Quick and easy recycled cork floral magnets

My fridge is loaded with magnets of all sorts.  I use them to hold up notes for the family, photos, and grocery lists.  They are useful on lockers and other metal surfaces as well.  These magnets are pretty and cost pretty much nothing. For the magnet I used the bulbous tops of recycled champagne corks and magnets removed from a shower curtain liner!  Add some paint and glue and little imagination and you can have a whole fridge full in no time flat!  These would be great to make as group projects for senior centers, etc.  If you don’t have any corks, you can buy champagne corks in craft stores or online, or even ask local restaurants to save some for your group.

You will need:

For each magnet- Recycled champagne cork

Magnet purchased ones or recycled from the bottom of an old shower curtain liner

Acrylic paint, red, white, yellow, brown, black and green

Small flat brush

Liner brush

Paper plate for a palette

Gloss sealer

Glue gun and glue sticks

Fine sand paper

1.     Cut the top off the champagne cork right where it narrows.  You will be using the top button part only. 

2.     Prepare the cork by sanding off any writing and smoothing on both sides. 

For rose:

1.     Apply some red and white acrylic paint on a paper plate.  Using the small flat brush add some red paint to one side and white paint to the other.  Brush on the plate to blend in the center. 

2.     For the center of the rose, make a stroke with white side of the brush facing up in an arc shape.  Turn the brush and with the white side of the brush facing down brush in a curve meeting the two strokes.  Reload your brush.

3.     Continue working around the center Making petals with the red towards the center and the white around the edges of the petals.  When you have finished use a liner brush to further define the white and red areas.  Using green paint, make a leaf and stem down the side.  Let dry completely.  

For sunflower:

1.     Use the flat brush and brown paint to make a round shape in the center of the cork.

2.     Make petal shapes all around with yellow paint. 

3.     Use the liner brush to make black dots around the brown center and some in the center itself.  Line the petals with brown paint and let dry completely.  

To finish brush on clear gloss sealer and glue the magnets to the back.

Flowerpot with Bowdabra bow

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When is ribbon not exactly ribbon? When it’s made from a simple brown paper bag! Yes you heard it right, a brown paper lunch bag. It doesn’t matter if it has wrinkles because after you paint it you are going to wrinkle it on purpose! Use this brown paper ribbon to glam up an ordinary terra cotta flowerpot. And if you made the recycled brown paper rose pen, fill the pot with aquarium gravel or beans and use it to store your pens! Adorable! And wouldn’t mom just love this on Mother’s Day. Kids can easily make this with a little help.

Rose pen tutorial:

Recycled brown bag rose pen

You will need:

Brown paper lunch bag

Acrylic paint in desired color (I used copper metallic)

Acrylic water based stain in brown

Acrylic gloss sealer (Mod Podge is a good one)

Small paintbrush

Bowdabra mini bowmaker with ruler

Bowdabra bow wire

Tacky craft glue

Scissors

Ruler

Pencil

Waxed paper

Paper towels

1. Make the ribbon. Cover your work surface with waxed paper. Cut open your brown paper bag with scissors. Lay it flat. Brush a layer of acrylic paint on the bag and let dry. Turn over and paint the other side. Let dry.

2. Scrunch up the painted bag into a ball. You want the wrinkles since they will give dimension to your ribbon. Open it up and lay it flat. Brush a layer of brown acrylic stain over the bag. Wipe off the excess with a paper towel. You will see that the stain stays in the wrinkles. Let dry. You only need to do this to one side. After the stain has dried, brush on a coat of gloss acrylic sealer and let dry completely.

3. Working on the non-stained side measure and cut a strip ¾” wide by the length of the bag piece. Spread some glue all around the rim of the terra cotta pot and apply the strip. Cut any excess off and glue down. Let dry.

Make the Bowdabra bow:  Cut a piece of Bowdabra bow wire 18” in length and place in the Mini Bowdabra bowmaker with ruler.

 Cut another of ¾” wide strip of paper and insert in the Mini Bowmaker to the 3 inch line.

    Twist the ribbon to the stained side and make loop at the 1 inch line on the opposite side.

    Make a matching loop on the other side twisting to the stained side of the ribbon.

    Bring the end piece and place in the bowmaker ending at the 3-inch line and cut. Scrunch down with the wand.

Tie the bow wire tight and remove from the Bowmaker. Tie a knot in the back and cut short.

  Arrange the loops. 

1.    Cut a ¼” strip of paper and fold and glue around the center of the bow.  Fold the ends lengthwise and cut into two points.

 

    Add a generous dab of tacky glue to the trim around the rim on the pot and apply the bow. Let the glue dry completely.