Guest blogger: Occasionally Crafty

Today we have a fun craft to show you, compliments of Mrs. Valerie from Occasionally Crafty.  Thank you so much for being here and I now can't wait to make a cute tote for my little guy... and get my hands on some of that awesome patterned duct tape! ;) 

.    .    .    .    .    .    .    .    .    .    .    .    .    .    .    .

Hi, I'm Valerie from Occasionally Crafty 






and I am so excited to be guest posting here at Lolly Jane!  Love their blog, love their stuff-- love it all!

I'm a SAHM of three busy little kids, and I love to read, craft, and make music.  I grew up with NO patience for crafts, gave up and just said "I'm not crafty!"  But as I've gotten older, I've discovered that if I take my time and keep trying, I can occasionally make things that are fun and cute!  My blog has been a great way for me to learn and improve my skills.

I hope when you're done reading my post, you'll hop on over to my blog where you'll find fun projects such as dollar store makeovers:

fun clothes:

accessories:

and seasonal decor:

I've got to say, I wracked my brain trying to come up with a project for this post.  I kind of hit a creative slump lately.  Does that ever happen to you?  So, realizing that I was running out of time, I decided to make something that filled a need for me/my family.  And do you know what we need?  Library book totes.

We go to the library every two weeks or more, and we get loads of books.  Usually I shove them in to my diaper bag, but you know, I'm getting tired of lugging around a toddler, my usual junk, AND a huge stack of books.  My older children (almost 6 and 4) are old enough to carry their own books.  I'm slightly lazy that way.

Anyway- when the new branch of the library opened near us, they passed out these free totes.  They were the perfect size for library books.  The only problem is, they were made from a cheap synthetic, almost paper-like material.  The library books ripped right through the sides and bottom.  Thanks a lot, library!  So I did what I do best- wrapped them in duct tape to make them last longer.  It worked like a charm, but it sure was ugly!

Well, those totes have disappeared, and I'm not a brave enough sewer to sew my own.  So, I decided to do the same thing, only BETTER and CUTER.  So without further ado, here are your Duct Tape Library Totes.

Supplies needed:

Tote Bag

Duct Tape of choice

Fabric- I used part of a fat quarter (this is a great scrap buster, too!)

Coordinating or contrasting thread

Fusible Web or Iron On Fabric Interfacing

Craft Cutter or scissors

I bought these totes at the dollar store.  Some actually had some cute patterns on them- but I bought these because of the colors.  We'll be using the blank sides for the customization.

Then, I bought patterned duct tape.  I chose zebra print for my daughter and camo for my son.
***Edited due to inquires: I found mine at Walmart- in the hardware section by the other adhesives/regular duct tape. I've also seen it at craft stores like Michael's and Joann's. Hope you can find some!***

I wrapped the sides and bottom in strips of duct tape.  I started with the bottom.  I left the edges slightly long, then just wrapped and pressed them over onto the sides.  It looks like this:

Then, I wrapped the sides the same way.  I lined them up at the bottom and left the top a little long, then just wrapped and pressed the extra over the top and down inside the bag.  It's duct tape.  No need for perfection.

You could cover the printed side in duct tape too, but I don't mind the patterns too much.

Then, I used my Silhouette to cut out my son's initial with fabric.  I used the fabric interfacing and just fed it through the machine to cut, following Silhouette's instructions here, but if you don't have a cutter, you could do this by hand with a pattern and your own fusible web.

I ironed the initial on the blank side of the tote bag.

Please, please, make sure you use the appropriate setting (medium heat or "synthetic"), and use a press cloth.  I had the heat turned up way too high on my daughter's, and look what happened.

*wipes away tear*  

It's still cute, though!  Love pink and zebra together!

Anyway- once the inital was in place, I sewed it to the tote using a zigzag stitch, and it was done!

Total cost:

Bag- $1

Duct tape- $3.50 (though I hardly used any)

Fabric and Interfacing- on hand

I'd say, that's not bad for a custom library tote!  

. . . Real life shot . . .

 Thanks for having me!  
I hope I'll see you around soon!