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Thursday, September 12, 2013

DIY Altoid Tin Prayer Boxes

Alright, my lovely little bloggers. I have been wanting to start a DIY section on this blog for awhile now, so I figure what better time than the present. Right? So here goes...

I was in a store called Francesca's a few weeks ago with some lovely ladies by the name of Laura and Maddie. Then are both heading off to England with me (in 10 days I might add!!!). Anyways, we were shopping for some stuff to bring to school and I came across these cute little boxes!
Now isn't that adorable?!

This was what it said on the inside
"When your head starts to worry,
and your mind just can't rest,
put your prayers down on paper,
and let God do the rest."

I mean aren't these just the sweetest little things?

So me, the avid do-it-yourself girl that I am, decided I could make these easy peasy! And it really was. Here's how:

1) I bought some Altoids. I bought a pack of four because it is cheaper than buying individual packs. I believe it cost me $4 dollars max for these.

2) I pulled out some sheets of scrapbooking paper that I had on hand and traced the top of the box once, and the bottom twice. I used three different patterns of paper for each tracing I did. (Note: trace the box on the back of the paper so you don't have lines on the side you want to show.) 

3) I cut out the paper. Now, cut the paper for the top of the box and the bottom of the box normally, but the second tracing you did of the bottom is for the inside of the lid. This piece I cut slightly inside the line so that it would fit without any extra.

4) I sanded all the places I was going to glue paper to (so the top, bottom, and inside lid of the Altoid tin.) and then wiped them with a dry cloth to remove any dusty residue. 

5) I used a glue stick (NOT a glue bottle. That will make your paper soggy and wrinkle when it dries) and glued down the paper in the three designated spots. (I put glue on both the tin and the paper to help it stick better.)

6) Next I hopped on my trusty computer and typed out Prayer Box and the poem from above, and printed it on colored paper. White works fine, too, but I personally enjoy any pop of color I can get. Make sure to print in a font that isn't too large so that it won't fit on your tin, but also not so small that it is hard to read. I used 11 for the poem, and 24 for "Prayer box."

7) I cut them out what I had printed and glued the "prayer box" on the top, and the poem on the inside cover.

8) Lastly, I used some clear gloss interior/exterior varnish to seal all my hard work and insure nothing would get dirty or ripped. I used the brand Dreamcoat from Ben Franklin's (a small bottle costs around $3), but it could also be purchased at any other craft store or possibly Walmart. When using the varnish, apply one coat and then let it dry for 10-15 minutes and apply a second coat, if desired. Once both coats are dry, remember to give the bottom and inside of the lid a coat as well.

Then I just got some little pads of paper and placed them inside the box and I was all set! This is how they turned out.

I added the bunting to this one. It made it 10 times cuter. Just 3 little triangles of paper glued down. Looks awesome!

I love the print of the lace on this paper. I think it is absolutely adorable.

And of course you have to have one that is all bunting. I mean, how can you not?

This is the inside.

And a close up. I didn't take pictures of the bottoms, but they are just a piece of scrapbook paper cut and glued down. Pretty simple. I just put paper there to cover up the Altoid nutritional info.


I hope this DIY was enjoyable and easy to follow. You can let me know if anything was unclear or didn't work by leaving a comment below. Thanks!


50 comments:

  1. Super cute! I thought the same thing when I saw these at Francesca's...that I wanted to make one myself. Lovely outcome. I'll def give it a go!

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  2. Adorable! I love this! What a great gift idea too! :) Thanks so much for sharing this!

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  3. wish you had a printable for these for us that arent as crafty (;

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    1. Hi Jenny! I actually am considering revisiting this project and creating a printable. Thanks for the idea!

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  4. Why did you have to sand the boxes?

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    1. The sanding gives the glue something to grip onto a bit better. Definitely possible to do these minus the sanding, but I like to as I feel it helps it adhere better.

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  5. Great idea, pinning this for my Sunday school kids

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  7. Where did you purchase the pen/paper for inside the box? thank you!

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    1. I found a small pad of colored paper at target but had to trim them down to fit inside a bit. I suggest buying 3x5 notecards and cutting them in half.

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    2. And I didn't buy tiny pens, but you can order those on amazon or some craft stores carry them.

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  8. Is it possible to sand down the lettering on the lid so it doesn't show or come thru?
    Thanks!

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  9. Is it possible to sand down the lettering on the lid so it doesn't show or come thru?
    Thanks!

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  10. These are amazing, God Bless you!

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  11. i am going to attempt to make one for my daughter. LOVE THIS!! thanks for sharinf!!

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  12. Thank you for this idea! I am going to make one for my friend who is going through treatments for Lupus, you are so sweet to share <3

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  13. Adorable. I saw a similar item at PacSun and thought to myself, "Hey, I could make that!" But now you have given me a tutorial, and it will require less thought on my behalf ;) I am going to make one for my son's girlfriend as she is getting baptized next week.

