Recycle Arts and Crafts from Plastic, Metal and Cardboard

Spider made from scissors confiscated by tsa, by Christopher Locke

I'm still not finished with my large canvas painting, so I've rounded up
some photos of art and crafts projects made from recycled metal, electronics,
kitchen utensils, and cardboard.

Next week, I'll share projects my grandson and I have made,
and ideas I've experimented with.I'm also working on the ebook
of my new book, Easy Crafts on a Budget for Kids 4 to 104, which
has craft projects for the family to enjoy all year.

Until the ebook is finished, and the painting is completed,
enjoy these recycle arts and crafts, made from plastic,
metal, and cardboard.

Wine rack made from old vinyl records

More Cardboard Kids Crafts

Today I'm reposting photos of very cool cardboard kid crafts.
Some of these crafts like the carboard bowl, are much more detailed.
All of the crafts are unique. The cardboard gameboy,
kitty house, castle, and our own kids cardboard playhouse,
are projects you can easily create.
I hope these crafts give you ideas for creating
fun cardboard arts and crafts for kids.

Gameboy designed by born 2 draw

Cardboard bowl by SEM design

Cardboard Gundham Replica

Cardboard Scream by Mark Langan

Copyright c. 2013 Fuego Phoenix
Cardboard playhouse by Fuego Phoenix

cardboard castle by allfortheboys.com

from tumblr.com

Cardboard shelf from Popular Mechanics

Art From Recycled Materials

 

The sculpture above is made from recycled coke cans.

I am very excited about art made from recycled materials.
It's wonderful to see beauty coming from things we use everyday, not
to mention beauty made out of items that are clogging our oceans.

I'm always looking for new ways to repurpose food cans,
boxes, metal parts, plastic bottles, furniture, wood, and other items.

Today, I'm sharing some inspiring work, made from recycled plastic,
metal parts, electronics, tires, wood, guns (yes guns) and glass. While
these are not easy projects, I'm sharing in the hopes the art work will
inspire you to create your own recycled art!

The sculpture to the left is made
from rotten river wood.

The centipede to the right is made from
recycled cake pans.

The giant 22 foot sculpture to the left is made
from recycled polystyrene foam.

These sculptures are made from discarded electronics, by WeeeMan

The rocking chair above and the elephant to the
left are made from recycled guns.

The horse sculpture to the right is made
from recycled tires.
The photo to the right is reposted from funnychill.com

Recycled Plastic Crafts

I was searching for an artist, who creates art, sculptures, birds
and other animals out of recycled plastic detergent bottles.
I couldn't find her, but in the process of looking, I discovered
two very talented eco friendly artists. 

Michelle Brand creates a beautiful plastic curtain from the bottoms of water containers.
She also created a sculptural light pendant, in the same way. She pieces the plastic
bottles precisely, with a clothing tag attacher, shown in the last photo, which
can be purchased on Amazon for around $20. What could you create using this method?

I came across another artist named Sayaka Ganz, who creates animal sculptures from
plastic kitchen utensils. Her inspiring creations are shown below.

Kids Spy Themed Crafts

Today I'm sharing two cool craft ideas I discovered. 
My grandson is fascinated by the "spy theme" right now. 
These two fun projects for kids, fall under that category.
Enjoy!

How to Make Invisible Ink

Be a secret agent. Write a secret message on paper and have it revealed only by the heat of a light bulb

Supplies Needed:
Half of a Lemon
Water
Spoon
Bowl
Cotton Swab
White Paper
Light Bulb

1)  Squeeze some lemon juice into a bowl and add a few drops of water.
     Mix the water and lemon juice

2)  Dip the cotton swap in the juice mixture and write a message on the white paper

3)  When your message dries, hold the white paper up to a light bulb that’s

      on to reveal the message

Fingerprinting

Pretend you are a part of the FBI, or CSI, and discover what your fingerprints look like

Supplies Needed:
Paper
Pencil
Tape


1) Draw an outline of your right hand on a plain piece of paper.
2) Draw and outline of your left hand on a piece of paper.
3) Take a pencil and scribble on a piece of paper until you have a nice big black mark.
4) Then rub your index finger in the mark. Your index finger is the one next to your thumb.
5)  Now get some tape. The best tape to use is called transparent tape or utility tape. 
     Put a piece of it over your finger, press down, and pull it off.
6)  Pull the tape off and place it on the drawing of your hand. Now you can see 
      your fingerprint.






Buy Easy Crafts on a Budget for Kids 4 to 104 here:http://www.amazon.com/Easy-Crafts-Budget-Kids-Volume/dp/0615640826

Homemade gesso

Update: Homemade modpodge works!

I am beginning work on a design for a huge canvas painting, which
will be 7 feet high by 11.25 feet wide. I priced Gesso to coat the
canvas,  at the local craft store, it is over $25 a gallon (that's the cheap
stuff). I decided to check for a homemade version of gesso.

Just in case you're not familiar with gesso, it's a binder used on
wood and canvas to hold paint so that the wood grain does not
show through the painting, or so the grain of the canvas does
not show through the paint.

 
Guess what??
I found a couple of recipes.  I'll  share them with you, after
I've created and tested them this weekend.

 This homemade gesso can be sanded, holds paint well,
and costs much less than the gesso you buy in art stores.

I'm in the process of drawing out the design for the canvas.
sewing the canvas pieces together, and then adding the
gesso. It's exciting for me to find out how well
homemade gesso works. I'll report back to you.

Homemade mod podge glue

I just found this on pinterest. I haven't tried it yet, but from all the
testimonials about its effectiveness, I'd say it is a hit!
I will try it myself tonight, and report to you tomorrow.

I use mod podge for paper crafts, paper mache projects, kids
crafts, fabric crafts, and popsicle crafts. I use it for sealing
finished paper projects, and for use on recycled  material crafts.

Here is the recipe:
Mix elmers glue with water, 50% glue + 50% water.
Shake well. Store in the jar with a lid. Costs much less!

Happy Crafting!