11 Craft Projects Under $20

You don't need a lot of money to make changes all over your home that will have a big impact. There are many craft projects under $20 that will add extra storage space, pretty decor, and practical items of all kinds to every room of your home.

Craft Projects That Cost Less Than $20

For a small investment of money and some time, you can add all sorts of new items to your house and transform lots of older ones as well. Keep some standard crafting material and tools on hand and you can complete these affordable projects anytime to give all kinds of places around the home a little bit of that something extra.

1. Cheery Storage Cans

Bathroom and office areas are full of small items that you need to have but end up being hard to store. Paper clips, cotton swabs, pens, makeup items, you know all that stuff that always seems to be everywhere but it's never anywhere when you need to find it.

One easy and inexpensive solution is to use cans. Soak them in a strong cleaner to get rid of any residue and odor, peel off the labels, and spray-paint them inside and out in any color you want.

Spray paint a plywood square or rectangle in a contrasting or matching color, as desired, and secure the cans standing upright to the plywood by driving a nail in the bottom of each through to the wood.

This wall storage square can be secured to the wall with drywall screws in all four corners and now, you have a handy and decorative storage solution for all those little items.

2. Message Board

There are several DIY options when you want to make a custom message board for keeping a grocery list, remembering important dates, or sharing information among household members.

One option is the drawer of an old dresser. Paint the outside any color and line the bottom of the drawer with craft paper in a fun pattern or color.

Mount the drawer to any wall or door using drywall anchors and screws or nails, remembering to locate the studs first and secure the drawer here. Set a stack of sticky notes and a little cup or jar of writing utensils on the shelf created by the front of the drawer and now you have an easy-to-use message board.

Another option is to use a metal surface, such as an old cookie sheet. Cover the surface with craft paper if needed and if the cookie sheet is still in good shape, clean and polish it instead.

You can also spray-paint the cookie sheet, if desired. Use strong glue to attach a short piece of rope to two ends of the sheet and hang this from a nail in the wall.

Get a bunch of small magnets and now, little notes can be easily added and taken away from the message board at will. You can also add pictures and other paper items you want to keep here.

Try your own spin on a bulletin board by using old wine cords rather than a corkboard. All you need is an empty frame and hot glue to attach the corks, upright, to the back of the frame after the glass is removed.

You can cut corks in half to make a shallower board, if desired. Cover the entire back of the frame with corks and now, you have a modern twist on a bulletin board.

With some colorful thumbtacks, you are ready to begin adding messages at will.

3. Wooden Menu

If you get your hands on some reclaimed wood, put it to use as a stylish kitchen addition. A slice of wood, sanded down and painted with a coat of chalkboard paint, becomes a great menu board.

Screw metal eyelets into the edge of the slice, tie a piece of twine at both ends around each eyelet, and hang it from the wall on a nail. This rustic menu board can be changed daily to add a nice whimsical touch to any kitchen that becomes a real conversation piece when guests come over.

4. Colorful Tablecloth

Designer tablecloths cost a lot of money and discount tablecloths sometimes look sort of... well, like discount tablecloths.

A nice quality white tablecloth, however, is highly affordable. So is paint.

Get a large paintbrush and any color or colors of paint you like to paint directly onto a slightly damp white tablecloth and create your own amazing design.

5. Dressed Up Clipboard

Got an old clipboard laying around? You probably haven't used it in a while and might not use it for years, because isn't everything digital now?

Cover the clipboard with decorative craft paper, which is made to adhere easily, and you can totally change the look of that old board.

Give that clipboard a second life by getting out decorative rocks, glass gemstones, shells, rhinestones, or whatever you've got handy from buttons to glass pebbles. Glue them all onto the clipboard, clip side up, to create a decorative piece.

Now, you can add a small photo in a frame or anything else you like to the board by securing it with the clip and you have an amazing little display piece that's truly unique.

6. DIY Bath Caddy

Immediately elevate the look of your bathroom with one simple touch that's rustic, charming, and high-end all at the same time. All you need is a piece of long wood that can fit across the width of your bathtub.

Sand and trim the wood as needed until it resembles a plank that can be set right across the tub to serve as a little shelf. Paint or stain the wood to give it any finish you like.

Place a little dish of bath salts, maybe a small bottle of bubble bath, a small scrub brush, maybe a small candle, and other little items here to create a pretty little shelf that encourages you to pamper yourself. This also gives the tub a very nice, high-end sort of look to it that stands out.

