We all know the Christmas Holidays and Valentines Day passed but I wanted to share information on a Middle School Teacher Who Helps Viewers and her Students to Make Their Own Budget-Friendly Versions of Expensive Holiday Decor.
If Charlie and I were still #Homeschooling full time I would have liked to make this Beatles statue in our Art Class to display in our Music Classroom when we studied the Beatles. Would you want to help us make this one of a kind Statue?
By day, Vanessa Marino teaches religion and Spanish to middle schoolers at Sacred Heart Catholic Academy of Bayside while also mentoring the school’s popular new Graphic Design Club.
But when she’s not in the classroom, Marino is still teaching. Online, she’s known as The Craftessa to tens of thousands of YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok subscribers who watch her tutorials on how to create stunning DIY decor for just a few dollars.
“Developing cost-effective DIY skills is the whole purpose behind what I do,” says Marino. “Most of my supplies come from discount stores like Dollar Tree, thrift finds, or things I get on sale. I teach my viewers to recreate something they might not be able to afford at the moment on a budget.”
For example, one popular beige gingerbread house retails on eBay for over $50, but Marino’s DIY video on the trend teaches viewers how to paint Dollar Tree dollhouses to achieve the same Instagram-worthy look for just a few bucks.
Her upcoming videos will focus on 2025 DIY home decor trends and DIY Valentine’s Day projects. Even though those Holidays may be past you should still check out her amazing crafts. For me I can’t wait to see if she has Saint Patrick’s Day Crafts and Easter. How about you?
Having done graphic design in the past, Marino’s creative skills came in handy when her principal asked if she’d be interested in starting Sacred Heart Catholic Academy’s new Graphic Design Club in October — a club that quickly found the kind of online success that The Craftessa can relate to.
“After the school posted a few pictures of our club’s first meeting on Facebook, the diocese asked us if we could do the graphic design for the Brooklyn Queens Diocese’s posts on social media pages,” said Marino. Once their work was posted on the diocese’s profiles, it created a buzz around school, and now many more students want to join the club when Marino starts it up again in January.
“I believe my dual roles as a classroom teacher and a DIY creator are tied together because I love helping both children and adults learn new things and use their creativity to express themselves,” said Marino. “Whether it’s a research slide presentation in Religion, a restaurant menu or travel brochure for Spanish class, or a floral arrangement on my YouTube channel, it makes me so happy to see my students and my viewers use their creativity while they are learning, having fun, and being proud of the work they created. And when a viewer of The Craftessa tells me they’re ‘going to give it a try’ because I made DIY look easy and not intimidating, that brings me joy!”
Thank you,
Glenda, Charlie and David Cates
