Sometimes I have the TV on in our Family Room during naptime, mostly for background noise, but occasionally I DO look at the screen- and yesterday there was a craft segment on Better that really intrigued me.  Bottle caps.

I checked BetterTV.com and couldn’t find the video from yesterday, but I did find a similar idea on Martha Stewart’s website.

I like how on Martha’s site she put photographs on the inside of the bottle caps and filled them with resin.  This way  you could use ANY bottle cap; she recommends twist offs since they stay “flat”.

On the Better segment, the gal had purchased colored bottle caps from Craft Warehouse- I guess you get a  pack of 10 or 12 for around $2.00.  Not cheap, but not terribly expensive.  The gal was putting them top side up on the counter, then smashing them flat with a mallet.  Then she would use a circle cutter (1″) and cut out a decorative circle from paper, glue that onto the top of the bottle cap, embellish it with some textured glitter, or a raised sticker, etc.  Then she would glue a magnet onto the backside.

Another neat idea she shared was to make a necklace with a washer hanging from the bottom.  The magnet-backed bottle caps could then stick to the washer, therefore giving you several necklace options- just change the bottle cap!

A girlscout shared her technique on this site:  http://asktheebayqueen.com/what_looks_like_crazy/index.php/tag/bottle-cap-necklaces/

Or you can make keychains or tags….

I’m excited to try some bottle-cap crafts this summer.  I think it’s something the kids would enjoy, and something the parents could actually USE and keep for years to come.