You’ll love this collection of 20 genius crafting tips. These are the craft hacks your grandmother used – very useful for everyday life!
Crafting tips are one of my favorite things to collect because there’s always some weird little shortcut that makes life easier.
And honestly? The best ones usually come from people who’ve been crafting forever.
These are the kind of tricks your grandmother probably used long before there were fancy organizers, expensive tools, or entire aisles dedicated to craft storage solutions. Sometimes all you need is a binder clip, a cereal box, or a random thing sitting in your junk drawer.
That’s what makes these crafting hacks so satisfying.
Some save money. Some save time. Some simply prevent you from losing your mind while trying to clean glitter off literally every surface in your house.
We’ve got ideas for storing craft supplies, sharpening tools, organizing fabric, dealing with glue gun messes, and making everyday crafting way less frustrating.
And the best part? Most of these use inexpensive household items you probably already have around the house.
Bookmark this page because these are the kinds of crafting hacks you’ll actually come back and use later.
Crafting Hacks for Glue, Paint, and Messes
Pick Up Glitter with a Lint Roller
This is one of those crafting tips you’ll love, because we all know how hard glitter is to pick up! If you have a place with glitter that you can’t easily clean, use a lint roller to get it up.
Store Glue in a Glass
It takes several minutes for me to get to my craft glue each time I use it – so I started storing it upside down in a glass and the glue is right there in the bottle when I need it.
Freezer Prevents Stringy Glue Sticks
Want to know what helps glue sticks from stringing as much? Keeping them in the freezer before using! Take them out and put them right into your glue gun.
Eliminate Hot Glue Gun Strands with a Hair Dryer
Another option for getting rid of hot glue strands – use your hair dryer with the project is done. You’ll see them melt away.
Cardboard Box Spray Paint Booth
If you live in a small place, you might not have anywhere to spray paint out in the open.
If this is the case, use a cardboard box stood up on its long side as a makeshift booth. Great for the winter in your garage too!
Paint Chips from Popsicle Sticks
It’s hard to tell what color acrylic paint is by looking at it in bottle – so use popsicle sticks to make paint chips so you can always color match easily. Related: get my tips for how to use acrylic paint!
Cut Duct Tape Easily
To make it easier to cut duct tape, wipe your scissors with a baby wipe beforehand. This prevents the duct tape from sticking to the blades.
Craft Room Organization Hacks
Store Really Small Items in Ice Cube Trays
A plastic ice tray is a perfect place for holding teenie tiny items that have no other place to go – you also don’t have to buy multiple storage containers.
Mini Bolt Fabric Storage
To make small fabric pieces easier to store, wrap them around cut pieces of a cereal box. You can then sit them up in a drawer and sort through them easily.
Paper Towel Ribbon Storage
It’s very easy to store ribbon and still access it on a paper towel holder. Simply push the roll down onto the holder and layer them (works best for cardboard rolls).
Paint Brush Storage in a Chip Container
Use an old chip container (rinsed out) to store brushes and other long items, such as chenille stems. If you want to decorate the outside of the container, you definitely can!
Binder Clip to Yarn Guide
Use a binder clip on the edge of a glass jar to direct your yarn and keep your ball from going all over the place. Don’t forget to set this up before you start knitting!
Sewing, Knitting, and Tool Tips
Use a Magnet to Pick Up Pins
I’ll never forget when I dropped a ton of pins on the carpet during a late night sewing session. I was so tired and it was difficult to see them! Easily pick them up with a strong magnet.
Protect Your Knitting Needle Tips
Protect yourself from an accidental stabbing by putting wine corks at the end of your knitting needles.
My brother stepped on my knitting needles one Christmas and had to go to the hospital, so this is one of those crafting tips I use ALL the time!
Make Sewing Patterns from Newspaper
If you want a cheap way to make your own sewing patterns, look no further than the recycling bin – newspaper is perfect!
Sharpen Scissors with Sandpaper
Sandpaper will sharpen your scissors easily – just by cutting through it several times. Medium grit works the best for this application.
Sharpen Punches with Tin Foil
I love my huge collection of craft punches but it’s hard to keep them sharp. The easy way to do it is to punch aluminum foil. Punch several times and you’ll notice the punch cuts better than ever!
Randomly Genius Household Craft Hacks
Soften an Old Tape Roll
Do you have a tape roll that you haven’t used in awhile? If it’s hard to peel the end off, put it in the microwave for about 10 seconds and it will loosen up.
Put Nails in Straight with a Comb
It’s hard to make sure a nail goes in straight sometimes. Use a comb to help guide the nail as you hammer – and then simply slide off when the nail is secure.
Do you have any crafting hacks you swear by? I’d genuinely love to hear them because crafty people always know the best weird little tricks.
Want more craft tips? I have suggestions for DIY sticker remover! I’d also love for you to check out the following posts:
101 Mod Podge Uses • How to Decoupage • How to Paint Mason Jars • How to Remove Mod Podge • Learn How to Mod Podge • Painting Glass 101 • Painting Stripes
(Store Really Small Items in Ice Cube Trays)
I find that daily (weekly) pill reminder cases work wonders for tiny items including beads. I prefer my tiny items in something with a lid or cap! LOL
Hi
I’ve tried put magazine pics. On cardboard boxes. They dry wrinkled and don’t look good. What am I doing wrong? I love your emails.
Thank you
Gabriela
Hi Gabriella! You can use small pieces okay: https://modpodgerocksblog.com/make-a-magazine-collage/
If the pieces get larger that you use, you need to wet them first. The paper is thin, and thin papers are wrinkled with acrylic products unless you wet them first like I did with this thin wrapping paper: https://modpodgerocksblog.com/floral-diy-coat-rack/
@Gabriela, Aileene’s Tacky glue is a great paper glue!
I like to glue recipes that I have clipped from magazines into a scrapbook. I used rubber cement but didn’t hold after a few years. Any suggestions?
Hi Pat! You can use just a regular gluestick. The Elmer’s craft bond works well: https://amzn.to/3kCXKzE
Since you aren’t decoupaging, Mod Podge is overkill for this!
These were really helpful. Thank you for sharing.