DIY: Repurposed Tins as Magnetic Organizers + Free Printable
Hello lovelies! I am proud to say that today's post was dreamed up by my sweet 11 year old daughter, Miss K. The other day I walked into my kitchen to discover that she'd brilliantly repurposed an old Chimes candy tin as a magnetic pencil holder on our fridge! I definitely had one of those, "why didn't I think of that" moments and asked her if I could share her smarty-pants idea with you all here today. This project is so ridiculously simple it literally takes seconds to do. Here are the easy directions:
Collect up your supplies:
You will need:
- Small tins (tea tins, mint tins, and candy tins are perfect). Tins that open at the top will be best for pencils, while tins with lids will work well for small doodads such as sewing pins).
- Super strong magnets (we had ours laying around - but they originally came from Michael's craft store). You can probably find similar magnets at hardware and office supply stores.
How to:
- Place a minimum of two super strong magnets on your fridge or any metal surface you would like to use. A metal knife rack (for instance) can be used in your craft room to hold scissors, and tins filled with pins + notions.
- Take your tin of choice and attach it to the magnets. No gluing needed. The magnet with hold it in place for as long as you'd like.
- That's it! Fill with pencils, or whatever odds and ends you'd like and enjoy!
I also put together these cute little Bird Brain Shopping Lists + Notes Lists for you to download and print. Along with the designed lists there is also one (text-free) list per page (perfect for use as a bookmark, or whatever else you can dream up). Simply print your file onto standard paper or card stock, cut out and enjoy!
- Download Bird Brain Shopping Lists (prints 4 lists per page)
- Download Bird Brain Notes Lists (prints 4 per page)
Enjoy! xo Ez + Miss K
45 Lovely Comments | Email Article | found in Babies + Kids + Families, D.I.Y. + Projects, Downloads + Printables, Paper Goods, Tutorials Print Article | Share This | 
| by Ez Thursday, July 8, 2010 
Reader Comments (45)
Obviously takes after her mama. Smart & creative idea!
Your daughter has definitely inherited your creativity! This is such a clever idea, and I've got a couple of those Chimes tins (plus loads of others... I have an addiction to small tins) that I could put to this use. And the best part is that you don't have to deface the tins so they can be re-repurposed in the future.
great job miss k ...love the printable as well
Completely brilliant! I'm just sitting here shaking my head. So simple and so fantastic!
I LOVE these tins! I am going to do this for my own fridge. What a handy place to store pens and pencils! thanks for the great idea!
www.metroline6.etsy.com
Miss K! This is THE most perfect idea! I love, love, love it! And these are some pretty sah-sweet tins too!
So great!
xo
Melis
such a good idea! we have a list on our fridge but don't use it enough because we're always digging around for a pen. SO simple!
the apple doesn't fall far from the tree as they say ... love this idea! enjoy your weekend!
How clever! Wish I had some cute tins laying around the house so I could try this out.
i showed my husband this idea and he suggested i use the tobacco tin his mom had given him that used to belong to his grandpa... what a great way to use sentimental momentos that otherwise would be sitting in a box! Thanks Miss K!
Hello!?! Why didn't I think of this? What a clever way to organize office supplies. Now that I am working from home full time, I am in the process of sprucing up my office. I want to paint the wall above my desk with chalkboard paint; the above lovely magnetic tins would work splendidly in this space.
Cheers,
C
Such a clever idea! And these list printables are adorable!
Love the notes! Thanks for designing.
Thank you for the downloadable lists! I love using them and I am still using the dancing vegetables ones I got from your site as well!
such a cute idea..will blog and share
I love those birds! Thanks for sharing this with us! I loved this so much, I featured it in my latest blog post:
http://yesteachercrafts.blogspot.com/2010/09/list-of-lists.html
Hello there!
I did a little post about this list (: I hope you don't mind. I really love your printables available.
Thanks so much for sharing!
rachelle.
Finally! A fabulous idea for those Chimes tins! My boys go through the Mango Ginger Chews like crazy and I can't bear to throw away the lovely tins. The boys use some for holding their trinkets (bottle caps, marbles, Legos), but this idea just makes me smile....now I can organize my colored pencils, postage and paper clips instead of throwing them into the junk drawer.
this is genius! you ought to submit it to Real Simple mag. :)
xox,
susan
great idea!
the chimes tin is so beautiful... I wish we had them here in germany..