Make a bold statement without saying a word by customizing a favorite tote bag. Lesley Ware - maker, author, and fashion-as-self-care-advocate - was inspired by the signs she created to express herself in her office. In this class she teaches you how to turn your tote bags into signs in order to to share your favorite quotes and thoughts everywhere you go. It's a fun way to speak up with fashion. Learn how to paint words with stencils, embellish your bag with patches, and even replace the bag straps with some hand-sewing to make your statement tote really stand out.

Sturdy denim is a fabulous fabric for DIY projects because it’s easy to cut and embellish just the way you like. Expert sewing instructor and fashion blogger Lesley Ware teaches you how to embellish a denim jacket to match your style and challenges you to try a totally new look. Let your creative spirit free by adding patches and covering the back of a jacket with fun fabric shapes.

If you're new to knitting, there's no better place to start than a garter stitch hat project. Worked as a flat piece in knit stitch (no purls required!) and seamed up at the end, this color-blocked hat is gender-neutral and anything but boring. You'll learn how to make a gauge swatch, cast on and bind off, change colors and seam – all in one little hat! Creativebug’s resident knitter, Faith Hale, designed this technique-packed cap to be worked on straight needles, making it easy for the beginner knitter. Keep the look of this hat graphic with two colors, or keep it simple with one bold solid. Either way, it looks great on both men and women, and is a quick-to-knit handmade gift.

Looking for another great garter stitch project? Learn how to make the Easiest Garter Stitch Slippers.

The pamphlet is a deceptively simple bookbinding structure that’s easy to transform into something fabulous. Printmaker and book artist Sarah Matthews demonstrates three ways to bind a basic pamphlet book: a seven-hole pamphlet stitch, the link stitch, and her favorite - the dot dash stitch. Use these approachable techniques to make books, journals, zines, and more, and play with specialized tools like the bone folder, a Japanese screw punch, and waxed linen thread.

Sew an origami-inspired triangle bag with author, illustrator, and maker Sanae Ishida. This simple and stylish design has been around for generations in Japan, and you can sew it in under an hour, no pattern necessary. Sanae will teach you how you to calculate the size of your fabric pieces to customize the size of your bag, how to fold the fabric to create its signature triangle shape, and how to sew it all together with basic sewing machine skills. You'll also learn how to add a leather or fabric handle. Whether used as a farmers market tote, a lunch box holder, or a casual tote, this bag is especially versitile and giftable. 

Bring your tabletop to life with this leafy felt garland, perfect for year-round celebrations. Amber Kemp-Gerstel from Damask Love shows you how to cut out several leaf shapes on the Cricut Maker and assemble them with floral wire for sturdy construction. In the version shown here, Amber uses mostly green leaves with fun pops of color throughout, but you can make your leaves any color you like to suit the season. Get the template free on the Cricut Design Space.
 

Make a festive wreath with shimmery paper leaves, perfect for fall decorating. Lia Griffith shows you how to score and cut a variety of leaf shapes, then add dimension by folding leaves for a more realistic look. Attach leaves to a withered and rustic grapevine wreath for a statement piece you can hang on the door or on a wall. 

Your little ghouls and goblins will shriek with delight over handmade Trick or Treat bags. They are super simple and fun to make — and even easier to customize. With a little felt, scissors and a sewing machine you can make your very own felt fiend, mummy or jack-o-lantern. 

These cozy boot toppers are a perfect first foray into intarsia knitting. Cirilia Rose shows you how to knit a flat swatch in the round using four colors and basic geometric shapes. She then shows how to join in the round using the “magic loop” technique and add finishing touches. Once your yarn tails are woven in, your boot toppers are ready for their debut!

Sometimes you want more than a toothy jack-o-lantern welcoming Halloween guests to your front porch or dining room table. Courtney shows you how to borrow techniques from printmaking to create fanciful carved designs – in addition to some quick, non-carving ideas. You’ll have plenty of ideas for adding elegant silhouettes, glitter and geometric designs to your Halloween décor.

Learn how to make a quiet adventure book with Sanae Ishida, author, illustrator, and maker of many things. The book cover, interior pages, and the characters that inhabit the book are all made of fabric and felt. Sanae loves to encourage quiet, thoughtful play time, and the soft, colorful, movable shapes provide endless hours of creativity and story making for little ones. This is a wonderful project for practicing basic sewing machine skills as well as hand embroidery. You can choose an elastic or button closure for the book, and there is also a hidden pocket to store all the felt shapes. Sanae provides templates for storybook animals, trees, and flowers, but you can also create any characters you dream up. 

Welcome to the land of make believe. Twinkie Chan - crochet designer and lover of whimsical and wearable projects - will teach you how to crochet a soft, cozy crown and a star to top a magic wand. The crown pattern is easily adjustable and you will learn many different crochet techniques along the way. Play with texture to mimic metal by alternating a short single crochet stitch with a tall treble crochet stitch, discover the handy foundation single crochet, resulting in an extra stretchy and comfy fit, and find out Twinkie's secret for keeping your seams straight when working in joined rounds. The magic wand is a quick project made with granny stitch stars, with plenty of room for your favorite enchanting embellishments. These pieces make an adorable play set for dress up, and the crown is actually a great ear-warmer for any chilly day. Hold on to your flying horses and get ready to crochet your own fairy tale.

