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Love crafting? Here are 6 home organization and decor ideas you can make at home
A world of possibilities lies at your fingertips when shopping for your home, but sometimes it’s hard to find that perfect solution to your storage needs or the one design accent that will make your decor come together.
One of the best ways to add the personal touch is by investing in crafting machines, and nowadays there’s a huge variety on offer: from etching and engraving to sticker printers, vinyl cutters and beyond. Best of all, there are plenty of places you can download and purchase gorgeous designs online, or you can get creative with your very own patterns and prints in apps like Procreate and Canva.
1. Label EVERYTHING with home sticker makers
The first and most obvious home hack that most seasoned crafters likely already have in the bag: sticker-making, specifically for making custom labels.
Especially when it comes to spring cleaning season, it’s useful to have some kind of label printer around, but opting instead for a cutting machine or sticker printer lets you play with font and layout a lot more to design bespoke labels that fit your home. There’s everything from handheld quick printers to tabletop gadgets to choose from, so it’s worth sizing up how deep you want to go into customization before you buy.
Got a tray full of gadgets and gizmos? Label that bad boy up. Love a well-stocked pantry but hate playing snack hide-and-seek? Make a stylish custom label that describes the contents for quicker trips to the kitchen.
2. Customized cushions and printed pillows
Sure, t-shirts are great, but using a heat press to customize fabrics around your home is a great way to add some flair without breaking the bank on designer decor.
For instance; if, like me, you love a well-padded sofa, hand-picking the design of your cushion covers is a great way to build a really cohesive living space. You can opt for iron-on or sublimation-based printing, with some crafting machines offering both, and save money by buying the simplest, plainest pillowcase you can find and customizing it for your home.
It’s also a great way to decorate or label fabric, whether for storage or display, and to personalize things like bags and pencil cases for the whole household.
3. Design your own calendars
The lynch pin in any organized home is often the calendar, but sometimes it’s hard to find one that perfectly fits your needs. You might want something with ample room to write on each day, but also with a to-do or grocery list — all while looking good in your home.
Designing your own calendar or downloading the perfect planner design for you online is a great way to make sure information about upcoming events, holidays and birthdays are laid out clearly, and can keep a cohesive design language throughout your home.
From there, you can opt to print out paper versions, or even use a cutting machine to print out neat templates to stick on dry-erase vinyl for a more lasting option.
4. Engrave wood and metal accents
Tasteful engraving can really make wooden materials pop, and you may be surprised to learn there are quite so many home engravers are on offer.
For example, you might etch your plain wooden chopping boards to have intricate designs, or want to make a custom plaque with your favorite quote: if you opt for a more sophisticated engraver, you could even laser-etch photographs onto different materials to create unique portraits for your home.
Those are perhaps a little more sophisticated, but it’s easy to get started using an engraver on metal, acrylic, and leather to customize things like keychains and metal tags.
5. Calibrate your design with decals
Home design fanatics will more than likely be familiar with wall decals, which can spruce up plainer walls with shapes and designs without requiring a huge paint job. Renters, in particular, may have enjoyed removable decals as a way to overcome the bleakness of the “landlord special” decor — but there’s more to decals than wall art.
Decals are also a great way to wrap potential eyesores around the home (especially tech!) in a more stylish or personalized design; for example, this home-made Fallout skin for Xbox Series S from a fan of the franchise.
Custom Vinyl Xbox skins from r/cricut
6. DIY drawer dividers
Sometimes, you want something that just works, and scrolling through reams and reams of trays and containers of all shapes and sizes to never find quite the right thing is enough to put you off getting organized altogether.
Again, this is where a cutting machine can come in handy: you can use devices with scoring tools to make paper trays and boxes, or use a device that can cut slightly more robust materials like chipboard to fit your drawers perfectly if you need something with greater integrity.
These are but a few of the DIY hacks you can use around the home to stay organized while keeping your personality at the fore, but the possibilities are pretty limitless these days in the world of crafting.
A whole world of crafting gadgets await to help you along the way, and it’s a great gateway into getting more creative, too. Whether that’s by personalizing gifts, building custom home decor or just slapping a nice big label on everything you own, it’s a great time to be a crafter.
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