1. Shaped Soaps

Lovely shapes, easy to make and very unique. A soap, a decorative accent and a room scent all in one, this project can be done in three easy steps.

What you need:

•    different colored soaps
•    cheese grater
•    potato peeler
•    little water
•    pretty containers

How it's done:
1. Grate the soap.
2. Add a few drops of water to the grated soap.
3. Shape the soap with your hands like clay and set it aside to dry.


Tip:
Too much water can form suds which can cloud the colors of your soap when dried.
This project is enjoyable to make. As a bonus, the room will smell very pleasant while working on this project.

Different colored grated soaps are an attractive and useful gift in itself. Place differently colored soaps in a clear glass. These can also be used as regular soap. A few granules can help in gently scrubbing the skin to rid of dirt. An exfoliating kind of soap can maximize its potential if it's in grated form and used in the bath.

Shaved soap made by using a potato peeler can create rose-shaped tiny petals. Placing these in an open container can give out a pleasant scent in the bathroom or kitchen. Only one piece of petal (or shaving) is needed to wash hands. Cream soaps marketed as beauty bars are best to use for this piece. Soft soaps give out a bigger and longer petal form than "family" soaps which are harder and easily crumbles more when peeled.

2. Towel cake

Towel cakes are very attractive and are surprisingly easy to do. Making one yourself will only cost you half the item's retail price.

What you need:
•    a large towel
•    3 face towels
•    gift wrapper
•    satin ribbon
•    scented candles
•    shaped soaps (purchased or handmade)
•    thin nylon cord
•    rubber bands
•    cake board

How it's done:

1. Roll the face towels and tie each with a rubber band to resemble a rose.
2. Tie the three rose towels together with a rubber band or thin nylon cord.
3. Fold a large towel three times over lengthwise and place the three rose towels at the end.
4. Roll the towel neatly wrapping the rose towels at the center.

How it's done:

5. On a cake board, place the rolled towel right side-up with the rose towels on top. Tie two thin nylon cords around the cake, near the top and bottom, to keep it in shape. Thin nylon cords are invisible when tied around keeping flaws hidden.
6. Decorate the cake with a strip of printed gift wrapper at the bottom, satin ribbon and jazz it up with other bath items like shaped soaps and a scented candle at the center.

Note:
•    Have a good theme color in mind when buying the materials.
•    You may wrap the cake with clear cellophane or tulle.

3. Bath Essentials Basket

It takes simple taste to create your own set and all the items needed are easy to find. Keep in mind the color theme and elements needed for the purpose. Items are cheaper if bought by the bunch or in singles if bought from the dry goods section of a public market.

What you need:
•    A basket or any nifty container that’s suitable for display in the bath. Make sure it has enough space for all the contents you will put in.
•    Small bottles of toiletries like shampoo, liquid bath or bubble bath soaps, mouthwash, etc.
•    Small shaped soaps or petal soaps.
•    A scented candle
•    A fancy scrub or pumice stone
•    Other items you can add: cologne, flower petals for the bath, pieces of wrapped chocolate, bath salts, face towel

How it's done:
1.    Just arrange the array of items in the basket according to your taste. Wrap the entire contents as a whole with a cling wrap or clear cellophane.
2.    Stick a card and a curly ribbon on the handle of the basket.

Tip:
•    Small single bottles can be bought from supply stores at P15 each or gift shops and department stores at P30 each.
•    Getting branded toiletry would be convenient but it's not easy finding a set that matches the color.
•    In personalizing the bottles, one has to purchase a separate liquid bath product to fill the bottles with.

4. Balloon Bouquet

Ever wonder how they stuff a teddy in a balloon? You can do it too. A piece like this with teddy included can cost less than P100 if balloons pieces are bought from balloon suppliers. Supermarkets sell balloons in a pack of 20-25 pieces.

