More Washi Tape Wonderful Projects For Your Classroom

Many teachers shop in Ikea for all kinds of inexpensive containers, carpets, picture frames, etc. to fill their classroom with attractive pieces that make it more homey. They are know for having goods that are simple and clean in design. I love their plain white pots that often just have a little texture. They are only a few dollars so they are affordable for a classroom. These have horizontal lines which made them perfect for washi tape decorating! Here are the results. Really nice looking and a cute pop of color... right?

Where I live we have little dollar type stores everywhere and I was cruising around and found this clear plastic box which I use when I need to take supplies with me on the run. Once I added a label and colorful tape it become this adorable box and my name is right on the front. It only took me minutes to make. As I was cruising around I found a white plastic binder. I grabbed it and made it so much cuter with some tape on the outside and inside. The pages are color coded so I can find information quickly and easily. 
Helpful Hint: I like washi tape best on white products or clear ones since the tape is a bit transparent.  Have you washi taped anything lately? I would love to get some other ideas from you so leave a comment if you want to. Now go have a "washi wonderful weekend."
Fran

Washi Tape Wonderful

So that was super easy and "cutified" a plain tin container. Realize that a white container gives you the best results since the tapes are slightly transparent. I love that I can match any colors that I want and now all I need is a label on the front for the final touch. How about you? Do you like washi tape and have you tried it? I would love to see what you have done. Have a great week at school.

A Teachers's Love for Washi... Where can I find it?

Many people have asked me where to find this paper tape that is so user friendly and can be repositioned so easily. I realize you can buy it on line but I need to look at colors and designs closely. Colors can be deceiving. Have you ever bought a scarf on line, received it, and hated the shade of green it turned out to be? I hate dislike returning anything.

This is a display at our local Walmart. If you do not have a display like this, I would march over to the manager and show him this. Two days after this went up it was half empty. Get with it Walmart! Go check your store out and see if you can find it.

Then I moved on to my trusty Target (we teachers {heart} this store) in search of washi tape. This was a little trickier since they have Duct tape in designs too. This cannot be repositioned and you will want to throw yourself against a wall if you make a mistake. If you have guts of steel... go for it sista. I found these cute tapes, some in the scrapbooking section which has been shrinking over time (sob) made by Smash. Soe of these are really cute. Be careful of the new plastic tapes like this purple and turquoise design. Those are more for wrapping packages and jazzing them up. I sent my daughter's birthday gift this way to her law office. I'm not so sure she loved that all that much. Oh well.
Michael's has just started to carry these but they nail you by making you purchase them in sets of 2. That ups the price so get that app so you always have a coupon. Don't get caught without one!

Finally: We have this gorgeous store in California filled with all kinds of gorgeous papers, punches, and cards. They did not have a huge selection but plenty of dots and chevron. I bit the bullet and treated myself.

Have you been able to find washi tape locally? Add to our list in the comments if you have! I am working on desk accessories for a teacher so look out for that post. Have a Washi Wonderful Day! I wonder if Mrs. Wishy-Washy loves washi tape!
Look a few posts below this for a washi tape DIY project that is super simple... promise.

Washi Tape For Your Teacher Gift

Did you know that today is Wishy Washi Wednesday? I love washi tape and now own just a few rolls ( a few million to tell the truth.) What can you do with this stuff? Obviously it is perfect for decorating plain containers and this project took me very little time. Interested? Stick with me. I decided to make accessories to go on a teacher's desk. If your own child is high maintenance you might want to show up the first day of school with a gift! Right?

You will need a variety of  coordinating washi tapes. This is no big deal. You can find them in Walmart and they are not expensive. I am a crazy Starbucks coffee drinker and these little iced coffees can be found anywhere. They are a perfect shape for holding pencils and you got a coffee drink as your well deserved treat. Win-win here. Wash it out well, take the labels off with Goo Gone (in the Target Dollar Spot) and dry it off well. Now start at the bottom of the jar and work your way up. Begin in the same place each time you wrap the tape and overlap it at the end, cutting it cleanly so it looks nice. When you start wrapping be sure to do it tightly for nicer results. You screwed up already? Remember that washi tape can be removed easily and re-positioned. Yup, it rocks. Go slowly and make a nice design. Tapes can be layers on top of each other if you want to get snazzy. That was a piece of cake and it looks amazing... right? moving on...

Now you need to make fancy-smantzy pencils or why bother with this. This is the easiest part. Cutting the tape is the hard part and you know how to use scissors. I lay it right down on the sticky side, cut it off at the bottom neatly, and start rolling it on a hard surface. Smooth it out and you just made the cutest pencil. Remember to start the tape below the metal piece at the top and to trim it neatly. Got the hang of this? Mix up your coordinating colors and start wrapping. I made little flags at the top (it can cover up some imperfections hem, hem) and cut a "v" into it. Adorable and a nice touch of cuteness. Now the pencils might be too short for the jar so here's the secret. Stuff white tissue paper in the bottom (use a chopstick to get it all the way down to the bottom) and this will work like a charm. Put the pencils in, tie the bottle with some raffia and add the label on a cheap wood skewer. Cut the point off of the skewer so the teacher does not end up with a hole in her finger and a major injury! Just sayin'.  I am giving you the labels here so you can finish this project without stressing.

Are you still with me or are you on someone else's blog with a useful activity? Just kidding. Excuse the crummy photos but that's all I could come up with while I was working on this. The next part involves small canning jars you can find anywhere and you always thought could be used for something else (don't share that with Granny). I used this size but they even come smaller, but who knew? You can wrap them with coordinating washi tape but where it says "Bell" on the glass, I made that the back of the jar and the place where I started and ended. Does that make sense? Probably not... clear as mud. Take the jar lid out of the metal doo- hickey and cover that in strips of tape any way that you want. Just be sure to cover the entire piece. Go take a break... do not leave me for the day. You can get this puppy finished.

Trim carefully around the lid. Insert it back into the metal and voila... looks gorgeous. I filled these with colored clips and push pins that only cost a dollar a package in Staples. They have lots of nice colors to pick from. I just added a label on the front of each little jar and that's it... a gift any teacher would love. There's only one problem. Once she see's that you can do this she will be calling on you for other stuff.

Have a great Wishy Washi Wednesday friends. Now go get some tape... Don't forget to grab the labels.