Pencil Dispenser (from an acrylic straw dispenser)

A few weeks ago, my sister told me she saw a cute idea to use a straw dispenser to hold sharpened pencils.  I thought it was such a cute and clever way to always have sharpened pencils on hand and ready for use, but I was bummed that I'm no longer a full-time teacher with a classroom of my own.  Then I realized we still go through a ton of pencils here during homework time and I'm always scrambling to find sharpened pencils when the kids have to restock their pencil cases before they go off to school in the mornings.  I decided I was going to go ahead and get our own pencil dispenser for our house.

Check it out...

It's funny how exciting it can be to get a new electric pencil sharpener and a cool dispenser.  No matter what time of year it is or how old you are, fresh school supplies can give you a fresh outlook!

There was really nothing to this "project".  I simply ordered an acrylic straw dispenser from Amazon,  the kids sharpened a bunch of the pencils we had around the house, and we filled up the dispenser.

To get a sharpened pencil, you just turn the knob on the side and a fresh new pencil rolls right out.

I thought about adding a little label or stickers to the dispenser to jazz it up, but for now we like it just plain.  (The kids love watching to see which pencil falls out) It sits right on top of the little cabinet where the kids put their school papers and we keep extra school supplies.  

I think I may get more for each of the kids' teachers.  I missed out on the chance to give them for back-to-school or Christmas gifts, but I think they'd be appreciated at any time of year.  

Sharing this cute and clever idea at:

Today's Creative Blog 
Tatertots & Jello