One in Which I Get My Craft On – Bottle Cap Window Dressing

I am a collector. My mother loved to tell people about my collections of paper scraps. It was true. If there was a piece of paper, an envelope, a box that caught my eye, I would stash it away. Sometimes my treasures would get used for something, but often they were just saved. I like to think that I have controlled this to some extent, but I still have a hard time getting rid of some things – like bottle caps.

In a house that appreciates its beer, it would be ridiculous if I saved every cap that came off of a bottle. I have, however, saved quite a few. There was also a period of time that Sam thought it was clever to put caps on top of the doorframe of our bedroom. I never took them down because they would make me think of Sam.

A couple weeks ago, I was doing one of my favorite things – washing the dishes – and I had an idea. I would magnetize the frame of the window over the sink and make a display of bottle caps!

First, I investigated magnet paint. There are a few different kinds of magnet paint on the market, but this one got the best reviews that I could find:

Magnet paint is HEAVY and you really have to stir it like crazy before you use it. The best way to apply it is to roll it on with a short napped roller and then smooth it with a foam brush. The more coats you apply, the stronger the attraction. After the first coat, it didn’t hold anything. I was happy with it after about three coats. I ended up putting on six, because my plan was to paint over it.

After the last coat, I let it dry over the night, and then I did the white overcoat. It took three coats of white paint to cover the black.

Between painting, I was gathering caps and preparing them. I got a couple of packages of magnets at the craft store and used regular old craft glue to attach the magnets to the caps. There were a couple that I liked what was on the inside of the cap, so I glued those magnets to the other side.

 

After a couple days of prep work, it was time for the meeting of magnets and window. Right now, I have several duplicates and still room to grow, but I am excited how this turned out and I am eager to make it grow and change over the next years.