Drawstring bags are a charming way to present a gift, and they couldn't be easier to make. Ashley Nickels adds a twist to this beginner sewing project by showing you how to finish the inside with French seams, and instead of twine or rope, she shows how to use selvedge trim to create your own drawstring. This customizable bag can be sewn in any size desired.
 

Who says Christmas stockings have to use traditional motifs? Liana Allday shows you how to give stockings a modern makeover with fresh, vibrant fabrics. These stockings require minimal cutting and sewing, making it easy to whip up a batch for your family. The neutral linen lining and leather strap tie the palette together, making your large-scale florals and colorful prints look cohesive when they’re all hanging together over the fireplace. 

A dishcloth knitted with pure linen transforms an ordinary rag into a luxurious textile. Wendy Bernard demonstrates how to work with linen yarn to create a washcloth with an i-cord loop for hanging. The linen fiber resists mildew, is great for scrubbing, and gets softer with every use. This quick knitting project is a fun way to try out new stitch patterns—several of which are included in the PDF. Make a stack to give as a gift, or keep them for your own daily use.
 

Keep your mug toasty warm this winter with a sweet knitted mug cozy. Liana Allday shows you how to knit this tri-colored cozy in linen stitch. Along the way, you’ll learn how to keep track of right and wrong sides and which color you’re using, and how to create a button loop by chaining with a crochet hook. The resulting cozy makes for a great holiday gift, especially when paired with a special mug.
 

Instead of a store-bought holiday garland, whip up a set of these hand-knitted mini mittens. Cute as can be, these mitts are great for learning intermediate knitting techniques, including thumb shaping, decreases, and ribbed cuffs. Make several to string together, or use single mittens instead of bows on your holiday presents. 

Corner-to-corner crochet is a technique you can use to incorporate bold, eye-catching imagery into your crocheted projects. Think of it as pixel art, where each pixel is a small square of crochet. Tian Connaughton, expert crochet designer and technical editor, guides you through the basics of corner-to-corner crochet while making a pillow with an iconic evergreen tree motif. You’ll learn how to read a corner-to-corner chart and how to turn single crochet stitches, double crochet stitches, chains, and slip stitches into squares that will make up the building blocks of your tree. Tian also shows you two different options for finishing your pillow: a permanent seam to enclose the pillow, or an extra button flap to make a removable cover. This pillow is perfect for holiday decor and gifts, but it’s also easy to switch up the colors for a year-round, rustic style.

Whether used to attribute your quilt or explain the circumstances of its production, a personalized quilt label is a thoughtful addition to a quilt. In this class, Milwaukee artist and quilter Heidi Parkes teaches how to embroider text in your own handwriting, both printing and cursive, using the back stitch so that you can leave yourself or someone else a special fabric note. The sentiment can be personal or practical, mundane or historical; this embroidered handwritten label can be added to a quilt, article of clothing, embroidered art piece or really anything that can hold stitching. Heidi walks you through the basics of hand-sewing, her easy tracing and transfer technique, and how appliqué the label using a neat trick using aluminum foil. Once you get the hang of it, you can transfer any sentiment onto an embroidered label.

Learn more about Heidi's inspirations behind her history of incorporating love into quilts in this live presentation, originally aired August 4, 2022.

Learn the classic art of hand smocking as you make a beautifully textured statement necklace. The scale of this project makes a perfect introduction to this rewarding technique. The overall effect is clean and symmetrical – while also organic and dramatic.

Mark each day of December with an heirloom advent calendar. Alison of Kata Golda shares templates and tips for hand stitching charming details on plush wool felt. Little pockets hide holiday treasures, and all the elements come together to create an interactive calendar that will be cherished year after year.

These embroidered napkins serve as a sentimental record of everyone who has gathered around your table for special meals and holidays. Rebecca shows you what kind of tools to use to gather signatures, and how to embroider those signatures or drawings onto napkins so they can be washed and used and cherished for years to come. 
 

Adding a new ornament to the tree every year is a wonderful Christmas tradition, and it is even better when an ornament is made by hand. Courtney Cerruti demonstrates how to create a rustic fawn ornament using felt, simple embroidery and hand stitching. You will want to make this sweet project for all of your loved ones.

Stitch a memento of a place that evokes special memories, such as your childhood home or a summer cabin. Rebecca Ringquist shows you how to transfer a photocopy onto fabric and stitch its likeness with love, sentimentality, and four basic embroidery stitches. Finish with a loop of ribbon and your heirloom ornament is complete.

Amber of Damask Love shows how easy it is to make a custom-carved wooden frame with your Cricut Maker. The handy knife blade tool allows you to make woodworking magic by precisely cutting out a template in the Cricut Design Space. After cutting out the basswood pieces, Amber shows how to paint them in cheery shades and insert a favorite photo. These frames make thoughtful, showstopping gifts – especially when you tell the recipient that you made the frame yourself.