7. Treat Tower

Create your own snacks or sweets display easily with a couple of wine glasses and three pretty plates. You're also going to want some putty or, if this is meant to be permanent, very strong glue.

Place a plate on the table and set a wine glass upside-down in its center, securing this connection. Place a plate on top of the bottom of the glass, getting it centered up, and secure this connection with putty or glue.

Repeat with your next wine glass and the final plate and now, you have a tower that's perfect for displaying candles or little edibles of any kind. This is an amazing way to use nice plates and glasses that don't usually see any use but are too nice to throw away.

8. Simple Open Storage

You can hang a couple of shelves just about anywhere to add a little extra storage space and display space to any wall or even a door. Plain shelf boards with simple L-brackets are affordable and they can be painted any color to match any existing decor you have.

This is an easy DIY project to complete, too. You can hang a couple of shelves with a standard screwdriver and some screws, or a hammer and nails.

9. Use Buckets

Sponges, cleaning cloths—all those odds and ends can be difficult to store. And storage containers have a way of being way too expensive for you to fill your house up with pretty baskets and boxes.

Use buckets for garage, laundry room, and utility room storage areas. Buckets are inexpensive, you can paint them if you like, and they can store a bunch of those random items that end up spreading all over drawers.

10. Add Wire Organizers

Small, over-the-door wire organizers are affordable, easy, and perfect for slinging over a cabinet door in the kitchen and bathroom. This is a great spot to store bottles, hair tools, all sorts of stuff that you use all the time that's not so easy to store in traditional spaces.

You can free up a lot of cabinet and drawer space by using the inside of cabinet doors. This is a particularly useful storage area for under-the-sink cabinets.

11. Upgrade Any Hamper

Purchase any inexpensive hamper and get some rope. Cover the basket inside and out with heavy, inexpensive fabric, such as felt or canvas.

Use a staple gun to secure the edges of the basket on the outside of the basket, leaving the interior smooth. Cut away all the excess material.

Work slowly with a glue gun to attach the rope to the hamper, winding it all the way around the container. You can use metallic paint to add some color to the hamper if you like.

Cover the top of the hamper as well and add the rope going all the way to the top. This creates a very high-end laundry basket that is also very affordable.

Look for Upcycle Opportunities

There are lots of little things you can do around your home for less than $20. Storage solutions, pretty decorative items, display pieces, there are all kinds of things you can make that you can be proud of.

Play around with different ideas and different items you have around the house, and you'll come up with plenty of your own affordable craft projects.

Cheap Crafts FAQ

Where can you buy inexpensive crafting materials?

There are lots of ways you can reuse frames, placemats, jewelry boxes, and all kinds of other items. If you haven't go a bunch of stuff to craft with already, hunt for bargains at secondhand shops and yard sales.

Lots of used items can be made fresh again with a little creativity and there are many things you can find for very low prices that can be turned into something new and fun for just a few bucks. Look for old jars, baskets, lamps, and anything that sparks an idea inside you when you see it.

Where should you store craft materials and tools?

Pick a spot to store items you're saving for future crafts, along with your hot glue gun and thread and all other crafting materials and supplies. Try to keep all this stuff together in one place, whether it's a single storage container or an entire crafting closet.

When all your crafting items are together, it will be much easier for you to get that one little extra thing you need to give a new item a certain pop or transform an old item into something amazing.

What crafting materials and tools should you try to always have around?

There are lots of inexpensive materials and tools that you want to keep handy so that you can easily spruce up a piece of furniture or transform the look of a secondhand item you just happen to find. Paint is affordable and a fresh coat of paint can make anything look better.

Make sure you also have some basic hand tools, such as a screwdriver and hammer, along with some drywall nails and screws because this is what you're likely to be used the most often. Have items like glue, needle, and thread, and hang onto scraps like ribbons, bits of fabric, and loose buttons.

Keep an eye out for good deals and bargains and look past the basic cosmetics of the items you find to examine the base or foundation of every piece. You can always add paint, fabric, or something new to spruce up something old if you're starting with a strong foundation in the first place.

Further Reading

4 Really Cool Craft Projects Under Five Dollars

5 Craft Projects You Can Do With a Hammer and Nails

6 Crafts to Make with Broken Glass

8 Super Easy and Quick DIY Crafts

10 Cost Effective DIY Projects

10 Scrap Wood Craft Projects

Crafting Recycled Light Bulb Vases

DIY Projects to Upcycle Plastic Bottles

DIY Wall Art Projects

How to Set Up a Crafting Corner in Your Home