Thrifty Mini Vault

Greetings, adventurer! Do you desire a personalized case for your minis but are strapped for cash and time? This Instructable uses materials from the dollar store (or your local equivalent) to create a mini safe and/or dice vault in under an hour. Here's what you will need:

• Small wooden box
• Microfiber dusting pad (the fuzzier the better)
• Sand paper or sanding block
• All-purpose glue
• Paper
• Pencil
• Paint brush (optional)
• Paper towels
• Acrylic paint
• Permanent marker

Check to see if your mini fits in the box laying down, standing up, and with the lid closed. The box I'm using is 3.5 inches long by 2 inches deep by 2 inches tall (8 by 5 by 5 centimeters). Though the mini is taller than the lip of the box, the lid is deep enough to close completely and easily. You will need a little bit of extra space between the mini and the lid of the box to accommodate the thickness of the lining.

Sand off the rough edges on the inside and outside of the box using sandpaper or a sanding block. If you want to paint the box a solid color, remove the hinges and latch with a small screwdriver before you sand. Keep these in a plastic cup or baggie so that they will be easy to find and reinstall later.

Cut a paper template for your liner. I put the box on a piece of paper and marked the interior dimensions of the box. Test the fit of the template. Since this material is so fluffy, it's ok if the liner is a millimeter or two smaller than the inside of the top and bottom.

Pro tip: If you are working with fuzzy material, make sure that you are cutting the fabric on an easy-to-clean surface like a bare wooden table or a hard floor.

Use the template to cut two pieces of liner from the microfiber duster. If you are using a mop like this one, take note of how the fuzz is attached to the backing. In this case, I cut along the right side of the seam so that I would have two lines of fuzz.

Trim the edges of the fuzz. This is easier to do if you fold it up like a taco (or NY style pizza) and use sharp scissors. You want enough padding so that your mini does not slide around when it is in the box, but not too much so that you see fuzz when the box is closed.

To make the box look like stained oak, I added water to brown acrylic paint. To apply the paint, you can use a paint brush or a paper towel. Since it will be covered up by the liner, I tested the color on the inside of the box and adjusted the paint-to-water ratio until the color looked right. When using this method to stain wood, it's better to do two light coats of stain than one dark coat. Puddles of paint will make the surface look blotchy, so wipe off any excess with a paper towel as you go.

If you are painting your box a solid color, paint the inside of your box, wait for it to dry, then paint the outside. Once the box is completely dry, reattach all of the hardware.

I tested different pens on the inside of the box to see how crisp the lines would be. The Sharpie looked the best, so I opted for a monochromatic design. I wished that I had sketched the design in pencil onto the top of the box before I inked it. Some of the lines look a bit... unruly... but it's for a mini of a half-elf sailor bard, soooo the aesthetic kinda works?

Make sure that you spread the glue into the corners. Add your liner to the bottom and lid of the box. You may need to trim the liner some more to make sure that the fuzz does not poke out of the sides of the box.

Add some minis or some dice, and game on, friend!