5 craft projects you can make in your free time

Even though we’re always kept busy by work or school, one might worry that you could get bored and unproductive during the weekends or your free time. You might even feel that you want to stay as busy as possible.

There’s nothing wrong with that, as it’s always a good idea to keep yourself engaged—you never know when your productivity might come in handy. You might even discover something that you could turn into a new hobby or business! One way to stay engaged is to get into craft projects during your free time, which is great in keeping your mind and hands active—you can do it for yourself, or you can do it to start on a new path for a business or get new skills for a job.

Here are five ideas for crafts to do:

1. DIY projects

Are you a fan of little inventions and innovations? You might like to try doing DIY projects at home, which is a wide category of small carpentry, repairing, and even engineering projects that aren’t too difficult. There’s a DIY project for every interest and need, and basic skills that you pick up here may go a long way in other places.

2. Programming

While this isn’t a traditional craft project in the sense of the term, a little programming and coding know-how may be beneficial for future career projects. You can start with developing websites, maybe even a small app, and if you get into it long enough, you could even craft some useful hardware and software.

3. Leatherworking

Want a skill that you could turn into a business? Leather goods are always in style, so it’s not a bad idea to try your hand at leatherworking. You’ll need quite a few tools and materials to get started, but it’s not too difficult to find—once you get going, you’ll likely create some beautiful things that many people may want.

4. Scentmaking

One craft that isn’t very difficult to do is the art of making scents, whether it’s for perfume or for household use. All you need are the oils that make up the scents and bottles to mix them in, and you have your own homemade fragrances. What’s even better is this can also be a home business, as who doesn’t like to smell good?

5. Sewing

Brother GS2700 Sewing Machine

Have you wanted to try and make your own clothing projects? Or maybe you’re an aspiring cosplayer and you want to make your own costumes? The art of sewing is enjoying some more popularity again thanks to the various uses of clothes, and you can get into it too with the affordable resources that it needs. All you’ll need are threads, the right fabric, and a reliable sewing machine to get started.

And if you don’t have the skills to start sewing yet, that won’t be a problem. Brother is holding free online sewing classes for all skill levels via Zoom—all you’ll need is a Brother sewing machine. It’s first come, first served; all you have to do to get into the classes for free is to sign up at https://www.brother.com.ph/en/contents/onlinesewingclass. Get started on your sewing journey now with Brother!

For more info on Brother’s products and offers, you may visit our Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/BROTHERatyourside/. You can also call the Brother Helpdesk Hotline at (02) 8 581-9898, or through the toll-free line at 1-10-BROTHER or send an email to helpdesk@brother.com.ph.

About Brother Philippines

Brother Philippines is a sales subsidiary of the Brother Group. Established in Japan in 1908, the Brother Group delivers products and services to customers all over the world, with manufacturing and sales facilities in 44 countries and regions. Brother Philippines offers products and services with Brother expertise in a wide range of fields such as printing and solutions, home and embroidery sewing machines, labelers, and scanners. Since its establishment in the Philippines in the year 2000, Brother has been placing its customers first everywhere, every time, and has been providing them with superior value with high quality products and services. Brother also prides itself with its sustainable business practices, taking responsibility, acting respectfully, and making a positive difference through Brother Earth. To learn more about the brand and its products, visit the Brother Philippines website at www.brother.com.ph, like its Facebook page (Facebook.com/BROTHERatyourside), and follow it on Twitter (@BROTHERPhils) and Instagram (@BrotherPhils).

Brother signs up University of Southern Philippines Foundation for Toner Management Program

One of the leading providers of home and business IT peripherals, Brother International Philippines Corporation (Brother Philippines), has recently signed up the University of Southern Philippines Foundation (USPF), a private university in Cebu City, for its Toner Management Program.

Brother Philippines’ Toner Management Program is the company’s innovative solution for its institutional or corporate customers. Through the program, customers who sign a two-year toner supply agreement with Brother can avail of its multi-function centres without upfront payment. The program also gives customers the convenience of having the experts take care of the maintenance of the machines, and the replenishment of their printer consumables.

In photo after the signing of the Brother Color Toner Management Program agreement between Brother Philippines and the University of Southern Philippines Foundation are (left to right): Tekzone Computer Sales and Services Sales Coordinator, Brenna Vito; Brother Philippines President, Glen Hocson; USPF Director of Finance, Rosalina Jereza Sepulveda; USPF President, Dr. Alicia P. Cabatingan; Brother Philippines Deputy General Manager for Sales and Marketing, Masao Kasagi; USPF Chief Information Officer, Lester Gastala; and Tekzone Computer Sales and Services Accounting Supervisor, Zesprela Bingil.

