Anyone else out there have a thing for magnets? Like, every time you see them, you want them. Or you look at something and think, “Oh, I could make a magnet out of that.” Yeah, I wonder if there’s a support group for it. ‘Cause I’ve got some issues.
Brooch Magnets
Some time ago I had written that my grandparents moved in with my mom and told me they wanted me to take anything valuable. Being the sentimental sap that I am, I quickly took anything and everything that had meaning to me–namely, my grandmother’s brooches.
I thought it was such a personal item that I would cherish for years. Her brooches and my grandfather’s collection of fedora hats have always intrigued me. It’s a tangible reminder of a more formal time period that doesn’t seem to exist anymore.
Trying to figure out what to do with them/how to display them/how to do them justice, I simply did nothing for months. But THEN…I came up with an idea.
Why not turn this little $7.00 beauty into a framing piece for the brooches, yet still be reminded of my grandmother while using them? Brilliant, Chris.
Want a tutorial? Good “cause I’m gonna give one. I went to Lowes and purchased a piece of sheet metal in the plumbing department. I laid the frame backing over it and cut the measurements with a utility knife. They have fancy schmancy scissors that cut sheet metal, but I used an old pair of scissors I had around the house. It worked perfectly.
It was a scary moment, but I took some wire cutters and cut the backs off of each pin. No going back now.
They offer a wide variety of magnets in craft stores, but NONE of them work like the ones below. Trust me—I’ve wasted some money figuring that out. These babies are strong! I glued them on with some E-6000 glue. Also very strong!
Spray painting the sheet metal black helps the brooches show off their color better (I think), and it turned out beautifully.
Another treasure that came with me was my grandmother’s recipe box. It’s full of hand-written family recipes, and I just love it! There’s just something about hand-written items.
I paired it with a couple of my favorite pictures of them called it good. I love neutrals, but the color in this project has me smitten.
The moral of this story? Don’t be afraid to show off family treasures in a non-traditional way. I think about how long these beauties remained hidden simply because I wasn’t thinking “out of the box”, and it’s so disappointing. So go forth and rethink those heirlooms that have been stored away for too long.
I was missin’ my grandparents something fierce and thought this would be a nice post to recycle! #grandparentsday