What you need:
•    1 big clear balloon. Size 12 or higher
•    A small, soft and light stuffed toy
•    3 different colored long balloons called 260
•    1 balloon stick with cup
•    3 balloon clip sticks
•    Japanese paper in 3 different colors
•    Newspaper
•    Masking tape
•    Satin ribbon

How it's done:

1. Tie a thin nylon string around the legs of the stuff toy with the remaining string sticking out from the center of the toy's bottom.
2. Cut different colored confetti made of Japanese paper and stuff it in the clear balloon with the use of a funnel and a pencil.
3. It takes two people to stuff a teddy in a balloon. One person will pull the opening wide enough to get the teddy in. The other person will stuff and push the teddy head-first inside the balloon. The string extending from the toy's bottom should stick out the balloon's opening. The stuffed balloon will now look like a cocoon.
4. Inflate the clear balloon with a hand pump and stop pumping when the balloon has reached the right size. A size 12 clear balloon for example, should be a maximum of 12 inches diameter when inflated.
5. Pull the string attached to the bottom of the teddy to make sure it sits in place.
6. Tie the opening of the balloon before tying it on the cup of the balloon stick.

How it's done:

7. Roll a folded newspaper the size of a flowerpot and use masking tape to keep it together. This will be the base of the bouquet.
8. Make different balloon flowers with the long balloons. There are plenty of how-to sites and video tutorials for flower balloon twisting found on the net. It only takes a few practice to get it right. Clip the flower balloons on a clip stick.
9. Arrange the balloons by sticking it on the rolled newspaper.
10. Wrap the newspaper base with japanese paper and tie with satin ribbon. Add a bow.

Easy version:

A "no twist" type balloon flower can be made by tying small balloons together to make petals and two centers (front and back). Heart-shaped balloons are very timely. Balloon sticks can be carefully bent to meet the kind of arrangement needed. The stuffed toy need not be placed inside a balloon. The toy can be tied with a thin nylon string to keep it in place.

Tip:
•    Additional ornaments can be added like a big swirly lollipop and potpourri pack to give out a pleasant scent as a bouquet should be.
•    For beginners, start with several pieces of long balloons to practice balloon twisting with and to make room for mistakes.

5. Dried Rose Bouquet

Drying flowers is a form of art. Make it more than decorative by adding a rose scented potpourri, perfume beads or any air freshener/scents that is small enough to hide in the pot. This will make the decor beautiful and functional.

What you need:
•    Dried roses. Roses can wilt in three days. Remove the leaves and hang it upside-down to dry by air away from the sun and heat for five days. By hanging them upside down, the stems and head of the rose will dry up straight
•    A small pot
•    1-inch thick, small styrofoam or floral foam brick the size of the pot's inner space.
•    Dried moss or artificial moss from home section of department stores. Colored decorative pebbles will also do if moss is not available.
•    Glue
•    Rose-scented potpourri or perfume beads
•    Scissors

How it's done:

1. Decorate the pot by wrapping, painting, or covering it with beads or stickers
2. Place the styrofoam or floral foam inside the pot.
3. Apply a thin glue coating on the foam and sprinkle in the potpourri granules or perfume beads over the glue coated foam
4. Spread dried moss on the pot
5. Cut the stems of the dried roses to a desired length. The length will be the height of the flowers in proportion to the size of the pot. The way the stems are cut should have a pointed tip
6. Pin the rose stems on the styro board. Arrange the roses carefully and neatly as dried roses can easily break.
7. Place a small Valentine greeting card, ribbon or any small decor on the pot for accent.

6. Potpourri

Simple to make for yourself or as a gift. Stores selling fragrances for potpourri are listed. You can search the net for "perfumes suppliers Philippines" or "fragrance oils suppliers Philippines" to find a supplier near you.

What you need:
•    1 cup of dried flower petals, leaves and barks or fruit peels of orange, apple, calamansi and dried herbs.
•    Color dyes like unscented fabric dye, henna,  or food coloring
•    Fragrance oil
•    Glass dropper or glass rod
•    Ceramic or glass bowl
•    Glass jar with lid

How it's done:
1. Dry the petals or peelings for a few days by placing it in a net and hanging it or spread it in an open, flat container away from sunlight.
2. Dried materials can be dyed and dried to make the colors more appealing. Dye batches of different colors. Drying after dyeing can take a few more days.
3. Once dyed and totally dried, place it in a ceramic or glass bowl and slowly add 10 drops of fragrance oil with a glass dropper or a glass rod while mixing the potpourri.
4. Place potpourri in a glass jar away from sunlight and heat.
5. Open the jar and mix the potpourri with a glass rod every 2 days.  It takes weeks for the dried ingredients to totally absorb the oil.
6. When the product is ready, it may be placed in a cotton bag or a gift jar.