This will provide offices a more cost effective way to acquire and operate multi-function centres (printers with other functions like faxing, scanning and copying) in the office. 

USPF Finance Director Rosalina J. Sepulveda has initially conducted the research on the total printing costs of the university and found out that over the years, USPF’s printing costs soared high without the benefit of statistical data to support the investment. 

USPF Chief Information Officer Lester Gastala said, “To address our printing cost concerns, we need to partner with a firm that not only delivers reliable technology and supports infrastructure duly tested by the country’s top international schools and local universities, but also one that provides value for investment.”

“Moreso, a balance deployment strategy should be in place,” he added.

USPF President Dr. Alicia P. Cabatingan said, “Private universities like us have to find ways to cut down on operating costs to be able to offer reasonable tuition fees while not compromising the quality of our education. This is why we thank Brother Philippines for introducing its Toner Management Program because it allows us to maintain our printing costs at manageable levels.” 

Brother Philippines President Glenn P. Hocson said, “Our toner management program will definitely make our products more attractive as they are now more affordable to broader segments of businesses. It aims to help offices like that of the University of Southern Philippines Foundation concentrate on their core operations by allowing Brother to handle their printing needs.” 

Hocson adds, “The program signals our readiness to take on more responsibilities for our corporate customers. It is also our way of challenging ourselves to keep on growing as we come up with more and more innovative solutions, especially for our corporate customers.”

This expansion of Brother Philippines through its corporate business portfolio is aligned with the Brother Group’s strategy to reinforce solutions offering as a pillar of growth. Starting as a sewing machine repair shop in Japan over a hundred years ago, the Brother Group has evolved and grown, and now has manufacturing and sales facilities in over 44 countries and regions worldwide.

Official sewing machine Brother brings out Filipinos’ world-class creativity anew in Project Runway S4

The sewing room of Project Runway Philippines, the local adaptation of the US reality television series, is once more abuzz with activities as a new batch of up-and-coming designers from all over the country competes to become the next big Filipino fashion designer.

What better way to power up the fashion designing competition than to have Brother’s top-of-the-line sewing machines “run” the show. A trusted Japanese global brand with commitment to quality, Brother has the most extensive sewing machine ranges in the market consisting of innovative, easy-to-use, high-quality, feature-rich products designed to meet the needs of every sewing enthusiast or entrepreneur.

Brother’s NV55P Sewing Machine can be seen in Project Runway Season 4

As Project Runway’s official sewing machine, Brother provides the sewing machines used by the contestants not just in the Philippines but also in other countries where the show has local versions. Brother is also sponsoring the additional Php250,000 cash prize of the winner.

Brother Philippines President Glenn P. Hocson said, “Brother Philippines has supported Project Runway Philippines since Season 1, and we are happy to again be a part of this show which encourages Filipinos to come up with world-class designs. We always believe in Filipino ingenuity and creativity, and it’s been our pride and joy to empower Filipinos to maximize their creative potentials with the Brother sewing machine.”

Added Hocson, “Each sewing machine model is designed with the goal of encouraging users to be more creative and have fun while creating their masterpieces.”

Contestants are using the Brother NV-55P touchpad enabled (computerized) sewing machine, which will enable contestants to sew, quilt and do decoration stitches. The perfect sewing solution, NV-55P is packed with numerous features such as 135 built-in stitches, including 10 buttonholes which you can conveniently access from the touchpad. What’s more, the built-in lettering allows you to personalize different stitch patterns to create labels or monogrammes.

For edging, Brother also provides the show with the Brother M3034D easy-to-use home overlocker with multiple features. It allows users to professionally sew seams, trim excess fabric and over lock raw edges all in one time-saving step. It features three or four thread cut-and-sew overlock sticks, easy to follow threading, and a fast and simple lower looper threading system. It also has a free-arm or flat bed convertible sewing surface to make work a lot easier.

Notably, Brother’s reliable and award-winning products also include printing and imaging solutions, label-makers and their respective consumables.

Supermodel and fashion icon Tweetie De Leon-Gonzalez is host and judge of the fourth season of the show. One of Philippine fashion’s respected designers Rajo Laurel returns to the judges’ seat, alongside top fashion model and lifestyle writer Apples Aberin and runway mentor Jojie Lloren.

Produced by Solar Entertainment Group, Project Runway Philippines Season 4 airs every Sunday at 8 pm on ETC.