Button Magnets

Does anyone else have a cache of buttons they’ve been saving “just in case”? Every time you buy a buttoned shirt, it comes with one button in case an original falls off and gets lost. This is an issue that I generally have not had, which means I have quite a few spare buttons taking up space in my jewelry box (it just seemed like the most logical place). This weekend, I decided I was sick of storing them. But some are just so pretty, so I didn’t want to throw them out, either. Since I had a bunch of magnets left over from my spice container project (which are holding up well, by the way), I decided to put them to good use and make button magnets! This is probably the easiest project I’ve ever done. But they’re so cute, so I had to share.

Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links, which means I will make a small commission if you buy any products that have been linked to. Note that these links are meant to show you what I’m talking about, and are not a way of tricking you into buying something. Remember to always shop around and read product reviews before making any purchase, in order to be a more informed consumer. Please read my Disclosure Statement to learn more about my affiliations. 

What you’ll need:

• spare buttons
• magnet buttons with foam adhesives(or any kind of stick-on magnet)
• neodymium magnets (for the small buttons)
• hot glue gun

Step 01: I’m not sure why I’m doing steps, since this is pretty self-explanatory. Anyway, gather your buttons. (I, unfortunately, have misplaced a few–I’m sure I’ll find them eventually.)

Step 02: Flip over a button, peel the film off of the magnet’s adhesive under-belly, and stick it to the back of your button.

As you can see, this is not a button. It’s a jewel from an old hair clip that broke. It makes a pretty magnet, though.

Step 03: If you have any buttons that you find boring, a great way to fix that is to layer! Take your hot glue gun and glue them together.

Step 04: If any of your buttons are too small for the regular-sized magnets, you can either layer the small button on top of a larger one or use neodymium magnets. These generally do not have adhesive on them, though, so you’ll need your hot glue gun again.

Step 05: There are also some buttons that are large, but have a rounded back side, which keeps the regular-sized magnets from sticking. If you have any of these, hot gluing a neodymium magnet to it should work.

And here they are in action!

Yes, I still have people’s family Christmas cards on my fridge. They’re cute pictures!

These button magnets are way cuter than having just the magnets on my fridge. For the last four months or so, I’ve just had the bare neodymium magnets holding up pictures. I’m definitely happier with this. If you have any spare buttons just lying around, I definitely recommend this project. It’s fast, easy, and pretty cheap depending on what kind of magnets you use and where you buy them. (I bought both sets at Wal-Mart. Regular magnets were $1.00 and neodymium were about $4.00. I consider the buttons to be free, since I did not buy them specifically–they came with clothing.)

If you happen to need one of the buttons after you magnetize them, the great thing about hot glue is that it’s not impossible to peel off. The adhesives for the larger magnets are also strong enough that they won’t come off on their own, but I can certainly pull them off. I’ll be doing this with my spares from now on. 😀