Tip:
1. Choose a scent that suits your dry ingredients. Floral scents for dried flowers and citrus/fruity scents for dried fruit peels. Fragrance oil suppliers has long list of scents you can choose from.
2. Never use plastic containers while making and mixing your potpourri as the oil can have a chemical reaction with plastics.
3. Some fragrance suppliers sell a minimum of 1 fragrance oil bottle of 100ml. at P150-P200 depending on the kind of scent. A 100ml. bottle can make a lot of potpourri packs. There are other uses for left over fragrance oils like making perfume, cologne, soap or bubble bath mix.

Easy Version:

Ready made scent sachets, net pouches and decorative ties are available at American Bazaar store at 2 for P66. Pour 1/4 cup of granules from the envelope into the net pouch and tie with satin flower stems. That's P33 per scented pouch with more scent granules left in the sachet.

7. Bottled Scents

Making perfumes is not easy and takes a few mistakes to perfect a scent. Fortunately, there are ready mixes of scents similar to designer perfumes available from local perfume oil suppliers. These stores are listed on the web searchable as Philippine perfume oil suppliers or fragrance oil suppliers

Jose Milan Vargas of Angel Cloud scents has been producing his own line of "inspired" perfumes and shares with us the basics.

Below is what you need to make 100 ml of eau de perfume. These materials are all available from the perfume scent suppliers.
•    15 ml Fragrance oil, scent of your choice
•    12 drops fixative - holds all the elements of the perfume together and slows down the evaporation rate of the perfume on the skin.
•    30 ml DPG or Dipropylene glycol, a liquid ingredient that is safe to mix with perfume oils. It works with the oil to make it safer for the skin and aids the scent to emit faster.
•    75ml alcohol ethanol or ethyl (not the commercial kind)
•    7ml distilled water
•    Graduated cylinder than can hold 100 ml liquid
•    Glass beaker
•    Glass rod to be used as dropper and mixer
•    Small glass funnel
•    Coffee filter
•    Package bottle.

How it's done:

1. Mix fragrance oil with 12 drops of fixative and stir.
2. Add DPG and stir
3. Add the alcohol and stir well for five minutes to mix oil and alcohol very well.
4. Transfer to a dark bottle to keep the light out and let stand for two days. The bottle can be wrapped in newspaper if no dark colored bottle is available.
5. After two days, add distilled water and mix. If the mixture is cloudy, add alcohol a few drops at a time.
6. To get a stronger scent, you may keep the mixture in a dark or wrapped bottle, and let stand in room temperature for three weeks or one week in the fridge. If the scent is too strong, just add a few drops of distilled water.
7. Pour the final scent mixture into a nice bottle using through a coffee filter on a funnel.

Tip:
•    Use only glass materials in mixing and storing the perfume mix since plastics can react with the oils and chemicals used.
•    In getting into perfume making seriously, it is best to take a seminar offered by livelihood agencies and perfume suppliers.

Photo from sxc.hu

8. Fashion Accessories

Colorful and wearable stones, chains and charms are a gift suitable for this season. Creating bead jewelries involves the basics like stringing and looping but an additional, easy-to learn skill is needed to create a durable, quality piece. Rowena C. Araja or "Gina" of Gina's Accessories has been into bead accessories for more than five years. Here she shares simple how-tos to making your own beads and charm wears.

"I started making chandelier earrings with my sister and we got a lot of orders so we took a seminar on basic beading. I got hooked into this until I turned solo which wasn't easy. Sometimes I work up at 3 a.m. working on orders. I enjoy this line so much that I don't feel tired. I can make 20-30 bracelets in a day. I get my supplies from Wellmanson which costs P100 - P180. The price of course will depend on the kind of materials and design you will make"

Wellmanson is a popular bead supplier in Manila with stores at Quiapo and Divisoria. There are other bead suppliers along Villalobos Street in Quiapo near Wellmanson. Limited bead selections can also be found at the gifts market section at Market Market in Taguig and Carolina's craft store with branches around Metro Manila.

Photos from beadoftreasures.multiply.com

Fashion Accessories

One doesn't need to attend a seminar to create a very simple piece of bead wear. You can find online video tutorials on basic beading which introduces the methods as well as the tools needed for this craft. Below is Ms. Gina's procedure for a chunky bracelet (pictured on the left) which involves simple stringing of beads. All materials mentioned here are available from a bead supplier.

