Teabag wrapper clipboard

If you've been saving all your teabag wrappers, here's a cheap and easy way to use up some of them while creating a nifty clipboard you can use at the office or at home.

I've been saving my teabag wrappers for quite a while now, and I was reminded of what I'd meant to make when I saw this little item in the new Country Living. You can buy a postage stamp clipboard for $28, or you can make one of your own pretty much for free if you happen to have an old clipboard you can use!

This plain clipboard is one I've had for a while and cost about $1 at one of the local bargain stores, as I recall. Or maybe it was the one I got for 25 cents at a yard sale. (I like clipboard crafts and have made one of these before with fancy floral scrapbooking papers. Now I keep a clipboard or two around in case inspiration strikes.)

My other supplies: Sandpaper. Mod Podge (decoupage medium). A paper trimmer to neaten the edges of the teabag wrappers.

Once I had shaped up the wrappers a bit, I just started slapping the Mod Podge down with a small paintbrush and applying the designs willy nilly to the clipboard. To my surprise and delight, even the flimsy wrappers with plastic-like or metallic-looking linings worked just fine, often better than the paper ones, which tended to wrinkle. When the surface was covered, I applied another coat of Mod Podge over the entire surface. Once the Mod Podge dried, I used the sandpaper to lightly file down the edges all around the clipboard. Done.

One final tip: I don't really care what my clipboard looks like *under* the clip, but if you do ... slip a piece of wax paper under the clip while it dries. I did that the last time I made one of these and it worked great to prevent a line from appearing on the papers under the clip.