In this class, Lia shows how to make customized gift bags and gift tags using a Cricut Explore. The Cricut will cut out and score the printed cardstock, making assembly quick and easy. Lia will show you how to add ribbon handles, giving your gift bags a clean, professional finish. These gift bags can be cut out and stored flat for later use or assembled on the spot.

Deck your home, hearth and table for the holidays with 30 days of Cricut projects taught by Amber of Damask Love. The possibilities of Cricut machines are nearly endless, making this month-long series an inspirational jumping off point for cutting-machine enthusiasts. Learn from the ever-fabulous Amber who introduces you to a new material and project every single day this month. This class covers the basics of cutting on a Cricut machine, swapping out blades, customizing projects, adhering materials with the Cricut Easy Press, plus instructions on assembling each project. While Amber uses a Cricut Maker in the demonstrations for this class, most of the projects can be done on a Cricut Explore and provide ample inspiration for year ‘round crafting.

Stephanie from Wilton demonstrates two different methods for dipping cookies and pretzels: an ombre effect and a striped effect. You will learn how to create a custom color palette with Candy Melts and how to dip the cookies to create clean lines of color. You will also learn how to use decorating bags to pipe Candy Melts onto pretzel rods for the ultimate in no-bake treats. Layering color onto cookies and pretzels is a sure-fire way to wow guests at holidays, birthdays, Halloween and celebrations year round. No matter what you are decorating, the results will be colorful–and of course, delicious.
 

Learn how to make simple watercolor cards that you’ll enjoy making just as much as your friends and family will enjoy receiving. Courtney Cerruti demonstrates how to create elegant motifs using watercolor and simple brushstrokes or how to use a stencil to apply watercolor if you feel intimidated by the medium. Learn how to personalize your cards with a family photo and make photocopies to create an entire set of handmade cards. Finally, add that same personal touch to your envelopes by making an envelope liner using the same photocopied watercolor technique.
 

Keep your creativity going strong during one of the busiest seasons of the year by making a holiday art journal. Dawn DeVries Sokol shows how to transform everyday ephemera into collage fodder for your pages, working with embellishments, images and lettering to create holiday themed pages without a fuss. Every week, Dawn provides new themes to focus on, encouraging you to take a few moments a day to sit down and celebrate the season. Be sure to share what you make in our class galleries, or on Instagram #cbdrawaday #cbugholiday #creativebug !

This holiday season, join us for a month of merry making (literally!). Every day for a whole month, Courtney Cerruti shows you how to make handmade cards, gift tags, and creatively wrap gifts. This challenge is both practical and fun, giving you a reason to gather up your paper crafting supplies and find holiday inspiration every day. 

Create custom-sized boxes using decorative paper with Liana from Creativebug. These pretty paper boxes have their roots in origami, coming together with a series of simple folds. You'll learn how to make box tops with matching bottoms, which make cute gift containers for any occasion.

This easy ornament project is perfect for anyone who loves doodling and drawing. Using traditional Fair Isle sweater patterns as inspiration, Courtney Cerruti shows you how to use gel pens to draw colorful designs on pre-cut wooden ornaments. This is a perfect project to do with friends or kids this holiday season, your inspiration fueled by a mug of hot cocoa.
 

Perfect for holiday decorating, Courtney demonstrates how to craft a mistletoe sprig using recycled felt. This video originally appeared live on December 5, 2017.

Deck your halls with a season’s worth of festive baubles. Inspired by the holiday decorations they treasured most from childhood, Creativebug artists Liana Allday, Courtney Cerruti and Faith Hale show you how to make 25 ornaments and garlands. In the last day of the challenge, Courtney demonstrates a metallic feathered décor piece perfect for topping the tree. Using simple craft materials, most projects can be completed in less than 10 minutes and at the end of the month your tree will be gloriously adorned. ’Tis the season for crafting!

The wrapping of a present should be as special as the gift inside. Courtney Cerruti shows how to create custom paper gift tags using rubber stamps, ink and embossing powder – perfect for topping off your gifts. This quick embossing technique is ideal for working in large batches. (Maybe you’ll even have some tags for next year, too!)
 

Kids can transform their drawings from paper to fabric in this clever workshop. Rebecca Ringquist shows you how to draw directly onto fabric, or transfer an existing drawing with special markers, and then use kid-friendly stitches to translate a drawing into a piece of portable décor. Also included are variations on stitches and tips to make this satisfying for little hands. 

 

Lisa Congdon shows Courtney how to use paint markers and an oven-safe plate to make super-sweet platters for the holiday season. This video originally appeared live on November 14, 2017.

Courtney demonstrates how to make a super cute card display using paint stirrers from the hardware store and hot glue. Genius! This video originally appeared live on December 20, 2016. 

Courtney demonstrates making simple paper buildings to create an adorable tiny village. Use these techniques for celebrating any season! This video originally appeared live December 13, 2018.

For similar projects, check out Jody Alexander's House Book and Suzy Ultman's Sustainable Play: Make a Dollhouse Cafe.