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  14. https://www.naturallife.com/home-and-gifts/prayer-boxes.html
    Kind of completely ripping off this company's thing.

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    1. wow, just ordered 3 from the site for Mothers day gifts...don't really have the time to make these anyway. Thanks!!

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    2. @ Morgan Croft - Your comment to Sarah was very rude. Check out Pinterest because there are LOTS of people "ripping off" that company's "thing" to make their own prayer boxes. However, I'm pretty sure the Natural Life company did NOT invent nor do they own the idea of prayer boxes; nor do they use Altoid tins for their prayer boxes.

      @ Sarah Girard - I, for one, enjoyed visiting this page and your entire site (I found you through Pinterest)! Keep up the brilliant DIY projects!

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  15. Oh my this is simply amazing. Cute and amazing. I would love to share it on our blog over at blog.memorycross.com. (I'll make sure to link it back in here.)
    Thanks for sharing.

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  16. do you think this would work using mod podge? we want to do this at VBS and just have the kids mod podge over the paper onto the tin

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  17. do you think this would work using mod podge? we want to do this at VBS and just have the kids mod podge over the paper onto the tin

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    1. Yes, mod podge works well too! I was all out when I made these and ended up liking how the varnish created a slightly thicker barrier than mod podge, but it definitely works. I love that you are making them at VBS! Have fun and I hope the kids enjoy it. Feel free to post a picture after you finish. I'd love to see what they all come up with.

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  18. great craft idea to encourage others in their walk with the Lord. I saw suggestion regarding a pdf (that I could then print on fun paper. Considering getting this together so, girls can make their own at our club night. No sure what is best, all the various printed words for one person or for 2 people on a sheet. Or an 8 1/2 by 11 sheet, full of poems, I'd precut. then 2nd sheet w/words 'Prayer Box', another sheet w/Bible verses related to prayer

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  19. I found the Prayer Box in Family Dollar for $2.00, I brought it to a friend who loved it and thought it would be a great gift for our Women's Ministry prayer breakfast. She told me, "oh you can make that!" I was like "I don't think so!" But now I CAN!! Thank you for the instructions and encouragement that I CAN do it!

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  20. Been wondering how I could alter empty Altoid tins for a while. Don't like just throwing them away.

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    1. You can buy empty metal boxes just like the Altoid ones in bulk on Amazon. That might help when trying to do these as a group craft.

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  21. Thank you so very much for sharing. My 14 year old daughter and I are go to make some for our ladies breakfast at The Church Of Christ LDS.. My Our Heavenly Father Bless You.. Thank you again. Love Precious , my email address is irwinfamily7@gmail.com if you want to message me..

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  22. I ment to say May Our Heavenly Father Bless You..

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  23. I just bought gift card tins from Walmart on Clearance after Christmas sale I seen them before Christmas in a store and thought the same thing I could make them! I'm going to make them for my Bible Study ladies. Thanks for share the instructions and we also have a Women Day of Wellness in March will be making some for that too! :)

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  25. Do you cut the scrapbook paper large enough to wrap around the small sides of the tin? I wasn't sure how that would work.

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  26. What a GREAT idea! making these for my friends as a little gift.

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  27. Love this! Thanks for sharing, we are going to make these for our womens retreat. I am wondering how the glue between the paper and metal held up. Is it still sticking?

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  28. L OVE THE IDEA OF MAKING USEFUL THINGS FROM THINGS THAT ARE USALLY JUST THROWN AWAY ! THANK YOU ! GOD BLESS 1

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  29. I love this idea and can't wait to get started! Questions . . . 1) Do you wrap the paper around the sides of the lid? 2) Would hodge podge work with scrapbook paper? (I've never used hodge podge.) 3) How much do you sand? . . . just enough to rough it up or sand it flat?

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  30. I love these little prayer boxes and am trying to make some for gifts. I wondered where you found the cute little paper pads you put inside your boxes? Please HELP!! Blessings, Ruthie

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  31. The tin looks so small how did you fit a note pad and pen in there and what are the dimensions?

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  32. I love this . Thanks so much for sharing

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  33. I think that this is an incredible idea! I will definitely be busy this week making several of these; some of which I will be proud to be giving as gifts. Thank you so very much for blessing us with your creative talent! You will most certainly be getting the credit for the idea. May The Good Lord bless you in all of your endeavors. ��

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  34. I just made one of these for my mom! It turned out so cute! Thanks for the idea.

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  35. Where did you find the pad and pen set? I cannot find it anywhere

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  36. I Just bought one at my local Dollar Tree ! Adorable !

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  37. love these but I needa place to hide themeny ideas

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