Get inspired with the most innovative, useful, and fun projects from around the web.
We know you want to live a more DIY life—it's just that you don't have the time to weed through the hundreds of projects, directions, and ideas that crowd the internet every week. But don't worry: we have the time. Every Friday we bring you the best do-it-yourself plans we've seen over the last week, so you can spend your time doing projects instead of just searching for them.
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Save your cereal boxes.
Craft shows us how to turn old cardboard cereal boxes into simple, chic journals (which could then become notebooks, scrapbooks, photo albums?you name it). The site suggest using the plain side and decorating it with fabric or paint, but we think it might be just as fun to show off your love for Apple Jacks or Honey Nut Cheerios.
Photo courtesy of Rachel Hobson/Craftzine
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Reuse your gutters.
Have spring thunderstorms made you realize it's time for new gutters? Keep the old ones on hand to act as makeshift gardens on your house or garage using this tutorial from Make They'll brighten your landscape—and keep your greens up high, away from small vegetarian predators.
Photo courtesy of Gareth Branwyn/Makezine
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Lighten up.
These lamps, made from two-liter soda bottles and posted on Green Upgrader, may not, as the author points out, be bright enough to replace conventional bulbs?but they are an easy way to reuse plastic bottles while adding light to your garage or workspace.
Photo courtesy of Matt Embrey/Green Upgrader
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Protect your tables.
Maybe coasters aren't a big deal in the winter, when cold drinks stay cold, but once summer rolls around, your glasses are going to be leaving condensation all over the furniture. Turn well-worn placemats into coasters with instructions from Real Simple—and help your coffee table last a few years more.
Photo courtesy of James Baigrie/Real Simple
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Celebrate mom.
Let the kids get in on the Mother's Day celebration by coloring on coffee filters and bundling them into paper bouquets (as the team did over at Kaboose. This craft is perfect for kids of all ages—and for adults who are more comfortable with markers and crayons than with more complicated crafts.
Photo courtesy of Kaboose
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Haul your gear.
Threadbanger takes its cue from celebrities who carry their stuff in style, offering up instructions for making your own messenger bag—just in time for bike-riding weather to return. Now you have no excuses for taking the subway.
Photo courtesy of Jill Chen/iStock
