Cookie Box Badge Organizer

     The crafty bug caught me this weekend.  I have used several different ways to sort and store badges, from envelopes to safety pins to small boxes, but I still felt disorganized .  I had unearned fun patches here, unearned daisy petals there, and then earned badges for each troop member that I had to keep organized.  I wanted something to store all the badges together that was small, portable, secure, and adaptable to new members.  After many visits to different stores, I was inspired by a small, zipper pouch for use in journal-sized binders (A6).

   
     These pouches in a binder will meet the small, secure, and portable requirements.  But the available binders to hold the pouches aren't large enough to expand with the number of badges my troop earns or for new members.  So instead of a hard binder, I tried out binder rings of different sizes.  I have pouches for 11 Girl Scouts and one each for fun patches, all levels, Daisies, Brownies, and Juniors for a total of 16 pouches, so the 1.5" diameter binder rings worked the best.  I bought the pouches in a 20 pack so I put the extra 4 pouches in the back.  I had basic Avery labels on hand to label each pouch with a sharpie.  While this could have worked, it wasn't that fun to look at or flip through!  For the first attempt, I cut up a box of Caramel Delight cookies in the same size as the pouches to use as a cover and another for the backing.  It turned out cute, but still not awesome.  Next, I used a utility knife to cut another box of cookies in half.  I used one of the pouches as a template to make the hole punches in the box.  Here is the cuteness I was looking for!  The pouches fit inside the Caramel Delight box perfectly!!  Now to make it awesome like the cool journals I saw online I needed a closure.  Office Depot only had gold fasteners, which is not normally my favorite color, but it matched the color in the Caramel Delight cookie so it works just fine.   I tied one end of some leftover ribbon to the fastener on the inside, wrapped it around the box, and then looped it around the fastener.  I then found a Girl Scout luggage tag from a promo item I wasn't using as the pull.  Now this is awesome and completely organized!

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20 pack of pouches
Binder rings and hole punch
Labels

Step-By-Step Assembly Instructions

Step 1:  Gather supplies and tools
Cookie Box
Knife
Glue
Binder Clips or Clamps
Scissors
Sharpie or pen
Hole Punch
1.5" Loose leaf binder rings
Size A6 zipper pouches
Fastener
Ribbon
Pull or charm
Labels

Step 2: Cut the cookie box
Mark the middle on both sides of the box and use a ruler to cut a straight line.  Repeat on the other three sides.

Step 3:  Fix the corners
Glue the corners on the ingredients side together and clamp until secure.  Cut the folds off on the binder ring side.

Step 4:  Punch holes in box
Place the binder ring centered on the box to determine how far from the sides the hole will need to be.  Align the zipper pouch so the top and bottom of the pouch will fit inside the box and mark where the hole in the pouch matches up with the widest part of the binder ring.  Mark the bottom hole on the zipper pouch.  Repeat on the back of the box making sure the holes are directly across from each other on the boxes.  Use a hole puncher to punch out all 4 holes.

Step 5:  Create a ribbon closure
Use a knife to cut a small slit in the center of the box just big enough for the fastener to fit.  Push the ribbon through the hole using the fastener.  Leave some space between the box and the top of the fastener to allow the ribbon to go around later.  On the inside of the box open the fastener and knot the ribbon end.

Step 6:  Add the binder rings

Keep the hinge on the outside and add the pouches, cover, and back and close the rings.

Step 7:  Add labels and badges
Apply labels for each scout, level, or type depending on your needs.

 Step 8:  Add a charm or pull
Wrap the ribbon around the binder side of the box to the front and then several times around the fastener.  Add a charm or pull so it will hang at the right height and knot to secure.

Step 9:  Head out for some more adventures!