How to make button coasters

Does your home or laundry room have a jar of miscellaneous buttons you're itching to use? This quick, simple craft solves both parts of that equation. The button border on the coasters gives new life to old buttons, and a chance to display them, and the coasters perform a useful role in a home or office.

The variety of buttons allows lots of opportunity to personalize the project. For example, you can make coasters using only fancy, decorative buttons, sentimental buttons, color-coordinated buttons or, as the tutorial demonstrates, a hodgepodge of buttons, basically creating a border collage.

The crafter decides the final look, but no matter the design, the coasters will add charm and personality to any room while protecting the tabletop. Craft stores and online shops sell cork shapes for coasters as well as bulk bags of miscellaneous buttons if you lack enough buttons to form a border.

Materials
- Cork coaster shapes, approximately 4 inches in diameter and 1/4 inch thick
- Hot glue gun
- Scissors
- Craft cord
- Buttons

1. Along the sides of the coaster form, bead the hot glue and press the cord into the glue dots. Repeat this along the entire round of the coaster, working only a few inches at a time, so the glue doesn't harden before the cord is pressed in it.

2. When the cord returns to the start, snip the end and use a bead of glue to secure the end.

3. Along the perimeter of the top of the coaster, lay a droplet of glue and press a button into it. Allow the edge of the buttons to overhang the edge of the coaster.

4. Repeat with the rest of the buttons along the perimeter of the coaster, overlapping buttons as desired to create a full look.

5. Allow glue to cool and harden.

Repeat with as many coasters as you'd like. Create a whole set for your family or friends and enjoy the coasters' cozy charm each time you set down a glass or mug.