I knew I could transform it (and personalize it) into a teacher gift using my Silhouette and since this month's Silhouette Challenge theme was "school" I finally got motivated enough to throw it together.
Since I couldn't find the kit commercially available, I took down all the measurements (it is super straight forward) so that I could duplicate it out of cheap pine lumber if I wanted to make more.
Here is everything I needed:
![boards-for-box.png Boards for box](http://lh5.ggpht.com/-lIiWsNBWU6I/U-hLpuMSQ4I/AAAAAAABBUc/hcqbleMhAY0/boards-for-box.png?imgmax=800)
But since you are going to make this on your own, here is what you ACTUALLY need:
The notched boards are the interior jar divider, so slide them together to form an “X” (you don’t need any nails or anything.) Use the remaining 4 boards to form a box (held together with 1 inch finishing nails):
![building-box.png Building box](http://lh6.ggpht.com/-jXxWVU0PZgg/U-hLsxvS38I/AAAAAAABBUs/M7oBI6b23CI/building-box.png?imgmax=800)
Attach the box to the plywood base with 2 nails per side and slide in the divider. And it is finished! You can sand the edges at this point since if your cuts are like the ones I had, they will be a little rough:
![pine-box.png Pine box](http://lh4.ggpht.com/-F7TKC8DRMdA/U-hLuaPeUnI/AAAAAAABBU0/3rrMnwMtiXE/pine-box.png?imgmax=800)
Next I stained the box (looking back I would have stained the wood before assembly since it was a PAIN to get into the bottom of the box, but I didn’t think about it until it was too late.
I used Ebony stain by Minwax, and I used only one coat since I liked the way it looked. This is the same stain I used on my kitchen island (three coats) and you can see how different it would look with more coats.
![staining-pine.png Staining pine](http://lh3.ggpht.com/-FH6D1e6ZUfU/U-hLvhkwssI/AAAAAAABBU8/0ZX-2Ew4SxA/staining-pine.png?imgmax=800)
I wanted to personalize the box for our teacher, so I used the “Learning Curve” font from dafont to cut out her name in white vinyl. I used Oracal 631 since I knew it wouldn’t get much wear and tear.
![personalizing-with-vinyl.png Personalizing with vinyl](http://lh5.ggpht.com/-hlgPiHj06LI/U-hLwzGZTgI/AAAAAAABBVE/d1MPVbFQ8TY/personalizing-with-vinyl.png?imgmax=800)
Ta-Dahhhh:
![teacher-supply-gift.png Teacher supply gift](http://lh5.ggpht.com/-rM9YpvhXDUw/U-hL_l4ePII/AAAAAAABBWc/Rr7a5bneBQE/teacher-supply-gift.png?imgmax=800)
Next I needed to ‘upgrade’ the mason jars which went inside the box, so I cut stencils out of contact paper in the shape of labels (this is the type I use: Shelf liner from Dollar Tree).
![stencil-for-chalkboard-labels.png Stencil for chalkboard labels](http://lh5.ggpht.com/-z-5DZ525Wg4/U-hL0AfADkI/AAAAAAABBVM/mM5BAjPxtIY/stencil-for-chalkboard-labels.png?imgmax=800)
I applied them to the front of the mason jar and then wrapped the rest of the jar in aluminum foil (EASIER THAN TAPING) so I could spray them with chalkboard paint.
![using-foil-to-spray-paint-bottles.png Using foil to cover whatever you want to spray paint. Easier than taping off (and without the residue)](http://lh4.ggpht.com/-YDzRBLAr9MM/U-hL1Rd-NTI/AAAAAAABBVU/0rEDHL2GP5g/using-foil-to-spray-paint-bottles.png?imgmax=800)
I took them to the garage, and sprayed them inside of a cardboard box, to contain the mess:
![chalkboard-spray-paint.png Using foil to cover whatever you want to spray paint. Easier than taping off (and without the residue)](http://lh4.ggpht.com/-8Gszv2aCOo0/U-hL3Dgr2JI/AAAAAAABBVc/KROPfneBu6w/chalkboard-spray-paint.png?imgmax=800)
The finished product:
![teacher-school-supply-gift.png Teacher school supply gift](http://lh6.ggpht.com/-ZT8i37Ewm1o/U-hL8YWct0I/AAAAAAABBWE/XuQfObiiR48/teacher-school-supply-gift.png?imgmax=800)
I filled them with school supplies and labeled each jar:
![chalkboard-pencil-jar.png Chalkboard pencil jar](http://lh5.ggpht.com/-aIoJaZ9ftXk/U-hL4HGs6DI/AAAAAAABBVk/X4437RR-378/chalkboard-pencil-jar.png?imgmax=800)
You also can included things in the box that didn’t require a mason jar (like glue or paints etc):
![school-supply-organizer.png School supply organizer](http://lh5.ggpht.com/-s6vDYnkAObA/U-hL9fzrAJI/AAAAAAABBWM/4vz6iux8IuE/school-supply-organizer.png?imgmax=800)
![teacher-gift-school-supplies.png Teacher gift school supplies](http://lh3.ggpht.com/-jR9eOLmFNJQ/U-hL-pxMJFI/AAAAAAABBWU/cHixEji4wjw/teacher-gift-school-supplies.png?imgmax=800)
Want to Check Out More Silhouette Projects for this Month's Challenge?
![](https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-m1mVp9hMFik/U-e3WBLK5DI/AAAAAAAACtU/QRJtc35VWDk/s0/schoolChallenge.jpg)
1. Weekend Craft // 2. From Wine to Whine // 3. Life After Laundry // 4. Adventures in All Things Food // 5. Dragonfly & Lily Pads // 6. Sowdering About // 7. The Kim Six Fix // 8. Architecture of a Mom // 9. greylustergirl.com // 10. Please Excuse My Craftermath // 11. Simply Kelly Designs // 12. My Paper Craze // 13. Sweet Tea & Saving Grace // 14. Black and White Obsession // 15. Ginger Snap Craft // 16. It Happens in a Blink // 17. Creative Ramblings // 18. Little Blue's Room
Or to see some of my other silhouette projects you can go here.
Sharing at these parties.
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