thanks so much ya'll....i'm glad you like it! you could use old coffee cans, or any can with a lid, and metal pie plates or cake plates. recycling the coffee can is great, and you can find cake and pie tins at thrift stores and even garbage :D check freecycle! and you'll also be able to paint the can any color you want... i had a few bags of old tins that were headed to a yard sale. then someone posted asking about what to do with old tins, and after i replied....i thought "i can't get rid of these tins!!" so back in the laundry room they went! i got them free, or thrifted and they charge anywhere from 19 cents to 59 cents...i don't have a clue how they decide the prices, some tins the same sizes have vastly different prices on them. go make some! kudzu

This took a lot of time.......thanks for sharing the info with us.

Very clever! and what a beautiful flower! TFS! oddie

Concerning gift cards, be sure to check to see if they have an expiration date (many of them actually do!). If you have a daily-reminder wall calendar, mark the expiration dates down. I'd put a note on, say, 6 months in advance and other sporadic dates saying "You have a $50 Borders card to use up!" so that they remind you that you've got them tucked away and need to redeem them. There's nothing worse than realizing too late that you've lost out on $50 of shopping power. For all those store "preferred customer cards," here's what I do. Most of them I put on a keyring. For cards I use frequently that didn't offer a keyring version, I punch a hole in the corner (away from the bar code or swipey strip). In my purse, I also carry a small rectangular zip pouch that I carry coupons, receipts, paint chips, etc. in, and I tuck in most of the other cards I have and the Bed Bath & Beyond 20%-off coupons (I never shop there without one!). Sometimes I'm tempted to just leave that pouch in the glove compartment (as long as none of those receipts have my full credit card number on them!), so it's there if I need it. Always happens that if I leave the pouch at home, that'll be the time that I need something in it.