Just Coastin'

Not too long ago, I discovered (and became obsessed with) Pinterest. It was there, surfing through Pins one day, that I saw this awesome idea for a DIY gift: coasters made with 4x4 tiles and scrapbook paper. So fun. With a co-worker's birthday approaching at work, I decided to give it a go.  

After not-so-slyly pestering her about what colors she uses in her house (blues, greens and reds, in case you were wondering), I dug through my pre-existing pile of paper and selected these two sheets to use:

I figured this wouldn't be my last DIY coaster project, so I got some cardboard and made myself a template for future use. 

I used that to cut out four blocks from the two sheets, trying to catch some of the interesting designs in the corners. I ended up with these:

I used a thin layer of ModPodge to glue them on, and then covered the entire tile with ModPodge as well, to really seal in the edges. 

I may or may not be a little obsessed with ModPodge. Just putting that out there.

Anywho, after letting the tiles dry, and ensuring that all the edges were sealed in nice and tight, I took them out to the garage for a thin coat of clear spray paint. 

This stuff works really well, but I'm thinking I may try a gloss finish in the future, just to see the difference. But, satin is what I had in the garage, so satin is what I used. 

Lookin' mighty fine after that first coat. I let it dry completely, and then did one more to make sure it was good and sealed. Then I brought those bad boys back inside for the finishing touch:

These little felt pads are perfect for the bottom of the tiles, and I had some on hand anyways. (Unfortunately, I was one short, so a quick trip to Lowe's was in order.) Four of those guys on each tile, and voila!

A fun and relatively inexpensive DIY gift - not to mention yet another good use of scrapbook paper. I swear, between that and ModPodge, I'm completely obsessed.