election, and our air gets so thick and humid you have to breathe it in with a spoon. The only thing I like about a summer in the south is a homegrown tomato, and I could learn to do without them if it meant a longer winter. As soon as I feel the air start to take on that long-awaited crispness, I get to work on sock creatures.
Sock puppets are fun to make and require only simple materials you probably have around the house right now. Plus, playing with sock puppets helps children expand their imaginations.
Calling all mismatched socks--the crazier the pattern, the better. This softie is a sock drawer's dream. The assembly process is simple enough that even beginners can join the fun.
If you're looking for a simple project, sock puppets may be perfect. This reindeer makes a wonderful gift or a fun craft project for the kids during winter break.
This sock caterpillar is sure to inch its way into the heart of any child. It's a simple and cuddly way to re-purpose those adorable baby socks children seem to outgrow overnight. What a fun way to keep the memory of those tiny feet alive! And, no two caterpillars will look alike.
A lonesome sock and an outgrown pair of mittens come together for a darling bumblebee. This simple sock creature can be created in a matter of minutes.
All that is needed to complete this adorable snowman is one tube sock and one black crew sock. The one that's been in your laundry basket for the past four loads without a match might be perfect. Scraps of yarn and a few buttons give your snowman enough personality and charm to melt anyone's heart.
Why not use some of those mismatched and single socks lying in your drawers and laundry baskets to make interesting toys for a child to enjoy? It's easy and fun. You can use plain white socks, socks with colored heels and toes, or any print that works.
Making creatures out of socks is an old-fashioned craft with new popularity. Whether you purchase new socks or use a sock without a mate, these toys are fun and easy to make. This raccoon is a quick and easy project for a beginner. It requires one sock with a fairly wide stripe and another in a solid color. The socks don’t have to be the same color--finding crazy combinations is part of the fun.
You don't need access to a campfire to make some nice, delicious S'mores. Make S'mores in your house with help from a food expert in this free video clip.
You'd be surprised at just how many kids crafts you can make with little more than a regular mason jar. Learn about kid's crafts with a mason jar with help from a graphic designer and illustrator in this free video clip.
Covering a mason jar in tissue paper begins with a little bit of Mod Podge and sparkles. Cover a mason jar in tissue paper with help from an artist, designer and creative entrepreneur in this free video clip.
An Indian sock puppet needs to be made in a very specific way for the best possible results. Learn how to make an Indian sock puppet with help from a longtime and dedicated puppeteer in this free video clip.
Diervilla lonicera, also known as dwarf bush honeysuckle, low bush honeysuckle or northern bush honeysuckle, is a shrub that grows between 2 and 4 feet in height. It produces light yellow flowers and has low-lying branches. Propagating Diervilla lonicera is easiest and most reliable with stem clippings. The clippings grow a Diervilla lonicera specimen identical to the parent plant. You can plant the rooted stem clippings in a container or the ground in approximately two months.
A procedural design provides an ordered sequence of actions required to operate equipment, perform a task, take a test, or maintain or implement a system. Directions should be written in layman's terms using simple and direct language so that the average customer will understand what is needed. The objective of a procedural writing is to give the reader clear and crisp information, according to Dr. Robert Dew of the University of Alabama.
Cardboard is a great material to use for making projects out of. Make abstract artwork out of cardboard with help from an experienced craft instructor in this free video clip.
Seasonal songs regale us with images of winter wonderlands, sleigh rides and snowmen, while kids around the country long for at least an occasional snow day. But when the snowfall is nonstop and begins piling up in small mountains in the streets, parking lots and your front yard, "snow" soon becomes a four-letter word. Waiting for the sun and warmer temperatures works eventually, but if you want the large piles melted before spring, there are a few simple steps you can take.
Broiling freshwater shrimp creates a crispy texture that maintains the natural flavor of the shrimp. Broiling has the added benefit of keeping the shrimp juicy on the inside and not drying it out. If you don't have a dedicated broiler available, most ovens come with a broil option that will work just as well.
A paper plate mobile is the perfect Valentine's craft for a toddler for a variety of different reasons. Learn about a craft for a Valentine's paper plate mobile for a toddler with help from a crafts expert in this free video clip.
Paper plate crafts are the perfect way to get kids interested in Valentine's Day. Learn about Valentine paper plate crafts for kids with help from a crafts expert in this free video clip.
Making recorded conversations sound clear is all about what equipment you use and how you use it. Make recorded conversations sound clear with help from a music professional in this free video clip.
Whether you’re celebrating Kwanzaa, Black History Month or just a random Tuesday, African masks are a festive craft to make any time. These masks, which African tribe members have worn in cultural and religious ceremonies for centuries, are traditionally decorated with bright colors and bold shapes. This art project is ideal for children of all ages, but using plastic milk jugs adds an additional teaching moment. As you create your own personalized and colorful masks, children will learn about the importance and ease of recycling.
A monorail train is a transportation system in which the train travels on a single rail acting as a support and guide way. To make this craft project educational, start by researching to learn about monorails. Printing pictures of monorails around the world -- such as the one in Walt Disney World -- can also help inspire your children. Create a basic monorail train from cardboard and simple craft supplies.
Native Americans who lived in the woodland regions of the Northeast and Northwest constructed lodging called longhouses. The framework of these buildings was constructed using large logs, covered with small saplings and bark. According to Randall Schaetzl of Michigan State University, most longhouses ranged from 30 feet to hundreds of feet long. But you can construct a miniature longhouse using toothpicks. Whether for a school project, a hobby or creative play, a toothpick longhouse can replicate an authentic one from long ago.
