DIY Coin Organizer Tin

I completely forgot to take photos before I put this all together so I can’t exactly call this a tutorial. I recently found myself filling in for the treasurer of a group I volunteer with and I noticed our petty cash loose change was just in a ziplock bag. I thought, “I can organize this!” I had recently come across a neat Altoids tin hack that turned in into a little portable change box and  this was the perfect opportunity to make something like it. I didn’t have any Altoids tins so I used a Vermints tin, which unfortunately isn’t as wide as I would have liked but it does the job.

Materials

• Candy or gum tin
• Chipboard packaging
• Scissors
• Credit card or ID card
• Glue
• Double-sided tape

I first tried to make the dividers with cardstock but found it wasn’t stiff enough. I ended up poking through my recycling and decided that the box from my antihistamines would do the trick. (Although if you’re going to carry your tin around a lot you might want something sturdier.) I ripped open the packaging so it would lie flat then folded it in half along one of the folds and cut it to approximately the height of the inside of the tin. I made 3 I-shaped dividers and then cut them down to fit in the tin. I used as many of the folds the packaging came with but I had to make some of my own folds. This is where the credit card or ID card comes in – I used my MBTA pass. It helps to make the fold straight.

After all the dividers were the right size, I glued them shut to make them more sturdy. I let them dry overnight with something heavy on top of them so they wouldn’t pop open.

I attached the dividers to the tin with double-sided tape and then put the coins in. Voila! Instant organization. 🙂

Tutorial: Low-sew Infinity Scarf

When I was working on the Marathon Scarf Project I realized I had no blue or yellow clothing to wear while giving out scarves to runners. I didn’t want to waste too much time making a scarf for myself since that was less time for working on scarves for runners but I figured it would be nice to be wearing blue & yellow so I went off to my favorite thrift store, Urban Renewals in Allston. They conveniently organize everything by color and type so it’s easy to look for clothing if you’re particular about color.

I had hoped to find a yellow t-shirt and a blue t-shirt that I could sew together to make an infinity scarf but all I managed to find was a yellow women’s 3X shirt and a blue cardigan. The shirt seemed brand new and the material was pretty soft (95% cotton, 5% spandex). The material didn’t drape as well as I would have liked but it worked fine for a last minute scarf.

This would be an excellent project for an old garment whose fabric is in reasonable condition but perhaps has a stain or tear in another section. Or you could do what I did and go to a thrift store to make yourself a cheap infinity scarf. No need to spend $15+. I can’t remember how much the shirt was but I don’t think I paid more than $5.

Materials

• Very large t-shirt or wide skirt/dress at least 28″ wide from seam to seam
• Cutting mat
• One yard ruler
• Rotary cutter (mine is a 60mm Martelli ErgoCutter)
• Matching thread
• Needle

Step 1: Lay out your garment on top of the cutting mat. Smooth out any wrinkles. If it’s very wrinkled you may want to iron it first so that your edges will be straight.

Step 2: Use your ruler and rotary cutter to cut off the hem. Hold the ruler firmly or it will slide while you’re cutting. You could also do this with scissors, but it’s difficult to cut in a straight line with scissors.

Step 3: Measure from the cut edge to your desired width. I measured 12″. Line up your ruler to cut the other edge. Try to make sure it’s parallel to your first cut or you’ll have an uneven scarf. I didn’t mark mine so I ended up with a my scarf that is 10.5″ wide on one end and 12″ on the other. Oops.

Step 4: Reinforce the four corners so that the seams will not come unstitched. (This assumes the garment you started with had 2 seams.) You could also skip this step and your scarf may be fine since the edges are going to roll when you wash it. I didn’t want to take any chances of it coming unstitched in the wash.

Step 5: Wash and dry your scarf. The edges will roll in the wash.

Enjoy!

(Sorry about the quality of some of the photos. It was overcast the day I was making my scarf.)