In the recycle bin. The other day I got to thinking about how much I love Suzi's new Green Toys dump truck. It's really cool. It made me wish I could make things out of old milk jugs. I thought for awhile and wondered if anyone had ever made flowers out of them. It turns out yes. I googled and there's an Etsy seller, Artwork by KD, who makes beautiful jewelry and accessories out of plastic bottles and metal cans. I love her stuff! So with all that as my inspiration I made the above flower button ring and these...
Two butterfly hair clips and a thistle pin
The funny looking purple flower is a thistle. You see them a lot at highland games, but usually crafted from pewter or some other metal. I thought it'd be cool to have something a little different with some color to wear with my everyday Scottish attire. Maybe with my "KILT ROCK!" shirt or on our baby bag. It still needs a little work; this was my first try. The translucent white plastic is from milk jugs, and both the purple and green are from vividly colored liquid laundry detergent containers. I still have lots of this left. I almost forgot that I also made Ivey an unfolding flower button toy but I let her play with it before I took a picture and now I don't know where it went. The beauty of this whole thing is that even if I screw up a project and waste a bunch of this stuff, I can put my cut up plastic back in recycling and grab some new one for free! And to be honest, recycling (or upcycling) is awesome, but what I love even more is the idea that anyone can make things with almost no money, tools, or training. It should be a basic human right--and it makes me happy. Now what I'd really like to do next is figure out a good way to make mother/baby themed stuff this way.
And here is what Jordan and I did with the handles of the detergent containers:
They make great ergonomic handles for grocery bags (or tote bags) that cut into fingers. Placed around several bag handles at once, we are also thinking they'd be great for keeping bags together and stopping your groceries from rolling around in the car.
Now I can't stop thinking about what other fun garbage I can use to make stuff. Have you ever tried this? What did you use and what did you make?
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2 comments:
I haven't really used garbage to make stuff. I have used old buttons and things like that, but not milk jugs, for instance.
But I totally agree - it should be a basic human right to create. And it's fabulous to know that you don't need a lot of expensive supplies and equipment.
You are so talented at crafts! I can't wait to make those with my kids. The ring is so pretty. My daughter will love making one. I love esty also. I have enjoyed reading up on your lovely family. The girls have gotten so big.
Hope you are having a great spring as we get ready for summer. Look forward to reading more soon!
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