Bottle Cap Magnets

January 24, 2013/DIY
You may remember my sister, Dottie, got married a few months ago. She designed these cute coloring books with these icons on the back. The icons also appeared on her save-the-dates, invitations, and programs. They kindof tied everything together. (also pictured are the tops from specialty sodas served at her reception)
I’d seen some bottle cap magnets about a year ago in a garden shop. I filed them away in my brain for future use knowing I could make them myself. Seeing Dottie’s icons gave me an idea. 

The icons up close. 
I took my 1″ paper punch. 
Flipped it upside down and punched out each icon. 
I ended up with this – times 2. 

They fit perfectly in the bottle caps. I couldn’t have planned it better.

Then I went to JoAnn Fabrics and bought “Floral Setting Resin”. It’s a liquid resin you mix with a hardener then let it set to hardness. You know, that clear stuff they use to make it look like fake flowers are standing in water. 
Note: there are different kinds of this product. The one I bought at Michael’s all had to be used at once. The one at JoAnn Fabrics you could use as much or little as you need without wasting the remaining liquid in the bottles. This Panacea brand is the one I used. 
This is what’s inside. 
You mix the resin and hardener in equal parts, then stir for three minutes. It’s cloudy at first…. 
But as you stir, it becomes clear. 
Pour a little in each cap to cover the papers. I had to poke the papers back down with the craft stick to get the air out from under them. I had to do it several times in the first few hours. One thing I didn’t expect was that the paper becomes more translucent so the lighter icons became a little washed out, but they still look neat. 
It takes 12 hours for it to become gel, 24 hours to be tacky, 36 hours to be completely set. 
Then I took my handy-dandy liquid nails (which is my new DIY BFF) and adhered small round magnets (also found at a craft store) to the back. 
Then I boxed them up and shipped a little box of happiness to my baby sister. 

Comments (4)

  • Elizabeth / January 24, 2013 / Reply

    Adorable : )
    You could glue the papers down first before pouring the acrylic…also if the icons are too light, you could outline them with a sharpie first!

  • Dottie Ward / January 26, 2013 / Reply

    2 comments hehe

    1. I didn’t know that I had been married already for a few months (hehe)
    2. I love, love the magnets!!! All of them are up on my fridge 😉

  • Anonymous / January 26, 2013 / Reply

    I write a comment when I like a article on a site or
    I have something to contribute to the conversation. Usually it is caused by the fire displayed in the post I read.
    And after this article “Bottle Cap Magnets”. I was moved enough to write a thought 🙂 I do have a few questions for you if it’s allright. Is it only me or does it look as if like some of the responses appear as if they are coming from brain dead folks? 😛 And, if you are writing on other social sites, I’d like
    to keep up with anything fresh you have to post.

    Would you list the complete urls of your communal pages
    like your Facebook page, twitter feed, or linkedin profile?
    Here is my weblogneucopia compensation plan

  • Maggie Kolb / January 26, 2013 / Reply

    Could you also glue the magnet to the inside of the bottle cap so the bottle cap design can still be part of the pretty? Something to play with. Super cute idea, Leighann!

Add comment

(c) 2016 Leighann Marquiss