DIY Simple Rustic Coasters With A Food Box And Some Dollar Tree Items

Every home likely has a piece of furniture whose surface bears the scars of an unprotected cup. While there are a healthy number of hacks to remove water rings from your wood tables, it's better to prevent them altogether. For less than the cost of a giant tricked-out holiday latte, you can make a set of four attractive jute coasters from a couple of Dollar Tree products, plus a bit of potential trash. Nab yourself one or two Crafter's Square Adhesive Cork Sheets and a few packs of Floral Garden Decorative Rope. Next, rescue an empty box from your recycling bin; boxes for cereal, granola bars, and pasta are great choices.

Along with the supplies listed above, get out your trusty hot glue gun, some scissors and-or a utility knife, and a circular coaster-sized shape to trace onto the boxboard and the sheet of cork. The rustic look of jute is pretty timeless, but if that doesn't mesh well with your aesthetic, Dollar Tree has some other options waiting for you. They sell lengths of Colored Mesh Tubing that's a similar thickness to the jute rope, and they come in Christmas hues or pleasing pastels. Although the material is much thinner than the jute rope or mesh tubing, their rolls of elastic ribbon come in eye-catching colors. Coiled and glued atop your coaster form, guests will never guess the origin of what's saving your wooden furniture from damage.

Once you've located the ideal circular object for a coaster template, trace four circles onto both your boxboard and your cork sheet(s). Cut them, and adhere the cork circles to the boxboard circles. Starting with the outside edge of the circle, begin gluing the cording on in a spiral toward the center. Add some extra glue at each cut end of the cording to help prevent fraying.

For those steamy summer days when even your glass of ice water is sweating, a boxboard-based coaster isn't going to stand up to all that moisture. Swap the cereal box out for a plastic lid. Plastic is notoriously hard to recycle, so save the trouble with an upcycle instead. Use either a small plastic lid or a larger one to cut into a smaller disk. You can also reuse other plastic containers, as long as they have flat surfaces.

To help plastic lids with lips sit firmly on your tabletop, you can cut the lips off with a utility knife. Even better, use the lip to your advantage. Invert the lid so the lip side faces up. If the cord's thickness and the width of the lid are a good match, the coiled cording may sit nicely within the edge. Back the plastic with cork, and attach the cording in the same way you would for the boxboard version. If you've kept the lip in place, it may look a bit unsightly once you've covered the surface of your disk with cording. Trim the visible plastic edges in the same material you used for the surface of the coaster.