With the fall weather comes cooler nights that awaken within me my crafting spirit. After all, Christmas is around the corner and each year my crafty gifts have to out do the year before. Some nights, it’s harder than others to be inspired. On nights where projects flop and patience wears thin, I turn to other DIY blogs and sites for a creative recharge. Below are my top ten sites for DIY Geek Crafts.
10. The Nerd Craft Librarian – http://jipmagip.blogspot.com/
This blog focuses mostly on small crafts geared for kids and the young at heart. Her tutorials page has a few fun ideas, but you can get inspired just from the crafts she features on her main page. This blog is fun and fresh, and has a lot of personal posts that bring to life the writer’s personality and charm. Some of my favorite crafts include the Doctor Who clock and her Harry Potter hand bags.
9. Hydrule Foundry – http://hyrulefoundry.wordpress.com/
This is not your typical DIY site. The projects and tutorials are for 3D printing and modeling. This is crafting for the high tech. If you happen to have an extra three grand lying around and a multitude of CAD designs collecting dust, then look no further for inspiration. The crafts featured on this site are all Legend of Zelda inspired and all made on a 3D printer. You may not think that 3D printing is considered a craft, but with Kickstarter pages for manufacturing personal 3D printers popping up, it won’t be long before they are sold in hobby stores across the country. 3D printing can very well become the crafting of the future. Still, if you have no desire to learn complicated engineering programs, this site is still very resourceful in the history and terminology of Legend of Zelda.
8. Doodle Craft – http://doodlecraft.blogspot.com/
Like the Nerdy Librarian, this blog focuses on kid crafts, but has a ‘geekery’ page that is primarily Doctor Who and My Little Pony themed. She has some Star Wars themed crafts as well as a miscellaneous section, but her crafts excel with Doctor Who. One of the downsides is that some of the links to the crafts are actually just pins on Pinterest and not full tutorials. Sometimes, however, just seeing the finished projects can still get you inspired. Some of the best crafts she has are the t-shirts she designs with vinyl. I would love to own any of the ones she features. She has full tutorials on how to make them through some of the links, including the Pinky Pie shirt.
Aside from her t-shirts, she has other amazing crafts utilizing vinyl and photo editing software, as well as crafts of all kinds. Each page she has is a treasure trove of inspiration and makes me glad to know there are awesome geeky parents out there.
7. Makezine – makezine.com
I came across Makezine magazine in a second hand bookstore and fell in love with the Steampunk edition. After reading through it several times I found them online and discovered a site full of interesting odds and ends. Their site is primarily known for DIY electronics and heavy workshopping but you’ll find inspiration in all of their categories. From pirate ship pies to armadillo gloves, there is something for everyone to be amused.
6. Minieco.co.uk – http://www.minieco.co.uk/
This site is not specific to the world of geek, but the paper crafts they feature are amazingly creative and you can’t help but geek out over them. Some of the paper crafts, like the Pac-man garland or the robot shadow puppets, can easily translate into other characters just by following the same principles. The pop-up greeting cards she creates are simple in design, but leave a lasting impression. The down side to this site is the actual layout; the gray lettering on gray background sometimes makes it hard to read.
5. DIY Geekery – http://diygeekery.wordpress.com/
For those of you who can knit or crochet, I envy you. Every time I try, I manage to miss a loop at the beginning and throw myself into a fiery rage when I realize it half way through. If you have the skills and are looking to expand into making adorable dolls, then this site is perfect for you. Most of the dolls they create are inspired by Mass Effect, but you can find other geekery sprinkled throughout. The tutorial page dives into quilt making and there’s even some Star Wars felt Christmas ornaments. The thing I love about this site is that there are free patterns shown for all of the crafts. It’s a crochet dream. Once again I have problems with the layout of the site, mostly with the cover photo and basic Arial text title.
4. Geek Crafts.com – http://geekcrafts.com/
Geek Crafts is a smorgasbord of delicious crafts that range from every genre. It features crafts for various writers and allows people to submit their own crafts as well. This is a fun site to scroll through when you are “working” at the office. The crafts they feature can be very inspiring and easily recreated or modified to meet your needs. The downside once again is the simple layout, and once you reach the last page of crafts, you are left clamoring more for. The good news is they do provide several links to other crafting sites that keep your “work” going all day.
3.Gadget Sin.com: DIY Page – http://gadgetsin.com/category/diy-gadgets
Gadget Sin is one of those sites that has an overwhelming wealth of information. Whether you are scoping out articles on the new iPhone, or just cruising through the accessories, this site is a tech lover’s dirty secret. I’d like to focus on just their DIY page, which contains over 300 modified gadgets and crafts. Some of the crafts featured are incredible like the Mecha built from car parts. Some are just plain adorable like the Darth Vader champagne cork. It also has a wide variety of paper crafts, some with moving parts. This page alone will keep you guessing for hours and wondering just how some of them were made.
2. Epbot.com – http://www.epbot.com/
I have to preface this with a little bit of information on this blog’s creator. Jen Yates created the blog Cakewrecks.com which has grown into such a huge following that it has allowed her to publish a book and tour the country for it. Epbot is her personal blog. This blog is not entirely dedicated to geek crafts, though. It’s a personal journey of Jen as a geek and a crafter. Some of the geek crafts she has done are incredible, for instance the Steampunk white rabbit cosplay.
Cruising through her site you will find in-depth tutorials on her crafts as well as other crafts featured from Etsy and Pinterest. She also has personal posts about her trips, her family, and her day to day struggles.This blog will leave you inspired in more than one way and is an essential read for any geek out there.
1. Instructables.com – http://www.instructables.com/
Instructables is the ultimate DIY dish with sprinkles on top. It has everything. I mean everything! If you are looking for inspiration, no matter the craft, you can always find something here. Some of my favorites are actually the food Instructables. However, I have to cruise through them in moderation or else I become “hangry” (hungry and angry). Instructables is another site where people can upload and share their own creations as well as detailed tutorials on how to make them. When the holidays are right around the corner, this is a great site to come to for gift ideas. And if the holidays are not around, then just go wild.
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Laurel Way is a writer for film, television, websites, and blogs. She is based in Phoenix, Arizona in the U.S., and has two fat cats and a loving husband. Laurel is a geek to her core and loves all things within horror, sci-fi/fantasy, and more. When she is not writing films, she is watching them, and her go-to movie snack is popcorn and Milkduds.
