Recycled Can Canister

My tomato can canister! Perfect for all the junk on my desk.

Today I made a canister out of a can of tomatoes. I thought I'd play around with making a tutorial for it, since I've never made one before. This project only took me about 15 minutes to complete!

Materials:
-An empty can. I used a 28oz can of tomatoes, but any size would work for this.
-A smooth edge can opener. It cuts the sides of the can and not the top, leaving a lid that fits back onto the opened can.
-A hammer.
-Hammer-in rivets and rivet setting tools.
-A nail. Make sure the nail is the same size as the socket half of the rivet.
-A metal file.
-A tape measure.
-Leather (or other material) scraps.
-Scissors.
-Heavy duty craft glue such as E-6000.
-A popsicle stick.
-A plank to protect your work surface.

See how the edge of the lid is beveled? It fits perfectly into the can.

1. Open the can using the smooth edge opener, and eat the contents! I used mine to make soup, that kinda turned into risotto. Remove the label and thoroughly wash the can using dish soap. Use Goo-Gone to remove the label adhesive if it doesn't come off on its own. Gently run the file along the cut edge of the can and lid to ensure that there are no sharp edges to cut yourself on. 

2. Cut a piece of leather for the handle on the lid. Mine was 3/4" wide by 3" long. Place it as desired on the metal lid, and hammer the nail through both the leather and the lid where you would like to place the rivets. My rivets are tiny (only 3/16"!) so I chose to place two rivets on either side.  

Follow the directions that came with your rivet setting tools!

3. Hammer the rivets through the holes you just made. I find it easiest to place the socket on bottom, then the leather strap, then the lid, then the post. Then I hammer from the underside of the lid for best results. You may have to slit the holes in the leather with scissors to get the socket to pass through. Larger rivets have longer posts - if your post is too long, cut a tiny leather washer to go between the rivet and the lid underneath and fill up that space.

4. Measure around the can and decide how wide you want your decorative leather band to be, and cut your leather. Mine is 2" wide by 12.5" wide. I recommend cutting your band about 1/8" shorter than the circumference of the can. Or you can skip this step and consider yourself done.

5. On the wrong side of your leather, use the popsicle stick to spread a thing layer of your glue evenly across to whole piece. If you're using E-6000, let the glue sit for about a minute before you place the leather onto the can for the best results.

6. Starting at the seam of the can, carefully smooth the leather onto your can. Leather is slightly stretchy, so it's a good idea to cut the strap about 1/8" smaller than the can. This way you can stretch the leather slightly so that the edges meet up perfectly.

7. Congratulations! You've made your very own recycled can canister. But now you need to wait overnight for the glue to cure before you can use it.