Welcome to The Crafty Tipster

A quick, easy and cheap way to thread beads onto yarn or thread when your needle is either too big for the beads or too small for the thread.

It’s been over 120 years since this crochet doily pattern was published which is good news for us because that puts it firmly in the public domain. This vintage doily consists of a central flower medallion and is surrounded by leaves and petals. I’m working on the pattern and know that the central crochet flower is quite pretty and could easily be used alone.

Pretty, easy and super quick two-color crochet flower pattern. With each layer only requiring around 6 feet of yarn, it’s a perfect way to use up those odd bits and pieces you love too much to throw out but are too small for much else.

A bit of scrap fabric and an embroidery hoop might just be the secret to speeding up your projects and making them a bit more durable.

A quick, easy and cheap way to thread beads onto yarn or thread when your needle is either too big for the beads or too small for the thread.

This embroidery pattern may be over 100 years old but its appeal is timeless. This cross stitch bug pattern is easy to stitch and quite pretty when done.

Have you tried Zendoodling or Tangles yet? It has become one of the hottest trends in the arts and crafts world. Best of all, you don’t need any special tools or training to give it a go. And, thanks to a wonderful artist from Texas and her infectious sense of humor, I had the gumption to give it a go. My results? I’m not ready for a one woman show but I will share my work in public.

A sample DecoBloc Glass Block for Crafting & a Pinterest find lead to a great and colorful glass block project that only requires Mod Podge and food coloring. It came out so cool that I might not add anything else to my glass block and just use it like a piece of art glass.

Join me as I experiment with Mod Podge and food coloring to color glass in bold and vibrant colors and discover a fun way to use the leftover glaze. No pale pastels here and it even works on etched or grooved glass too.

This pretty little baby set is from a vintage knitting pattern. It appears to use two different colors of yarn and seems like the instructions are fairly straight-forward.

This vintage knitting pattern to make a pair of fancy ladies gloves dates back to 1918. Again, it might be a bit tricky determining the right yarn/needle combination but it seems like you could see how the main glove fits over your hand without having to invest too much time before testing.

This vintage knitting pattern creates a coat measuring twenty-six inches from shoulder to hem but unfortunately does not provide any other measurements. The original pattern claimed, “It may easily be made longer, if desired, but the model is an excellent one for ordinary wear, and very “natty,” and it has the merit of being quickly knitted.” Since I don’t knit I will have to take the author’s word for that unless someone lets me know otherwise.

Another of the wonderful vintage spool knitting patterns from Mary A. McCormack, the Spool Knit Hat pattern comes with instructions for making a knit dolly hat and a knit child’s hat.

What little girl wouldn’t love having her favorite dolly’s hat or bonnet match her own?

The great thing about this spool knitted doll skirt pattern is it is so easily adaptable for any size doll. The doll skirt pattern dates back to 1909. Little girls today should have even more fun making skirts for their dolls with all of the new pretty colors and textures of yarn available.

A quick and clever cat toy made from spool knit cord that is perfect for kids to make for their feline friends.