• Turn a plain glass into a striped one with glass paint.a glass image by timur1970 from Fotolia.com
  
  Craft projects don’t have to be difficult or time-consuming to be effective, and they are often more enjoyable when they are quick and easy. Even the most experienced and creative crafters sometimes prefer a simple project. When you want an idea for a last-minute handmade gift or if you need to make multiple identical items, fast and easy crafts are the best choice.
  
  

Stripy Painted Glasses

• Glass painting can be as simple or complex as your skills and desires allow, but quick and easy designs look just as good. Stripy designs are easy to create using masking tape, which also ensures that your stripes are very straight and neat with little effort.
  
  Purchase a set of inexpensive, plain glasses, and wash them thoroughly. You could make striped wine glasses, shot glasses, beer mugs or tall tumblers.
  
  Use two parallel strips of masking tape to mark your stripes, whether you want neatly spaced and even vertical or horizontal stripes or a less structured design with stripes of various widths going in all directions.
  
  Simply apply glass paint with a brush over the marked sections, wait for the paint to dry and then carefully remove the tape. For a different effect, dab paint on to the glasses with a sponge. Speed up the drying time by turning on fans.
  
  

Knitted Washcloths

• Although knitting is considered a relatively slow craft, if you are knitting something small without any shaping, such as a washcloth, it can take less than an hour from start to finish.
  
  Use an easy stitch pattern that lies flat, such as garter stitch (knit all stitches) or moss stitch (knit one, purl one), and large knitting needles (size 10 or larger). Use a cotton yarn, and hold it double or even triple. Using larger needles and thicker yarn produces bulkier stitches, meaning the washcloth will be faster to finish. If you want colorful, patterned washcloths without having to change colors, choose a variegated yarn.
  
  

Beaded Hangers

• Adding beads to a wire hanger not only makes it more attractive, but it also makes the hanger ideal for securing thin or delicate straps.
  
  Take a wire hanger and a selection of beads with holes large enough to fit on to the wire. Untwist the neck part of the hanger using pliers if necessary. Try to keep the basic shape of the hook and hanger intact. Uncoated wire hangers are best as the layer of paint on coated ones is brittle and cracks off when you untwist the top.
  
  Simply thread beads on to the wire, moving them along the hanger so that all of the wire below the neck is entirely covered with beads. You could use identical beads or as many different sizes, shapes and colors as you like.
  
  Twist the neck back into its previous position. When you hang tops with thin straps on the hanger, tuck the straps between the beads to hold them in place.