• Jewelry making is a fun craft.Bowl of beads and buttons - craft supplies. image by Gina Smith from Fotolia.com
  
  Making crafts either by yourself or with a group of friends is a great way to get your creative juices flowing and have an enjoyable time while making something you can wear, use or look at. You can also give your craft projects away as gifts for birthdays, weddings or during the holidays.
  
  

Table Linens

• Even a beginning seamstress can make napkin and tea towels. Look for cotton or linen fabrics in solid colors or a cute pattern. To make napkins, sew two squares of fabric together. Make tea towels by folding over and stitching all four edges of the fabric to conceal the raw edge. If you can embroider, you may want to stitch your initials or a simple design into the towels or napkins. You can also make place mats by placing a thin piece of cotton batting between two fabric rectangles and quilting the pieces together. Make pretty napkin holders from pieces of wire shaped into a ring and decorated with small beads.
  
  

Jewelry

• Handmade jewelry comes in a wide range of shapes and styles. Thread large, chunky beads onto a piece of string to make a dramatic necklace. Wrap wool thread around plastic bangles to create textured, interesting looking bracelets. Cut out small portraits of your children and attach the photos to small locket frames or clear pendants. Use rings to attach the pictures to a chain. Making necklaces from clay beads or macaroni is a great craft to do with small children.
  
  

Collage

• You don't have to be particularly talented or crafty to make a collage. Flip through your favorite magazines and look for pictures that you like. Cut out the pictures until you have enough to cover a piece of poster board or a small canvas. You can also use photographs you've taken, but you will need to photocopy the photos first, since photo paper does not glue well. Glue each picture to the surface in any manner you wish. You may want to arrange the pictures first and then glue them. Seal the collage with a coating of decoupage glue.