Make · Occasion
Back to school projects
45 things to make for Back to school, sorted by who is making them.
3 projects
Toddlers
Apple stamp painting
Apple halves dipped in paint make perfect apple-shaped prints, star and all.
Letter A apple collage
A giant letter A covered in red paper apples, for a first taste of the alphabet.
All about me handprint poster
A poster with your toddler's handprint, footprint, photo and favorite things, to look back on every year.
5 projects
Preschoolers
Paper haircut cutting practice
Draw silly faces with long paper hair and let your preschooler give everyone a haircut with child-safe scissors.
Name puzzle
A colorful cardboard puzzle where each piece is one letter of your child's name, so they learn to spell it by putting it back together.
Alphabet collage letters
A giant bubble letter filled with magazine pictures of things that start with that letter's sound.
Apple stamp painting
Cut apples become paint stamps that leave a perfect apple print, star and all, for a back-to-school picture.
Paper plate self portrait
Your preschooler looks in a mirror and makes their own face on a paper plate, yarn hair and all.
7 projects
Kids
Apple stamp prints
Cut an apple in half, dip it in paint, and stamp apples with a star hiding in the middle.
Paper airplane science fair test
Fold 3 different paper airplanes, fly each one 5 times, measure, and find out which design really flies farthest.
Pony bead lizard keychain
The classic beaded lizard, built row by row on a cord, clipped to a backpack zipper.
Friendship bracelets
Knot embroidery floss into a striped friendship bracelet to trade with a best friend.
Kandinsky circle art
Paint a grid of bright circles inside circles, a classroom favorite inspired by artist Wassily Kandinsky.
Monster corner bookmarks
Folded paper bookmarks that hug the corner of a page, with a monster face that looks like it's chomping the book.
Lemon battery that lights an LED
Wire 4 lemons together with nails and copper and light up a real LED, a science fair classic that works.
24 projects
Teens and students
Fabric covered bulletin board
A plain corkboard wrapped in fabric you love, with ribbon criss-crosses to tuck in photos and notes.
Chalkboard mini fridge wrap
A dorm fridge turned into a chalkboard for notes, snack lists and roommate drawings, and it peels off at the end of the year.
Jar succulent terrarium
A tiny desert garden layered in a glass jar, low care and perfect for a sunny dorm windowsill.
Washi tape wall frames
Paper tape frames around your prints and postcards, a gallery wall with zero nail holes.
Photo string light wall
A glowing line of your favorite photos clipped to fairy lights, hung with hooks that peel off clean on move-out day.
Iron-on patch jacket
A thrifted denim jacket covered in patches that tell people what you're into before you say a word.
Painted canvas tote bag
A plain canvas tote painted with your own design, sturdy enough for books, groceries or the beach.
Embroidered denim jacket
Hand-stitched flowers, a name or a little design on a jean jacket, the upgrade that makes it one of a kind.
No-drill fabric headboard
A soft upholstered headboard that leans against the wall behind your bed, no holes and no tools on the wall.
Shrink plastic keychains
Drawings on shrink film that bake down into thick, tiny keychains that look professionally made.
Open when letters
A bundle of envelopes labeled for different moods, like open when you're bored, sad or need a laugh.
Wood monitor riser
A wood shelf on short legs that lifts your laptop or monitor to eye level and hides clutter underneath.
Mini pegboard desk organizer
A small pegboard that stands on your desk with little shelves and hooks for headphones, plants and supplies.
Leather cord keepers
Little snap straps that keep earbuds and chargers coiled in your bag, cheap to make and good to sell.
Hand-bound coptic stitch journal
A handmade journal with an exposed stitched spine that opens fully flat, the kind sold in fancy stationery shops.
Custom painted sneakers
Plain white canvas or leather sneakers painted with your own design, flexible enough to wear every day.
Cardboard drawer dividers
Custom slots for your desk drawer made from shipping boxes, so pens and chargers stop rolling into a pile.
Binder clip cable holders
Labeled clips on the edge of your desk that keep every charger right where you can grab it.
Beaded name bracelet
A stretchy bracelet that spells out a name, an inside joke or your friend group's initials.
Bullet journal setup
A dot grid notebook set up with a calendar, habit tracker and to-do pages that actually fit your life.
Hand-drawn sticker sheets
Your own drawings turned into waterproof stickers for laptops and water bottles, made to sell or trade.
Stacked crate bookshelf
Wooden crates sanded, stained and stacked into a bookshelf you can take apart and move every year.
Lined zipper pencil pouch
A lined zip pouch for pens, makeup or chargers, the project that makes zippers stop being scary.
Wooden phone stand
A solid wood block with an angled slot that holds your phone up for video calls, recipes and alarms.
5 projects
Grown-ups
Painted terracotta pots
Plain clay pots painted with color blocks or simple patterns, sealed so the paint doesn't peel, with a little plant tucked inside.
Hand-bound long stitch journal
A soft-cover notebook with 5 sewn signatures and an exposed stitched spine, a gift that writers and sketchers love.
Mug cake gift kit
A mug packed with a bag of chocolate cake mix and a recipe card, so someone can bake a warm cake in 90 seconds.
Sewn fabric scrunchies
Soft fabric scrunchies made from scraps in about 15 minutes each, a top seller at markets and online.
Scrap wood phone stand
A heavy little wood block with an angled slot that holds your phone up for video calls and recipes.
1 projects
