DIY: Magnet Souvenir Board

Souvenir Board for all our Travel Magnets!

Our family loves to travel and explore new places!  If we could we would go on more adventures, but time and other priorities take first place for a good chunk of the year.  We are thankful for all the neat trips we’ve been able to take and for opportunities to visit with family and friends.  A few years ago we decided (the idea stimulated from my cool sister-in-law Becky who already had a fridge full of magnets) to start collecting magnets when we visited a new place.  Before that we would random souvenirs such as a picture frame, cup, magnet, or something else.

We wanted to start consistently collecting something that was relatively small, easily transported, not too expensive, and could be found at the majority of places we visited.  So we decided on the “magnet” because it was something we could find almost everywhere, they don’t take up that much extra space in our luggage, they are usually a good price, and didn’t cause too much clutter once we got home.  As we continued to travel we noticed our fridge began filling up with the neat magnets we had accumulated.   It was fun looking at the magnets and reminiscing about the adventures we had on the various trips.

A couple months ago our fridge died.  After several weeks of research we finally decided on a new fridge and got it installed.  The problem was I didn’t really want the magnets back on the fridge for several reasons – the magnets tend to scratch the fridge (which wasn’t a big deal for our really old fridge), the magnets tend to get bumped or fall off (causing them to break), and the fridge was starting to get a cluttered look.  So after a few weeks of deliberation my husband made this amazing magnetic souvenir board for me.

I LOVE the magnetic souvenir board my husband made for our family!   We got the picture frame at Hobby Lobby when it was on clearance, he picked up a sheet of steel at our local Lowe’s store, and it assembled in no time at all!  Now it is hanging in our dining room with our travel souvenir magnets.

Magnet Souvenir Board Directions:

• Picture Frame 24 x 36 (or whatever size you want)
• Sheet of Steel 24 x 36
• Souvenir Magnets

We picked out a picture frame that specifically fit our sheet of steel so we didn’t have to do any cutting or trimming on the steel.  Please be wear gloves and be careful when handling the steel as it has sharp edges.  If there is any glass in your picture frame remove it (hint – it is usually less expensive to purchase the frame without glass plus you don’t have to figure out what to do with the extra sheet of glass once it’s removed).  Place the sheet of steel into the picture frame.  The metal will be a little heavier and when you add the magnets the frame can get pretty heavy so depending on your frame you may want to add a hook that will be able to hold the weight evenly.  Add your magnets!  Hang it up and ENJOY!

Every magnet tells a story and holds precious memories for our family.

You can make one for your family as well.  This can be a reasonably priced project especially if you use coupons or shop a sale, it’s easy to put together, and looks great.  You can get whatever frame will look the best for your home decor!  Feel free to share a picture of your Magnet Souvenir Board with us!  Happy traveling!