How to Craft on a Budget

Crafting can be a pretty expensive hobby. I have been crafting in some capacity for pretty much my whole life. Over time, I have figured out several ways to save money and have come across several tricks that I am eager to share. In this post, I will be sharing some of my money-saving tips.

I always viewed my projects as an investment of both my money and time. I love having a hobby where I work towards something tangible that I can take pride in and show off to my family and friends. The bottom line is: you don't have to spend a lot of money to make something beautiful. Before I started delving into the Cricut world and vinyl crafting, the majority of my crafting was needlework and sewing.

Tips for sewing:

If you are an avid sewer, I definitely recommend paying for the annual membership at Fabricland, $25.99 + tax yearly, to become a member of their "Sewciety". It gives you 20% off all regular priced fabrics and access to other exclusive sales that change monthly (I believe). Also, just like any other purchase, watch their flyer! The fabric you may be looking for might go on sale. MAJOR TIP: always know how much fabric you need. To purchase fabric, the minimum length is 10cm. When I started sewing, I wasted so much fabric by buying too much. I still have pieces of fabric in my storage drawer from two years ago because I completed my project and had so much leftover.

Tips for embroidery:

Embroidery fabric from Michael's is extremely expensive, the cost per meter is insane. Instead of buying the Aida or Charles Craft brand of embroidery fabric from Michaels, you could simply buy plain cotton fabric from Fabricland (or any fabric store). Typically, plain white cotton runs about $6/meter versus the $9-$10 you would pay for 0.6 of a meter at Michaels. This price comparison is based on the Charles Craft Brand from Michaels which sells for $8.49 for 24" (0.6m). If you buy a meter of cotton from Fabricland instead, that is more than enough fabric for a dozen 5" hoop projects.

Once I started to shift gears away from needlework towards the Cricut, I spent a lot of time doing research on the machine and how I could cut my costs without compromising the quality of my projects.

Tips for Cricut:

Amazon is your best friend with your Cricut. The vinyl packages that they have for premium permanent adhesive vinyl compared to Cricut or in-store prices are crazy. I ordered a package of vinyl that came with 72 12"x12" sheets (3 each of the 24 colors) for $39.99. You have seen my color variety through my craft space introduction post. Basically, this means I got 12"x36" of each color. Doing the math, each sheet works out to about $0.55 ($40/72=). Let's compare this to the Cricut brand, they sell their vinyl for $9.99+ in 12"x24" rolls. If we divide that into the same sized sheets as my vinyl order = 2 sheets per roll. Therefore, they charge $5 /12"x12" sheet. That is a HUGE price difference. Amazon also has items such as off-brand tools and mats. I have not ordered them myself as my machine came with the Cricut brand accessories, but some of them have great reviews and could be considered for more cost-cutting.

Finally, I said it before and I will say it again. USE THE MICHAEL'S COUPON. Typically it's 30% off a regular priced item (with restrictions of course). I typically use my coupon for my glitter, acrylic paint, Oracal transfer tape, etc. This is a great way to save a couple of dollars every time you do a craft run.

Tomorrow we will look at my Dollar Tree must-haves!

Happy Crafting!