Trash Art! 5 beautiful projects that are good for the environment (includes a claw machine project!!!)

 Let’s get right to this, because the environment is too important for dilly dallying. Here are 5 beautiful, easy, and yes, environmentally friendly projects to help save our planet. 

1. Upcycle your furniture! 

So many great online tutorials for this. You can use wood and tools if you’re into that, or sew a new seat cover for a broken chair. I’ve even made a bench from a box once. . . 

Here’s your upcyle project: 

Stuff a box with bubble wrap. I mean STUFF it. Then cover the box in an old sweater, and sew the ends. Bench out of a box! 

2. Bottle cap buttons 

(Requires adult supervision) 

Here’s your project: 

Place a bottle cap between two pieces of parchment paper. Heat up an iron and iron over the bottle cap and parchment paper till the bottle cap melts slightly. 

Heat the end of a needle. Poke your button holes in the bottle cap with the needle. Now sew it onto your jacket! 

3. Cardboard box crafts 

You can make anything from cardboard boxes! Experiment. To get you started, here’s how to make a claw machine from a cardboard box. 

Cut a circle hole out of a vertically standing cardboard box. Make the hole near the bottom of the front side of your claw machine. Next, cut a square out of a TP roll on top, making a claw machine twister, and insert it in the hole. You should be able to turn it. 

Next, take a piece of cardboard that fits nicely inside the box. Make sure the toilet paper roll is sitting just above the piece of cardboard. 

Hot glue the inner cardboard piece inside securely, gluing all the sides to the inside of the box, except for the side on the left of the tp roll. Cut a small slit in that side, just big enough for a prize. 

Next, take yet another piece of cardboard, slightly smaller than the last. Hot glue it to the top left rim of the box, making a ramp going into the box. Make sure that the end is almost touching the inner piece of cardboard, but not obstructing the tp roll. 

Almost there! Now just cut a square shape out of the front side of the box on the left, to the left of the TP roll. Inside, it will be just under the slit in the left of the inner piece of cardboard. 

Spray paint the box and add any details you’d like! 

Now, dump a bunch of small prizes inside. They’ll slide down the ramp and rest on the inner piece of cardboard. Some will land in the TP roll. Turn the TP roll. The prize will fall out the slit and into the square, and you can receive it. 

4. Bottle craft 

Use water bottles in your crafting! Here’s the project: 

Fill it with sparkly stones and soil, and plant a flower in your backyard, in the water bottle vase. 

5. Ziploc bag toy 

Perfect for babysitters! 😊 Cut up a bunch of construction paper squares, in different colors, and half fill a ziploc bag. Grab a twist tie (also a craftable trash item) and tie the middle of the ziploc bag tight. Curl the ends of the twist tie into antennae and boom! A butterfly bag toy! 

God loves you and so do I! Happy crafting!