Pesos, Pennies, and Pounds, Oh My!

I know, you're sitting there, agonized, thinking, "What am I going to do with all of this discontinued foreign currency I have sitting around?" Turns out that I'm plagued with the same problem. Interesting that it never seems to happen to me with American money...but I digress.

Thanks to some traveling, our families' travels, and some good old fashioned garage sale-ing, Matt and I have compiled a very nice little stash of foreign currency (most of it discontinued). It's cool, no doubt; bills and coins from Canada, Britain, Germany, the Czech Republic, Mexico, and South Korea make for an interesting conversation piece, but it's hard to get a conversation started around them when they're stashed away in a box on the bookshelf.

But once again, Pinterest comes to save the day!

I was perusing the site today when I came across a pin from a fellow blogger, Dana from Tattered Style. (Definitely check it out...it's a delightful little blog with some great craft/design ideas. Dana has impeccable style!). The idea was for turning old foreign coins into magnets for your fridge. Perfect! What better way to be reminded of your travels--or simply have some really funky magnets--than to see foreign currency each time you open your fridge door (which for us is quite often).

It's pretty simple, really: Grab some craft/modeling glue and cheap little magnets from a craft store (I used some of Matt's modeling glue, Testors, and bought some magnets from Michael's for $2.49). Put a little dab of glue on each coin (I put the glue on the side of the coin that said the country's name, or on the side that had a cooler image :D) and stick the magnet on the dab of glue. Make sure to give it enough time to dry! Throw (but don't literally throw) your magnets up, and be impressed with yourself for being so crafty! Thanks Dana from Tattered Style!

Here's a link to Dana's directions and her original post with this idea.

Here's how mine turned out:

Cool, huh? It's very neat to have little reminders of your travels, plus it reminds you that there is a great world of adventure out there...and you'll start exploring it as soon as you finish your business sneaking leftover cake from the fridge. :)

I have a few other foreign souvenirs that I'd like to do something special like this with: a few foreign bills, an entire collection of stamps that I inherited from my grandpa (even a few he snagged from Nazi Germany while he was a POW there in WWII...he was such  kind man and I miss him so much!), and a giant collection of post cards, maps, and some of my photography (the few good photos I ever managed to shoot!).

Anyone have any ideas as to some cool ideas you've done with your travel souvenirs? Let me know in the comments!