How To Make Coasters out of Old Magazines

I just moved into a new house (and across the country) and realized, as we got the living room situated, that somehow we didn't own any coasters. I immediately began the hunt for a neat way to make my own. I came across this idea and decided to give it a shot since I had an endless supply of old magazines, please don't ask why I held on to them since I have no idea. It must be the hoarder in me, who knows. In any case, I finally had a purpose for them!

Each one takes about 30 minutes to make and you will need 6 magazine pages for each coaster you plan to make and a pair of scissors. That's it. I used a little super glue on the finish, and I'm sure you could choose to coat them with something if you like, but these materials are optional and not absolutely necessary. Ok, so here we go!

Step 1: Tear out six magazine pages and cut them in half vertically. Feel free to neaten the edges of the torn pages if necessary, but they won't be showing in the end product so I wouldn't stress it too much.

Step 2: Fold each sheet in half vertically (you know, hotdog style).

Step 3: Now you're going to fold each sheet into thirds. To do this, along the same direction you've been cutting and folding, fold the loose edges about a third of the way in. Now fold the opposite side to meet the far edge (the edge you just made with the fold).

Step 4: This step is easy enough, just fold each strip in half, making it half the length.

Step 5: Ok, get ready to put those underwater basket weaving lessons to use! Start with two of your "V" looking things and interlock them to make a corner.

Step 6: Keep weaving the strips by adding one to one side, then the other using the basic over and under pattern, making sure that it looks good on both sides as you go. You'll have to occasionally scoot the adjacent strips together to keep the weave nice and tight. I became pretty obsessive when I got to this part only to realize later that close enough is a-ok in the end.When you've got six strips on both sides making a nice little square with some slack on the ends, you're ready for the finishing touches.

Step 7: In order to take care of these edges, we are going to have to perform a little nip tuck action on them. Start by cutting down all the stray ends that are on the "inside" of the coaster, or stuck between two strips since these guys are not in danger of going anywhere they shouldn't be.

Fold the remaining tabs over the edge (and stubs of the tabs we just cut) and tuck them into the top horizontal strip on the opposite face of the coaster. After you're done doing this along the two edges, you're all done! This is the part where I chose to add a little reinforcement since my boyfriend, whom I live with, is a known breaker of all things in existence. I figured the addition of some super glue couldn't hurt, so I dabbed a little in every other pocket where we tucked a loose tab in just to be sure nothing would come undone.

So there you are, now you have a coaster set that will show off your super crafty talents and cost you absolutely no money! Enjoy!