home decor: crafting with coasters

I'm sure that title makes you think:

"Um.  What?!"

But, yes, I'm going to show you a craft project using coasters I made!

I first saw this coaster wall hanging idea online and thought it looked kinda cool.  And then some things got changed around on my bathroom wall, and all of a sudden this was going to be the PERFECT thing to go there!

The first thing I did, of course, was create the coasters using my own beach photos.  {You can do the same thing by creating your own coasters.}  And I'm here if you have questions.  

I received the coasters in the mail after a week or two, and then I gathered all my crafting supplies together:

I did a beach theme, and I created the coasters using all pictures of beaches we've personally been to as a family in recent years.  It was so fun!  You can't see it all that well here, but in the bottom corner I actually put the place and date in small font.

Here's the low-down on coasters.  A little shy of 4" square, cork-backed, and a really glossy, nice finish on the front.  (I honestly LOVED how my photos looked on these!!)

You might notice in my "supplies" photo (that I showed you first) that one of my supplies was a set of earrings!  The original instructions for this craft were to use a "large book ring."  I have one, but I just didn't like the look of it.  So I thought What else is cheap but would look good and do the same thing?  Walmart earrings, of course!  :D

I closed the clasp and then folded the ribbon over and hot-glued it.  (And, yes, this is really "ribbon," but it looks pretty different.  I was hoping for a beachy, flip-flops-and-hat kind of look.

I expected this to be a little harder or more complicated, even though I knew how simple this project was, but for the next step you literally just hot glue the coasters to your length of ribbon.  And that's it!

Photo credit to my daughter for that last one!

I saw that phrase "The beach fixes everything" on a sign once and adored it.  That is definitely a true statement for me!

And there it is on my wall!  I decided to dress it up a bit with the ribbon because I cut the bottom ribbon a bit too short, but those bows and knots are completely optional.

This is SUCH a fun project and SO EASY and such a cool way to display your photos.  If you do this craft, I'd love to see YOUR photos!  E-mail them to me at the address in the "contact me" tab above!  Or just join my Facebook group and share it there--it's so fun to see each other's photo creations.

2022 UPDATE:  You have 3 options for creating your photo coasters, so choose which one sounds best to you!  First, you'll need a free Forever account, so open yours here, and then you can upload your photos to your private account.  (You can watch this video about uploading photos, if you like--it also includes some photo organizational tips.)  Explore these 3 ways for making your coasters, and pick your favorite--they're all printed at the same high-quality print shop at Forever.

1. AutoPrint:  At that link, scroll down a little until you find coasters.  Be aware that they can be up to 50% off, so wait for a good sale before ordering if you like.   This is the simplest of these 3 options--all you do is choose your favorite 4-12 photos, and AutoPrint will put them right in your coaster project.  Just remember, the fewer photos per coaster, the larger they will print.
2. Design & Print:  At that link, choose your favorite design, from monograms to coasters that allow text.  You'll add photos yourself, wherever you want them on your coasters.  Some text is editable, some is part of the design.
3. Artisan:  Unlike the free, simple designing you do with AutoPrint and Design & Print, Artisan is your key to full creativity and flexibility.  Artisan is a computer program for digital scrapbooking that you purchase and download.  If you're looking for a fun and creative way to preserve your memories, I highly recommend Artisan!  (I'm in love.)  You can personalize your coasters with photos and text anywhere, choosing your own fonts from your computer, etc.  (Note: If you just want to make some coasters and aren't particularly looking at a digital scrapbooking software purchase, contact me.  I do hire out to make projects for people, and this one wouldn't take me long at all.)  

Enjoy this fun craft project using your own photos!  It's a great way to display some special photos and memories.