Sunday, March 20, 2011

DIY Coasters & Magnets

I have decided that these handmade coasters and magnets are my most favorite project to date!  They would make great teachers' gifts or hostess gifts and they are definitely going to be a part of the gift I'm putting together for my mom for Mother's Day!  I was inspired by Creekside Creations' beautiful monogramed tiles and thought I'd try my hand at some.
I purchased a sheet of backsplash tile at Home Depot for about $12.  I chose the sheet with the different sized tiles:



From this one sheet I was able to make:
  • one set of 4 square 4" coasters
  • two sets of 4 square 2" magnets
  • two sets of 3 rectangular 2" x 4" magnets

If you break down the cost by set, that is roughly $2.40/set (give or take) which is pretty awesome! I stamped them with ordinary black stamping ink using basic rubber stamps.














This is what the sheet looked like after the stamping:

















My sister Heather loved it whole like this and wants me to make her one to sit in the middle of her Shaker style table as a hot mat.  So, yet another idea for just $12!

After the stamped tiles were dry I applied two coats of Mod Podge (in Satin finish) to seal them.  When the Mod Podge was dry, I peeled off the cardboard AND the webbing underneath each tile.

These are the coasters:

















And these are the magnet sets:

















(PS I still have to pick up the super strong magnets from Lee Valley before the tile magnets are finished - these little guys are heavy and need the right strength magnets to do the job well).






















For the coasters I applied cork protectors that I picked up at the local hardware store for less than $2.  You could also use felt or felt pads.  I used the cork because I liked the look of it better, not than anyone else would EVER look under there but I have some idiosyncrasies that need to be indulged sometimes :o)

















I tied the coasters together using white Rafia String to keep the wrapping simple.

















In very little time, for very little effort these coasters and magnets are BY FAR the best project I have done in a while (I think I said that already didn't I?!?)  Anyways I'm off to make more (and more) only I might run out of people before I run out of energy on this project ... anyone else for some?


stamping tile!

Along the way I learned a few things that I thought I'd pass along:

1) Know your stamps.  As you can see below my dragonfly stamp has two weak spots in the wings - pushing down harder doesn't make it better so if you don't like the way it stamps on paper, you won't like the way it stamps on the tile.















2) Match your stamp to the tile.  In the heart stamped tile below I really should have chosen a smaller stamp - one that would not have called such attention to the big chunk missing from the tile - or at least tried to position the heart stamp differently.















Oh, and remember you only get ONE shot with your stamp on the tile.  Don't bother trying to re-stamp because your eyes will go all screwy trying to decipher the blurry image you've just created (I know, I did it).

Happy stamping!

- Kristin -

Linking to some of these awesome parties this week:
madincraft.blogspot.com, simpsonizedcrafteandthensome.blogspot.com, craftskeepmesane.blogspot.com, thegirlcreative.blogspot.com, thecreativeichboutique.blogspot.com, sumosweetstuff.blogspot.com, craftomaniac.blogspot.com, skiptomylou.org, momsbyheart.net, creatingawesomefreethings.blogspot.com, betweennapsontheporch.blogspot.com, cottageinstincts.blogspot.com, craftedition.blogspot.com, todayscreativeblog.net, imtopsyturvy.com, sillylittlesparrow.com, my uncommonsliceofsuburbia.com, athomewithk.blogspot.com, itsoverycheri.com, creatingahouse of grace.blogspot.com, bellabeforeandafter.blogspot.com, bluecricketdesign.net, somedaycrafts.blogspot.com, somewhatsimple.blogspot.com, firefliesandjellybeans.blogspot.com, funtocraft.blogspot.com, justagirl.blogspot.com, dittledattle.blogspot.com, diyhshp.blogspot.com and funkyjunkinteriors!

43 comments:

  1. Love these! I've made a couple versions of coasters over the years, but yours knock the socks off them! Fabulous! And I love the idea of a trivet with them! I might just have to try that!

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  2. Those are so cute! What a great idea! I like how the stamps with the "weak" spots turned out and I love the hot plate idea. Very clever!

