Make This: An Upcycled Box Tops Container

It’s hard to believe that The Boy has been out of school for five weeks! We have seven weeks left of summer break, but I am already thinking about getting ready for back to school. The Boy loves school and I feel fortunate that we have a great team of enthusiastic educators and staff involved in our lives.

With the new school year just around the corner, I’m working on getting prepared and organized for an awesome year. This year, I feel more prepared than I did last year. Kindergarten was a learning experience for The Texan and I in terms of the schools expectations and the flow of activities. One thing we learned is that our small school loves to fundraise, accepts donations of supplies all year long, and loves to collect Box Tops for Education! Activities such as these are a great way for the children to get involved in the school community while the school earns money and supplies that they need.

When I shop, I try to select products that carry the Box Tops for Education seal. Purchasing these items allow me the opportunity to give back to school easily. Box Tops are worth 10 cents for your child’s school, and on occasion you can find specially marked products with Bonus Box Tops in store. I just grabbed a box of Hefty trash bags featuring FOUR Box Tops from my neighborhood Stop and Shop! Look for them in your local retailer soon, this is a limited time back to school offer. Hefty trash bags are the only trash bags that support Box Tops for Education.

If you’re like me, you probably start the school year with goals of being a more organized parent. This year, I’m going to help you meet that goal, at least with your collection of Box Tops. Last year, I slipped them into the “junk drawer” and some likely got lost. I decided to create a special box tops container for us to store them in until they’re brought to school.

Using an empty plastic container with a lid, I grabbed a can of spray paint and gave the lid a quick, light coat of paint.

I wanted to be able to see inside the container, a little washi tape and I was all set! I taped off a few sections of the container.

I took it to my paint station {a/k/a the backyard} and set it on top of an empty seltzer bottle. This ensured I did not get paint inside the container.

I sprayed it with a thin coat of spray paint.

Once it dried, I peeled off the washi tape. Then gathered the box tops from the junk drawer and put them in the container. Because it’s plastic, you don’t have to worry about your children dropping the container and getting hurt. Around here, that’s important.

Using a chalk paint pen, I wrote Box Tops on the lid. Easy for everyone to identify!

Through their partnership with Box Tops for Education, the Hefty brand has donated more than $3 million in contributions to schools. On your next trip to the store, be sure to pick up the Hefty odor block waste bags with four bonus box tops!