You don’t have to be a dumpster diver to find cheap treasures; rather, with a little planning you can turn waste into wonderful works of art.
The next time you’re about to toss an empty paper towel roll into the garbage; stop, and place it in your craft bin instead. There are dozens of ways you can recycle the cardboard rolls, including the following projects that are so simple even your youngest children can get in on the fun.
Napkin Rings
Materials:
- Empty paper towel rolls
- Scissors
- Newspaper
- Paint
Directions:
- Cut the empty paper towel roll into five equal pieces that measure roughly two inches long.
- Stand the cardboard rings upright in a row on old newspaper.
- Paint the rings. You can paint them all one color or add details like stripes and zigzags for fun. For extra fancy napkin rings, glue on glitter, sequins, gems or beads. Younger children can add colorful stickers or use glue dots to adhere buttons to the rings.
- When the glue is dry, slip a cloth napkin inside and you are ready to show off your recycled masterpiece at your next meal.
Silly Snake
Materials:
- Empty paper towel rolls
- Googly eyes
- Glue
- Scissors
- Paintbrush
- Paint
- Red construction paper or craft foam
Directions:
- Paint the inside and outside of the paper towel roll one color. This will be the body of your snake.
- Let the first coat of paint dry and then add another.
- When the paper towel roll is completely dry, use scissors to cut it into a coil. Just follow the lines printed by the manufacturer on the roll, so you end up with a curly piece of cardboard.
- Use the paintbrush to add dots to the snake’s body. Use a contrasting color, so the dots are visible.
- Let the paint dry completely, and then flip the snake over and add more dots.
- Glue the googly eyes to the snake’s head.
- Cut a small piece of red construction paper or red craft foam in a “V” shape to create a forked tongue for your snake.
- Glue the tongue to the end of the paper towel coil.
- When the glue is dry, you can display or play with your new pet snake.