Tribal Coasters

I am lucky to live at a place with lots of spare wood lying around. This helps in fostering ideas for my creative and practical side, and if there is one thing I love, its a good Anthropologie hack.

Like usual, I was getting lost in Anthropologie one day and came across some beautiful wood symbology coasters that I fell in love with but knew that I could make on my own for much cheaper, as in FREE. These coasters had a lovely mix of shape, color, and natural wood elements and although I am not be able to mimic the mother of pearl accents, I still had a starting point to aim for.

Anthropologie Symbology Coasters

So I headed to the wood pile, found a log that had the perfect diameter to set a cup on and started on my project. Again, this project was easy, affordable, practical, unique, and FUN! Here are the necessary supplies:

• Log
• Marker, small knife, or other means of marking wood
• Saw - and any safety gear for using power tools
• Sandpaper
• Clean cloth
• Acrylic paint
• Paintbrush
• Newspaper (to prevent any messes :)

Step by Step Guide:

1. Now to get started first you can either mark where you want to start cutting your log or you can do what I did and just eyeball it. I wanted something thick enough to be sturdy but thin enough that it was not clunky. Now start cutting your coasters, I made a set of 6.                                                                                                                                       
2. Once you have all your coasters cut, go ahead and sand both the front and back so that you have a smooth, splinter free surface. I used fine-grain sandpaper because I wanted a very clean finish on my wood. 
3. Wipe down both sides so that all the dust and loose debris is gone and you have a clean surface for painting and lay down your newspaper so you don't make an unwanted mess. I painted my coasters freehand but if you are a perfectionist, use trial and error, or just want to make sure you love your design before committing then I suggest you lightly mark out what you want to paint with a pencil. 
4. Start painting! I am slightly obsessed with tribal designs at the moment, so I went with a tribal theme. I used bright colors to add a cheerful accent to my room and took inspiration from a few articles of clothing I had with some of my favorite prints on them. Here is my final product!