One day while tossing around a roll of magnetic stripping, I had another one of my ideas dawn on me: what if I could make smiley face magnets like those ones I lost a year ago? Those were cheap and peeled away easily anyway, so I have been needing to get some new ones. I have gotten to the point where when I see something, I think I can make it on my own and customize to the exact way I like it rather than buying it with minor flaws or details I would change if I could. So, I decided to try my hand at designing my own smiley face magnets using Microsoft Paint!

Materials:

1 roll of sticky-back magnetic stripping, 1 inch thick (depending on what size and shape you want your magnets to be)
Printer
Paper
Scissors

Step 1: Your Design

I designed my magnets to be 1 inch by 1 inch, and all smiley faces were created on Paint. If you do not have this application on your computer, you could try using photoshop or some other drawing program on your computer. You may even try other options, including printing out pictures from the internet to use or even drawing your magnet pictures by hand. Whatever you choose to do will be fine. If you would like to use my original smiley face designs, you can use my uploaded picture. Another cool effect you can play with is Microsoft Word's "artistic effects". I used it to make differently textured versions of my design.

Print your design out and get cutting! Cut each individual magnet out as well as you can. If you're a bad cutter, don't worry. You will be trimming the magnets at the end.

Step 2: Stick the Pictures

Now take your handful of pictures already cut out and set them next to you. Grab that roll of sticky-back magnetic stripping. Cut however many magnets you want out to the size you like. I did 1 inch by 1 inch, and used my cutting mat to determine the dimensions. I then marked off the 1 inch marks with white charcoal. Remember, if you don't cut well it is okay; the more precise cutting will come later. Unpeel the back of each magnet, revealing the sticky side. Stick each picture to the sticky side of each magnet.

Step 3: Trimming Time!

Now is where precision matters. Cut your magnet precisely and neatly to the way you like it. Continue making magnets until you have used up all of your supply of cut-out smileys.

Step 4: You're Done!

Now stick them to a magnetic board of some sort or to your refridgerator. You can use these handy dandy magnets to hang reminders for yourself or just for the enjoyment of decoration. Their faces will smile/scare you each and every day! :) Enjoy!

(Also, I named each smiley in the notes on the close up picture!)