What you need:
•    .015 or .018 beading wire - this will be the "string".
•    Wire cutter
•    Clasp - placed at both ends of the beaded strand that hooks on the each other
•    2 crimp beads - small tubes of metal that is pressed with pliers to hold wires or cords together.
•    Crimping pliers for pressing and closing crimp beads
•    Selected beads
•    Selected charms
•    Jump ring - tiny circles of wire with open ends that connect components like clasps or charms.
•    2 spacers - little parts that connect components of bead pieces, spaces rows of beads, fastens and adds decoration
•    Clean cloth as your working surface for the beads to stay clean and stay in place

Photo from googleusercontent.com

How it's done:

1. Cut a piece of beading wire 25cm. String all the mix of selected beads.
2. Set the beaded wire aside and work on the charms by attaching a jump ring on each. Connect the charms in between the beads by the jump rings.
3. On each end of the beaded wire, string a spacer, a crimp bead & the half part of the clasp.
4. Check the fit & add or remove beads if needed.
5. Go back through the last few beads, string & tighten the wire. Crimp the crimp beads & trim the excess wire.

Photo from googleusercontent.com

Easy Version:

Alphabet and colored plastic and wooden beads can be found at the American Bazaar store. Just bead the pieces together and form any pattern and name you like using a nylon or colored stretchable strings found at the same store.

Photo from googleusercontent.com

9. Personalized Desk Clock

A clock with your picture is a good personalized gift for the office Daddy who will think of you long after Valentines is through.

What you need:
•    An ordinary desk clock
•    “Deep” picture frames. These are frames with a depth of at least 2 cm.
•    Photos
•    Thick board strips. Foam board or corrugated board will do. Length should be the same as the clock's width
•    Glue
•    Cutter

How it's done:
1. For a clock frame, gauge where you want to place the center of the clock behind the photo. It should be far from the faces in the picture. Take the desk clock apart while keeping the mechanism case intact
2. Trace the shape of the clock's mechanism case at the back of the frame board that backs the photo print.
3. Cut out the shape of the clock on that board.
4. Take the clock apart and gently pull out the hands from the face of the clock leaving a small pin.
5. Make a small hole on the photo where the pin for the clock hands will be inserted.
6. Place the cut out frame board at the back of the photo.
7. Attach the clock at the back of the photo by inserting the clock's bare pin in the hole.
8. Tape the clock's back on the board backing of the photo. This is to support the weight of the clock when the frame is up and displayed.
9. Attach the hands back to the pin over the photo print
10. Place the photo in the frame with the clock on its back.
11. Place back the protective glass cover of the frame

Tip:
•    Choose a deep photo frame that can contain the hands of the clock once it's attached to the photo.
•    Make sure that the frame's stand behind is not at the center where the clock will be placed.
•    You may omit the glass cover if the frame is not deep enough to cover the clock hands and protect the picture.

Photo from googleusercontent.com

Easy Version:

1. Cut the photo to the size of the clock's face
2. Take the clock apart with the mechanism intact and take the hands out.
3. Make a small hole at the center of the photo
4. Press the photo onto the clock's face with the pin sticking out of the hole.
5. Place the hands back and re-assemble the clock.

Photo from googleusercontent.com

10. Sea of Love Jar

Oil and water don't mix. This is the theory behind this to-do item. Use it as a decor or paperweight. This DIY fishbowl will surely amaze everyone.

What you need:
•    Clear jar
•    Plastic floating fishes from pet shops
•    Clear vegetable oil or mineral oil
•    Water
•    Blue food coloring
•    Plastic aquarium plant
•    Decor like crystal pebbles or shells that can sit at the bottom.

How it's done:
1. Under the jar's lid, attach the plastic plants with a glue gun
2. Place stones or shells in the jar.
3. Fill half of the jar with water mixed with 2 drops of blue food coloring
4. Place the plastic fishes inside
5. Fill the rest of the jar with mineral oil
6. Place the lid on with the plants submerged in the liquid.
7. Turn it right side-up and cover the lid with ribbon.

Note: Choose a clear vegetable oil as some brands are yellowish.

Photo from googleusercontent.com