Be green, save some green: Creative and easy ways to repurpose trash
By Stephanie Black, Local CorrespondentTue, Aug 11 2009 at 9:26 PM EST
With school coming up and bills weighing heavy on the conscience, resourcefulness can help defray the costs of living. Recycling can save money, resources and space in the landfill. You can take old stuff you don't need anymore and turn it into something you can use.
CDs
It's pretty much official: compact discs are nearly obsolete. Even if you still use this ancient technology, most likely you have quite a few that are scratched beyond competency.
Some ideas:
- Stick some CDs in an artistic fashion on the wall
- Super glue them to your notebooks and folders for decoration
- Use them as coasters, for extra special furniture, glue some felt or fabric to the bottom
- String them together to create a hippie-style door curtain
- Break them up and use them as knives
Plastic bags
You get them almost any time you buy something, particularly food. Scientists estimate that plastic bags take between 500 and 1000 years to decompose.
- Use them as padding when sending packages
- Fuse together with an iron to make coasters/mats/frames with a plastic fabric
- Stuff bags with bags to make a chair/sofa
- Cut them into strips and crochet or weave them
Boxes
Boxes can be used to organize and hold almost anything.
- To jazz a box up try painting it your favorite color, tape/glue magazine cut-outs on it, glue pennies all over it, cover it in fabric ...
- Cut them into book marks (and of course, decorate them!)
- Stack them into a shelf
Aluminum cans
Whether it's a can of beans or a can of Coke, it takes aluminum cans between 200 and 500 years to decompose.
- Use them as pencil, supply, plant and candle holders
Magazines and newspapers
- Make collages to hang up or stick on folders and notebooks
- Fold them into envelopes
- Use them for wrapping gifts. If you think that looks tacky, try painting them after the gift is wrapped
- Cover books with them
- Save them up and have a huge bonfire
- Make chains to hang from the ceiling or for a door curtain
There are millions of other ways to recycle anything and everything you would otherwise throw away. All you need is time, resourcefulness and inspiration!
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Comments
CCC Joann
Today 20:41 PM
Thanks for the article. Here's one of my most recent repurposing projects.
We took a vintage 40’s Vornado fan that was no longer functional and converted it into a working lamp. We’ve kept it’s original vintage look. Adding the lamp conjures up thoughts of vintage Hollywood spotlights. We’re really proud of this project. It’s ready for paint right now. Here’s a link to some progress pics with more to follow as the project as completed.
.... More
nwilke
08/13/2009 11:37 AM
i used to know a girl who used old, broken, warped CDs to make cool necklaces. She sold them for like 7 bucks each!
