Hello world! I am SO excited to share this DIY project with you today! You wanna know why? Because it's cheap. And it's easy. Two of my favorite words. Oh, and did I mention that it's also a-d-o-r-a-b-l-e? Well, it's all three, so just sit right back, relax, and feel the love!

NOTE: YOU CAN USE THIS TUTE FOR ANY SMARTPHONE, NOT JUST THE iPHONE.
We recently got new phones in our house. You know, the iPhone kind of phone. Our contracts were up and it was time, although I don't know anyone who really relishes the thought of going into their local Sprint store and spending the better part of a day buying four new phones and a "family plan" to go with them. Suffice it to say that it was my husband who handled all the, um, stuff, involved with the whole transaction. Thanks, babe!

Anyway, I moved up from the iPhone 4s (sad, I know) to the 6. And even though I LOVED my old pink polka dot plastic case (purchased from the Dollar Store, where else?) I couldn't use it anymore because the new phone was too big to fit in it. Hhmmm, so what to do?


Enter the clear case.  Have you heard of them? You can buy a totally clear plastic case and decorate it any which way your little old old heart desires. Cool. Note: Just be sure you buy the right size case to fit your phone. Their prices vary widely, so shop around first before buying one. Mine was $14.99 at Target, which for me was expensive. You can get them on Amazon for just a couple of bucks, plus shipping. I was just too impatient to do that. Go figure.

Chickadee number two and I had been aware of DIY phone cases on Pinterest for a while. I even have a DIY iPhone case decoration board dedicated to them. For some reason, out of all the DIY phone case projects I've seen, one really stuck with me. And that's the paint chip method. I've seen it done so many places that I really wouldn't know who to give credit for it. Suffice it to say that if you Google it you'll find a bajillion blog posts about it by a bajillion different crafty people.

Here's what you'll need besides the case, of course.


Paint chip cards
X-acto Knife (for cutting out camera hole)
pair of good paper-cutting scissors
pencil for tracing
clear phone case

It's so simple you really won't believe it. Step 1: Steal pretty paint chip from local big box home improvement store. Step 2: Trace your phone onto the back side of the paint chip card. Step 3: Cut out the phone silhouette. Step 4: Trace the small opening on the top of the case (for the camera) onto the card, then cut it out as well. Step 5: Place card into clear case with your cool colors facing out. Step 6: Pop in your phone and enjoy!

It can be fun picking out what paint chip colors you want to use. I picked up a number of different colored cards, knowing that I can use each of them in succession as I get tired of the last one I made.


I even got a few cards for my daughter, and made her this one.


I really liked the colors she chose, too. Maybe this will be my next one?

I particularly liked how these have that cute little Behr bear on them. Can you say Home Depot?


I have to share a big faux pas that I made while trying to make mine the first time. I really wanted to use the orange-y card first. I loved how the colors look on it. So I traced, and I cut, and I was so excited because it looked perfect. That is, until I cut out the small camera hole.


What's wrong with this picture? Can you tell? THE CAMERA HOLE IS ON THE WRONG SIDE OF THE CARD! To say that I was bummed would be an understatement. Measure Twice. Cut Once. It's a great bit of advice. Unfortunately, I don't always follow it. Good news is that the cards are free and I am so going back to get this one again!

But right now I'm good with the one that I did end up making, seen here with my (don't you just love it?) macaron keychain.





It really is easy to do, and you don't have to limit yourself to paint chips. Get creative! I think I might even do a round-up post of the many crafty ideas I've seen for this. That way I'll have another project for a rainy day.



What kind of phone case do you have/like to use? I've had the plastic as well as the soft-sided ones. They can all get really expensive, depending on how high you want to go price-wise. I hope this gives you a viable option to try for yourself!