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  3. These look so professional! They are gorgeous! I know what everyone is getting for Christmas next year!

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  4. So cool!! I love these! I am definitely doing this project! Thanks for sharing.

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  5. These are Lovely!! Thanks for sharing with us. Blessings <3 Paula

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  6. L-O-V-E these! They turned out beautifully!

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  7. You won an award!!!! Hop on over to http://diyhshp.blogspot.com to pick it up.

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  8. I have always been a fan of photographs transferred to tiles, but I have to say I love the look of this so much better.

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  9. Complete gorgeousness!!! Thanks so much for sharing this with us - I'm going to make these for sure!!

    Sera

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  10. I love those!! They are so stylish. I would love it if you would link up to my Marvelous Mess party!! I will pick one project to feature on my sidebar for a week!! http://marvelouslymessy.blogspot.com/2011/03/marvelous-mess-5.html

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  11. Love these coasters and magnets-great idea with the stamps-I'm your newest follower-stop over for a visit! Claire

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  12. Those are adorable!! Great project!!

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  13. Fantastic project and great instructions!

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  14. These are gorgeous! I've been looking for some sort of fun magnet and I think these are perfect! Thanks for sharing!

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  15. this is such a neat idea! i really like it.

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  16. I wanted to let you know that I am going to feature this post on my sidebar for a week!! I love these coasters!! Thanks so much for linking up and be sure to come back this next Monday for my weekly party. Here is the link to the "featured" post....be sure to grab a button and flaunt it. ;-)

    http://marvelouslymessy.blogspot.com/2011/03/marvelous-mess-5-features.html

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  17. Great idea. I love the texture and the contrast of the stamp on the rough surface. Also like the whole set together!

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  18. I love this!!! So easy and I have just the stamps for these!

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  19. What a great idea! My question is this…..when you sit a glass that sweats water on the coaster - will the mod podge want to turn white? Also, what type of ink do you use - does that matter?

    Thanks!

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  20. very cool, i love the magnets and the coasters. the whole thing to gether is very cool. okay, i just love it! thanks for sharing this at my party!!

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  21. Oh...migosh. No way! My heart is like going pitter patter all the way through this post! I'm going to get stuff to make these tomorrow. Seriously I can't live without them lol. I would be delighted if you would link this up to my VIP party Friday =)
    Cheers! Sommer

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  22. Wonderful project! Thanks so much for linking up to this weeks VIP Party =)

    Cheers! Sommer

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  23. Just found you at the Designer Garden Linkup. Love, love these!! I want to try them and can't wait to get started. Thanks for sharing all the steps.

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  24. Oh my goodness - so cute!!! I was just thinking that I wanted to make coasters out of tile, and now I know how to decorate them! Thanks for the inspiration! I'm a new follower and I'm going to share a link to this project on my FB page :)

    Michelle
    LovingEverySecond.blogspot.com

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  25. Okay I tried making some of these and bought some basic black stamp ink and used regular old rubber stamps but it's been three days and the ink is not dry! Everytime I press my finger to it the print comes off on my finger. I tried mod podging one and it smeared all over. Any suggestions? I was thinking maybe spray poly?

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  26. LOVE this can't wait to try them and I think the idea of using it as a trivet is amazing! I've been needing some for a while so this is perfect.

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  27. Awesome idea, Kristin! I can't wait to try it myself!! :)

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  28. Awesome coasters, I love these! I was thinking it would be good to use pigment ink pad (like Mementos one) instead of dye ink pad. Pigment works better for permanency I thought...what do you think?

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  29. I love these homemade coasters. I love all the different insect designs they have on them.

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  30. Awesome idea! I really like the texture and the contradiction of the stamp on the surface. The whole set is really beautiful!

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  31. Thank so much for this tutorial! Just love your style!
    I have featured this project on my blog today.
    http://thoughtfulcreations.wordpress.com/2013/12/16/holiday-gift-idea-8-9-handmade-coasters-and-wine-charms/
    Happy Holidays!
    Allison

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