Last month I bought this organizer at a yard sale. It was in very good shape and only cost a dollar or two.

Not bad, but kind of ho-hum, and well, boring.

This weekend I finally got around to spray painting it. Painted the organizer with Rust-Oleum matte white, which immediately made it look much brighter and more cheerful.

But it still needed a little color and personality, so I ran to my craft drawer and whipped out the “Homespun Chic” Melody Ross papers and Mod Podge that I’d won earlier this summer in a blog giveaway at Mod Podge Rocks!.

I started out by using a large paper punch to obtain perfect squares, then simply decoupaged them onto various parts of the organizer to create a patchwork effect. A few pieces had to be trimmed down to fit, but it was all very easy to do. Coated it with matte Mod Podge and I have a whole new, much prettier place to stash my bills, mail and other correspondence.

Making your own cute, customized bobby pins is a total piece of cake. All you need are about 10 minutes, a few basic supplies and a well ventilated area away from small children and house pets.

I made mine with a bakelite button, a wooden bingo chip, broken clip on earrings and a metal flower that broke off of a 1970s necklace, but you can use just about any small, lightweight object that appeals to you and suits your fashion sensibilities. Not sure what to glue to your hairpins? How about little appliques, rhinestones, scarabs, cabachons, fabric butterflies or flowers with tiny rhinestones? Or get all mixed-media and combine multiple components to create something special and unique. Or if you’re looking to do something a little more intricate you can always create your own resin castings, Fimo or clay creations or even use Shrinky Dinks for hand drawn or computer printed crafty goodness.

These are fun to make yourself, though they’d also be a good group project for older kids or adults. Think tween sleepover, teen birthday bash, bridal shower fun, girls craft night or even an activity for vacation bible camp!

Anyway.

Supplies You’ll Need:
Small, flat, lightweight decorative objects
E6000 or other clear drying super glue
Blank bobby pins with glue pads - available at any craft store

Step 1: Apply a small dollop of glue to the round pad on the bobby pin and gently press the bottom part of your adornment into the glue. Hold it in place for a minute or so, applying light pressure with a your fingers or a cotton swab.

Step 2: Place the bobby pins adorned side down and allow them to dry for a day or two.

Step 3: Wear and enjoy!

Shoe clips, it seems, are making a comeback. Which I’m glad about, since they’re a great way to easily and affordably give your footwear a swanky, yet completely temporary new look. And since they’re comfy and don’t harm shoes, they can be used over and over again on whatever spud covers in your closet are looking a little tired and boring. Or go from day to night with ease! That story. You know how it goes.

Shoe clips can be found at just about any shoe or accessory store these days, or if you fancy more of a vintage look, check out antique shops or speciality stores online. Or um, you could always, I don’t know, make them yourself for about five bucks a pair. Or less.

Supplies You’ll Need:
Clip on Earrings (with screw back style hooks) OR two buttons, trinkets or matching flat objects
2 Shoe Clip Blanks (easily found on etsy.com, do a search for “shoe clip blanks” under supplies)
E6000 Glue
Safety Glasses
Jewelry Pliers
A Cotton Swab

Step 1: If you’re using a using a pair of old clip on earrings to make your shoe clips, put on your safety glasses and carefully and cautiously twist the earring back off using jewelery pliers. I would suggest only using clip on earrings with the screw back style instead of the flat metal clip, since they’re far easier to remove. The screw back part is very thin and should come off fairly easily, though do be careful not to scratch yourself during the removal process. Discard the earring backs once they’ve been removed.

Step 2: Gather up your supplies and find a flat, dry, well ventilated work space away from small children and house pets.

Step 3: Open up one of your shoe clips and place it on the workspace, The top portion with the two holes is where your shoe clip decorations will be glued to. When opened it should look like a concave. If it doesn’t flip it over.

Step 4: Open your tube of E6000 and place a small dollop of glue on the back of the earring or object. Gently press the top portion of the shoe clip into the glue. Use a cotton swab to apply a slight amount of pressure to the shoe clip for just a few seconds. Repeat with the other shoe clip.

Step 5: Set your new shoe clips aside to dry. Leave the clip part open. Give it a few days, just to make sure they’re totally dry and that the glue has set properly.

Then pouf…they’re ready to wear and enjoy! You can sport them on the front like so, or maybe even get fancy and wear them on the side or even the back of your shoes. Whatever spins your pinwheels, really. Fashion is, after all, subjective.

Additional Ideas/Variations: Try using a few faux feathers (think fine and delicate, not kids section craft store), small silk flowers, vintage plastic or glass cameos, delicate lace, felt appliques or vintage cabachons.