Historic war movies that take place during medieval times or in ancient Asia require the actors to wear armor. However, real metal can be stifling, and the weight of the armor makes it difficult for the actors to move with ease. Creating the armor from a cardboard base eliminates the heaviness and gives stability and structure to papier-mache layers. The strips of paper give the armor an authentic, rough surface, while spray painting the surface adds a shiny, metallic finish.
Make sure everyone knows who you are at your next meeting or conference. You can make a professional looking plastic name plate with a few specialized tools, saving the time and money it takes to special order one. Place your plastic name plates on conference and speaker tables, and to organize seating at banquet tables. Make one for everyone on your team and reuse them as needed.
Releasing doves at a wedding or other special occasion can add a beautiful element to the affair. If you don't have real doves, or don't want to cope with the clean-up, you can achieve the same flying dove effect by repurposing paper plates. Burrow through your kitchen cupboards or purchase new paper plates to create flying paper plate doves as part of a rainy day craft activity.
Aluminum wind spinners are also referred to as whirligigs. Being wind powered, wind spinners are one of three different types of whirligigs -- friction and string being the second and button the third. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the first mention of the word whirligig in a 1400s reference to a child's game. However, the actual origin of the contraption is unknown but believed to have been around for many centuries in some form or another.
Children love playing dress-up; it allows them to expand their imaginations and become anyone they want to be. Costumes bring their pretend play to life, with custom-fitted armor that kids can help design and decorate. Repurpose an old cardboard box instead of pulling out a sewing machine to create a medieval chest plate, painted or covered in aluminum to mimic a metallic finish. Kids will enjoy their homemade armor as they make-believe they are royal knights storming the castle.
Teaching your children to make crafts out of household items helps feed their creative brains. Take an ordinary cardboard box and let your son turn it into his favorite type of pooch. He'll take pride in his art and will have a puppy creation to show off to his friends.
You can make almost any type of float from Styrofoam. Large floats, like those on gill nets, use high-density industrial Styrofoam that can hold up to rough treatment. Small floats, or "bobbers" like those used for fishing, can be mass-produced using craft Styrofoam. These can be used for crappie, trout or any other fish that doesn't routinely feed off the bottom. You can pick up all sizes and shapes of Styrofoam at any hobby shop and create different sizes of floats for smaller pan fish, such as crappie, or larger fish like trout or bass.
Plastic or vinyl privacy lattice is an inexpensive, easy-to-install infill option for porch, patio and deck railings. The lattice my be affixed directly to the posts and rails or, for a more professional-looking finish, attached to wooden framework installed on the structure. A rectangular frame is constructed to fit in each opening between the posts. The frame provides a strong vertical surface for securely attaching trimmed lattice panels. Vinyl-lattice screws include a washer or broad head for durable installation and a sharpened point for installation without pilot holes.
Recycled paper, usually in the form of newspapers, provides insulation against the cold. For permanent home insulation, commercial cellulose insulation -- shredded newspaper -- provides a green alternative to foam or fiberglass while offering protection from fire. For temporary home insulation or to insulate water pipes and other sensitive areas when temperatures plummet, newspapers or cotton wrapped with aluminum foil provides temporary protection from freezing..
Many Troy-Bilt mowers have the option of pushing the grass clippings back out onto your lawn as mulch instead of catching the grass clippings for disposal. You can adjust the mulcher on your Troy-Bilt mower and have it in operating condition by removing the grass catcher and altering the mulch plug and rear discharge door. You don't need lawn machine troubleshooting experience to adjust your Troy-Bilt mower.
Whirlpool's Calypso Dryer features Sension drying technology. This smart dryer senses when clothes dry, then switches itself off to save energy. This product is no longer sold at retail stores, but homeowners still use these compact units because of its handy drying rack and multiple dryer settings. The National Fire Protection Association says that to avoid fire, dryer lint traps must be cleaned before and after use. Besides cleaning the lint trap, you should check the dryer's vent regularly. A quick, daily wipe of the dryer top will help reduce lint buildup, too.
Plastic has many purposes within building and home construction. It is used in pipes, for example. Plastic can add durability to the materials. However, it can become a hazard when the plastic contracts. Contracting plastic damages the material it has bonded with along with the system within the house it supports. Some builders get around this problem by allowing for the plastic to contract after construction. To understand how this works, understand how plastic contracts.
Succulant oak gall is one of the "iron galls" used to make ink. A gall is a growth on the trunk or branch of an oak tree, caused by an insect laying its egg in the bark. The tree reacts by surrounding the egg with plant tissue, forming a sphere. Recipes for gall ink vary, but the basic ingredients are galli-tannic acid and iron. For many centuries the ink has been used around the world for writing, painting and body art. Gall ink is responsible for a long list of historic writing projects, from personal letters to priceless documents such…
Nintendo DSi owners have the ability to create and save custom recordings and then edit them. If you accidentally stopped a recording on your DSi before you wanted to, you can make that recording longer by opening it in the editing menu. In the recording save screen, each colored-in balloon represents a recording. The amount of color in each balloon indicates how much space is left to add to that recording.
If you anticipate a lobster feast in your near future and you don't have any adult-sized bibs handy, or if you're babysitting your nephew and your sister left the strained peas but no bib, don't despair. You can sew a really cute bib from a hand towel, but if you're in a hurry, a large bath towel can come to your rescue, keeping your clothing and your sanity intact. Press a towel into duty for a no-sew bib, or get out the sewing machine and make a bib to keep on hand.
Making bamboo curly or shapely isn't some ancient, well-guarded secret; it's just a process that takes a long time. Almost anyone can create a fancy looking piece of bamboo just like the "lucky" bamboo sold at many florist shops. The curl is made by controlling the way that the bamboo receives light with a homemade light box. Once the technique has been mastered, bamboo can be trained to grow in spirals, curly Q's and even at right angles.
