I have recently asked my dad to make me a magnet board, from some scrap steal he had. As he works on it, I have been on the hunt for some awesome magnets to use with it. Of course, there are hundreds of options available, however I wanted something a little more unique. I found some really great ones at Paper Root Studios (similar to the ones pictured below), however the cost was absurd - 5 magnets for over $20! I examined them further, and figured I could make them myself for a fraction of the cost.
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| image courtesy of www.cuteable.com |
Supplies:
-Magnets - I got mine from Lee Valley because the rare-earth
magnets they have are very strong
-Glass beads (flat on one side)
-Paper - or whatever you want to use. I am going to
experiment with photos next!
-Mod Podge
-Super Glue
-Exacto-knife
Luckily for me, I had everything I needed at my house, as my
mother is an avid scrapbooker, except for the magnets. I bought a bunch of magnets at Lee
Valley, knowing I would like to make lots. Also, the more you buy, the cheaper each individual magnet costs, so I bought extra, knowing I could always use them.
For starters, I glued square pieces of paper to the bottom of the glass beads
using Mod Podge. Once the glue was dry, I used my exacto-knife to trim away the
excess paper. I found cutting away the excess paper after it was glued on was easier then trying to cut the paper to the correct size first. The final step was to super glue the magnet to the back. A tip
when you are doing this, if you are using strong magnets like I was, ensure you
keep the drying magnets at least 3” apart, or else one of the magnets might become attracted to another before it has dried, flying off the backing, into another magnet. I had almost all mine glued on before I started a domino effect, causing half of them to collect into a bunch. Luckily I got them apart again before the super glue dried, however I had super glue on my fingers for days. Once the magnets are glued on, wait for them to completely dry (I
waited over night) and then they are ready to use!
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| Final Product! |
This is a great example of DIY excellence! Awesome idea Becca.
ReplyDeleteMy fridge is covered in magnets as well, but I create mine out of bottlecaps. Since bottlecaps are magnetic, I just have to place a bare magnet inside the cap and it sticks to the fridge without any glue or anything. My collection has grown over the years, as I hope yours will. Whenever I come home from a party or a restaurant, it isn't uncommon for me to have a bottlecap or two in my pocket. Hopefully you start keeping an eye out for interesting paper to keep your collection growing!
Thank you! I was quite proud of myself to be honest. I was so close to buying the ones in the store, and I am very glad I didn't. I would have never thought of using something like bottlecaps for magnets, it's a very unique idea - I love it!
DeleteGreat idea.
ReplyDeleteIm trying to find craft ideas for 4 year olds. What is your opinion? Do you think it would be to complicated? or might they enjoy it.
Thanks
I think this could work pretty well for 4 year olds, as long as they are well supervised. When I was buying the magnets, I was told not to let any kids have them, as many small children tend to think that swallowing magnets would be a good idea, and if they decided to have more then two, it can be very very harmful. If you were to do this with four year olds, I would recommend use weaker magnets. Another idea I have seen popping up all over the place for kids is the crayon art (http://www.cmybacon.com/2011/07/melted-crayon-art/).
DeleteI would also suggest looking on pinterest (I am slightly addicted to it haha). There is endless ideas on there, and you can search by "kids" and "crafts". I have a friend who is becoming a elementary school teacher, and posts tons of ideas on fun things to do with small kids, and often they are educational as well (such as growing a bean plant from the seed).
Hope that helps, and good luck!
This looks like an amazing craft idea Becca! I've been looking for something to keep busy with and that appeals to my artsy side....I think this might just fit the bill. Though these are super sure, do you know if there are glass beads larger than these small ones? I think maybe I'd try putting some product placement labels on some and see how that works...hmmmm that might not be too bad an idea. Did you find it difficult to glue the paper at the base? As in, was it messy-looking in the end, or pretty neat once finished? I'm definitely gonna try this this upcoming holiday weekend. OMG I know for sure that my little brother is going to LOVE LOVE this little craft! Thanks Becca :)
ReplyDelete