Making the most of your Vinyl, Teacher's gifts

Written by 24 Comments

I know it is only March...but believe me the end of school is creeping up....

And it will soon be time to part from the kid's teachers and show appreciation for all their hard work putting up with teaching our children!

A few years back I made some teacher gifts (way, way, way, pre-blogging days) that were super cheap and super cute!

 I decided to make a nice display tile, with vinyl.  Having limited funds I couldn't spend much and buying more vinyl was out of the question.  I found a red and blue sheet in my scrap vinyl pile big enough to fit my tiles, but I needed four gifts....

So I got SMART and made the most of my vinyl!
I used the positive and the negative of the cut...
So with one cut I got two gifts!  (I hope that makes since....I cut only one blue quote and one red quote,  but I used all of my vinyl to get four quotes)

To start, I simply chose a quote I liked and designed it on my computer then cut it out on my vinyl. Super simple!

I used transfer paper to get the vinyl border and words off, and then transferred the vinyl onto the tile, these are the mainly white tiles, with less vinyl.

With the vinyl I had left, I placed it on another tile (the ones with more vinyl)....and ta da!  Two for the price of one, or should I say four for the price of two!
The teachers loved them!

And the best part...since I had the vinyl on hand, they cost around $3.00 a piece!  The easels were $1 at the dollar store and the tile was around $2 or less at Home Depot!   (FYI- I have since learned that buying tile for projects like this is even cheaper at the Restore)

So there you have it, from someone who doesn't like to throw anything away, I ALWAYS try to use both cuts of vinyl and get two for one with each cut!
Do you know what you are doing for teacher gifts this year?  Or, do you you make the most of your vinyl too?

Hugs,
Mindi

I will be linking to these parties.

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24 comments

  1. Laura TurnerMarch 5, 2013 at 7:58 AM

    Such nice gifts, Mindi! And I love your frugality in using all the vinyl--very clever as well. The teachers will love these nice additions to their classrooms or homes. And that's one thing off your to-do list. :-)

    Laura from sundayview.blogspot.com

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  2. AnonymousMarch 5, 2013 at 12:22 PM

    That is sheer inspiration, using both cuts. I'm impressed! So many of my teacher friends say they're tired of scented candles and apple-themed anything. These would be cherished, I'm sure. If you haven't already, I'd love if you'd come join my How To Tuesday link party, too.

    http://housewifehowtos.com/link-party-2/how-to-tuesday-link-party-11/

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  3. Daniela @Frugal Aint CheapMarch 5, 2013 at 12:25 PM

    what a great idea...no waste here!

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  4. Heidi@OneCreativeMommy.comMarch 5, 2013 at 10:48 PM

    What a great idea! I finally got a Silhouette, and I can't wait to try this. So smart to use the positive and negative. If you have a Habitat for Humanity Restore nearby, you can save money on the tiles, too, by buying leftovers from building projects.

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  5. BrandiMarch 7, 2013 at 11:31 AM

    Such sweet and thoughtful gifts.

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  6. UnknownMarch 7, 2013 at 10:24 PM

    Genius! I have always hated wasting cuts...this is a brilliant way to use your resources well! Thanks for sharing!

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  7. My Garden DiariesMarch 8, 2013 at 12:54 PM

    That is crazy brilliant!!! Way to go on using the positive and negative!!! Love this idea...and being a former teacher I would so appreciate this gift! They are adorable!!!

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  8. JennaMarch 8, 2013 at 7:11 PM

    What a great gift!

    Jenna @ http://rainonatinroof.com

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  9. Cristina GarayMarch 9, 2013 at 8:19 AM

    Great idea, Mindi! A perfect gift for their classroom or home! I have never worked with vinyl! One more thing that goes to my "need to buy" list!

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  10. Julie{isCocoandCocoa}March 9, 2013 at 5:02 PM

    I love this idea! I hate throwing vinyl away.

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  11. Deborah@Green Willow PondMarch 9, 2013 at 9:38 PM

    These are very nice teacher gifts! I too try to use both parts of my vinyl. I don't use a lot of it, as I use contact paper for stenciling most of the time. Thank you for sharing it at What We Accomplished Wednesdays. Have a great weekend!

    Hugs,
    Deborah

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  12. JodiMarch 10, 2013 at 11:47 AM

    What a great idea and something we may forget about. thanks for sharing :) stopping by from diana rambles and pinned! love the tiles.

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  13. Christina at I Gotta Create!March 10, 2013 at 4:19 PM

    Super tip! Looks great and I bet they were so appreciated.

    Thank you for partying with the Wildly Original Crowd.
    <3 Christina at I Gotta Create!

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  14. UnknownMarch 10, 2013 at 9:30 PM

    What a fun idea... super cute! Thanks for coming to (link) party with me at Super Saturday Show & Tell :) xoxo~ Ruthie

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  15. My Repurposed LifeMarch 13, 2013 at 3:30 PM

    we are thrifty girls... I do the same thing! I use every scrap I can.

    love the tiles!

    gail

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  16. Cheerios and LattesMarch 13, 2013 at 9:39 PM

    VERY cute signs! As a former teacher, I would have loved this gift! :) I will have to try these for a gift soon! Thanks Mindi! We'd love to have you join us at Saturday Show & Tell on Cheerios and Lattes each weekend! I know my readers will love your ideas too!
    Mackenzie :)

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  17. CarrieMarch 14, 2013 at 6:38 AM

    Great gift idea, plus using both parts of the vinyl...genius! I featured this at Think Tank Thursday today. Thanks for linking it up! http://www.saving4six.com/2013/03/welcome-to-think-tank-thursday-21.html

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  18. AprilMarch 18, 2013 at 4:14 AM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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  19. AprilMarch 18, 2013 at 4:15 AM

    Thank you so much for linking this up at Saturday Spotlight! The new link party is up and I’d love to see you back. Have a great week. :)

    http://angelshomestead.com/saturday-spotlight-8/

    April

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  20. UnknownFebruary 1, 2014 at 12:18 PM

    Love this idea. What size tile did you use?

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    1. Mindi@MyLove2CreateFebruary 1, 2014 at 2:09 PM

      Thanks Tammy! I used 5x7 tiles. Not too big but not too small!

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  21. UnknownMarch 27, 2015 at 11:49 AM

    LOVE this idea Mindi! With Teacher Appreciation Week right around the corner, I would love to make some of these for our teachers. Quick question though - when you used the transfer paper on the less vinyl part, did you have a problem with the rest of the vinyl coming off with it? I envision you using a 5x7 piece of transfer paper - is that correct?

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    1. Mindi@MyLove2CreateMarch 27, 2015 at 12:02 PM

      Yes, I used a 5x7 transfer paper, and I had to weed out the "less vinyl" part first. This part takes a little more time because you have to keep making sure the rest doesn't come off too. I just went really slowly making sure only the "less part" transferred onto the transfer paper. I hope that makes since!!

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    2. UnknownMarch 27, 2015 at 12:05 PM

      It absolutely does! Thank you so much for your quick response! :)

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