January 2009 | the ReFab Diaries


Super-sweet way to upcycle scraps of fabric, these pincushions are care of the amazing Ana Maria Horner, I think these are gorgeous.. if there was no orange in this picture, I wonder if I'd feel the same?

All instructions for this project are posted here. You can also grab the free pattern .pdf here.
Etsy and Pinterest are awash with amazing "book art", "book folds" and "book sculpture".  If you can pick up a beautiful used artifact for $1 (25c!) that you can continue to appreciate in some meaningful way, do it. And when it comes to kids' books, what else are you going to do with the ones that have been chewed on, colored in, ripped or ridden like skateboards?



I discovered quite quickly that you need to start easy and practice. So, this really is the easiest "book fold" possible and it's reversible, i.e. you can unfold it and read it again. If you're looking for the popular grown-up tutorials on this blog, go here.





Old picture books can often look a little worse for the ware on the outside. So this is a great way to re-purpose something that is really colorful on the inside (and often sentimental in general) without ruining it.




This Sesame Street Treasury works really well because the inside covers are colorful - a work of art in themselves.  Get the tutorial after the jump!



India Ink marker thingie...





Arvind Gupta thinks “The best thing a child can do with a toy is break it!”

I don’t even know where to start with this one. His web site boasts an astonishing range of educational experiments like how to fashion a potato battery and a bottle barometer. But in addition to the nerdy, educational stuff, the site features quick and easy one-offs that aren't the least bit science-y, like how to fold six types of newspaper hat.
diy cardboard furniture

























Kids love to play with cardboard, so why not play with them?



diy cardboard furniture



Upcycle cardboard into furniture for kids with these free patterns from Foldschool. Go fold a table or something ... 







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