DIY Recycled Plastic Bottle Crafts, Kid's Crafts

Make flowers or sea creatures out of plastic bottles! Use them to decorate; make a mobile, chandelier or hanging curtain. I made sea anemone ornaments for my ocean themed Christmas tree! You can use them for "bows" on a pretty gift packages or even make jewelry! A fun craft project for kids with adult supervision and maybe a little help.

*** I guess in today's age we must also include basic common sense warnings like open a window,  use a fan, have a bowl of water in case things get hot and candles cause fire! If you are afraid of the chemicals you probably shouldn't have the plastic bottles in the first place! You probably shouldn't have Sharpies or glue either! Sorry, this is for the alarmists out there!

Tools and materials:

clear or colored plastic bottles

buttons, beads, bottle caps

scissors

Sharpies

paper punch

candle

string to hang them with

E6000 glue

First,  cut the bottom out of the bottle; I use a serrated kitchen knife but scissors work just as well. Trim the bottom part so it look more like a flower then with a good metal paper punch (the cheap plastic ones may beak!) punch a hole out for hanging:

With Sharpies, draw your patterns, this is where the kid's can have fun:

Then carefully melt over a flame, about 1 1/2" over the flame

works well: 

They look great like this or kids can glue in a colorful  bottle caps, buttons and beads but first add the cord with a slip knot:

 You can make stamens  by cutting a strip of plastic about 6" long by  1.5 to 2" wide: 

Carefully melt the tips first; try to get them to curl out in one direction. This can be tricky!  You can also make individual ones then glue them with blob of glue in the center of the flower.

With the stamens pointing outward, start coiling and melting:

Hopefully, it will look like this:

You can then glue it directly to your flower or I glue it to a bottle cap then the flower:

These are my recycled plastic ecochic necklaces on Etsy that are made the same way:

Here are more inspirational ideas from Michelle Brand who is an environmental designer   internationally known for her designs with plastic bottles:

See my other popular upcycling blog posts:

"DIY Dollhouse Miniatures: Modern "Glass" Art Tutorial" for Chuhuly style miniatures made out of recycled plastic containers:

 

 

See how to make my  bottle cap art mosaic:

I would love to see how you recycle or upcycle, feel free to post a link to your project, website, blog, or page! 

 

 

Decoupage Christmas Ornaments DIY

I kept seeing these fun decoupaged ornaments on Pinterest. Since I had some sheet music left over from my decoupaged mannequin project,  I thought I would give a try even though I still have an ocean themed tree this year.

 I used  styrofoam balls; these are kind of expensive at $5 a bag!  Be sure to bring your Joann's coupon to save a bit or better yet,  find some super cheap plastic ornaments with the hangers already on them at a dollar store. You can find sheet music super cheap at thrift store. Some papers tear easily and others you may want to cut; about 3/4 to 1" strips.

I diluted some decoupage glue; 2 parts water to 1 part glue in a bowl then dipped strips of sheet music and wrapped them around the ball, it wasn't easy at first but when the ball is almost all covered you can smooth it with your hands.

 Or stick it in a plastic bag to smooth:

 Or roll it on a cutting plastic board:

Once they are almost dry you can smooth them more; rub the bumps with your fingernail  or roll on the board.  I added customized names I printed our on white paper ( you might want to test to see if your ink runs. If it does, you could seal it first with a light coat of clear acrylic spray.) Then paint a coat of the decoupage glue to seal them and sprinkle some glitter on and let dry.

For the hangers, I glued ribbon with a hot glue gun and stuck a few pins in to hold.

Right now they look great in a bowl but may have to get a second tree!