Anyone have any craft ideas for recycled products such as plastic containers and plastic bottles?

Hi,

Here are two ideas for our milk jugs and soda bottles:

1) Make a bird feeder, the plastic is durable and last for years! Just cut and decorate, fill with food after hanging and the birds will flock to it! We use twine loops to hang ours or recycled posts to mount them!

2) At a recent craft show I saw a lady who was making BIG BUCKS with a recycled craft idea. She uses soda bottles and cuts out different patterns. Then decorates with "puffy" paint (from craft stores) and beads. She places a small suction cup on the back attached with hot glue. Sells them as window decorations, like stained glass ones! At the show I was at she had small ones for $3.00 or 2 for $5.00. Her larger, more detailed ones were $5.00 or 2 for $7.50. Her daughter made "tiny" ones especially for little kids and was selling them for $1.00. They were selling like crazy! I confess ~ I came home with one of each! Hope this inspires the crafters in each of us! ~ Aimee

Plastic is derived from petroleum. Recycling consumes energy when all those plastic bottles are picked up as well as during the recycling process itself. In addition, those bottles aren't recycled, they are downcycled: The water we buy does not come in bottles made from recycled plastic, instead recyled plastic gets used to make other plastic products that may have a longer lifespan than bottles, but cannot be recyled (ie. playground equipment). Cans are the same way. They are not made from pure aluminum, but aluminum alloys with other metals mixed in to increase the aluminum's strength. The sides of an aluminum can are made of a different grade alloy from the can's top and bottom. When the can is melted down, the mixture is of a different quality and can no longer be used to produce more aluminum cans. So should we recycle? Yes. We still have a demand for products that are made from 2nd tier recylced products. But first and foremost we need to be conscious of the goods we purchase. Buying a water bottle and filling with water from the tap is infinitely better for the environment than recylcing.

cannot think of any craft ideas other than as storage but I use plastic water bottles a lot in the garden. Garden centres sell little spouts like the rose on a watering can that fit the bottles and make them ideal for watering seedlings. If you cut them in half about 6'' down from the top they make great cloches.

If you go to your local bird and garden store, the ones that sell bird feed you can get a little kit for a couple dollars to convert big pop bottles into bird feeders. Buy some feed while you're at it.

Here it is:

http://www.amazon.com/American-Science-Surplus-WIL...

Also I found this website for you by accident:

http://www.make-stuff.com/recycling/plastic_bottle...

Tis the season, to feed some birdies.

Also, remember they're containers, if you need containers around the house they can be pretty good, the clear plastic ones I mean. You can look in them, perfect for household storage.

Hi there, the 2 links below have some great projects with plastic bottles...and there a lot on line - especially teacher lesson-plan sites...

hope this helps,

Andrea

Plastic tubs (ie: yogurt) are great for starter pots for plants and the ones with lids are great for starter compost as well

I know when I was in elementary school, we used to take a soda-pop bottle and modify it into a terrarium

Use them as a water can, or cut them in half and use them for sorting, bird feeders, make wind catchers out of them cutting the sides and opening them to catch the wind. they could be used in making helmets maybe, or ice trays, melt them down and use the material for storage containers, or cases for dvd's printers, computer casings. etc. Reusable envelopes folder files !

Fill your containers with water and put them in the back part of your toilet tank. The displacement will significantly lower the amount of water your toilet uses.

Bird feeders.

heat them in a large pot until you have a couple gallons of plastic goo. pour into moulds to make lawn ornaments (animals, designs, etc.)