Inspiration struck while on one of my many Dollar Tree shopping trips.
I saw this.
While I could appreciate the sentiment, what I really was excited about was the small shadow box opening.
I knew this had some great potential.
I brought it home and pulled off the middle part. I also removed the hangar piece from the back, saving that for a future project.
I measure the depth and width of the box and went downstairs into my workshop.
I rummaged through my craft wood scraps and found the perfect piece of wood.
I cut them into squares using my mitre saw.
I needed 9 in all.
Using a 220 grit sand-paper, I gently rubbed all the edges of the squares so they were smooth.
Here's a great before and after from sanding.
In no time, I had 9 sanded squares, readied for the next step.
Have an idea yet?
I went through my stash of craft paint, selecting a few colors, but finally deciding on olive green and rusty orange. Perfect colors for the fall season.
After giving the box a light sanding, I painted the entire thing with 3 coats of olive paint.
The bloks got 2 coats of the orange and were allowed to dry on 3 stacked pennies. This kept my work surface clean.
I pulled out a stencil set that I had.
I liked the typeset style of "X's" and "O's".
I stenciled the X's on one side of all the blocks and O's on the otherside of all the blocks with white craft paint.
Once both the box and the blocks were dry I sprayed them with a coat of Polyacrylic spray paint to protect them during use.
I then went through my stash of scrapbook paper and found this SU! paper with the perfect blocks and perfect cut size for my box.
It was meant to be.
Using Mod Podge, I generously painted a layer on the bottom of the box.
I made sure to get into the corners. It dries clear, so I wasn't worried about going up onto the edges a bit.
I placed the paper inside, smoothing it from the center out so any air bubbles would push out easily.
I used another coat of the Mod Podge and coated the top of the paper.
I let it dry until it had a matte finish.
Then I put all the pieces together...
A $1, hand-crafted Tic-Tac Toe game for hours of fun.
Since I had all the supplies but the box, it was only $1 out of pocket for me.
I would estimate that it would be under $15 if you had to also buy the wood, paint, paper, brushes, and Mod Podge.
It would make a great gift from adults and kids alike, and it was super easy.
Not a huge rule-breaker, but perhaps a little one.
Wink, Wink.
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