20 fun projects for kids – crafting with recycled materials

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Children’s ingenuity and inventiveness know no bounds, and I’ve found that having a variety of recycled items on hand is always helpful when working on painting and craft projects.

Keeping them provides the kids the chance to make a new toy, a new design, a new decoration, and also teaches them about recycling. Examples are egg cartons, paper tolls, plastic bottles, and milk cartons.

Teaching kids the value of recycling is something I’m passionate about. My children have developed into (also as a result of their teachers and schools).

We constantly make things out of recycled resources. I’ll list three of our older projects below that we still use and have access to because they were developed roughly four or five years ago.

I also want to share some other fantastic concepts with you in the hopes that they will move you in the same way they have moved me. In order to demonstrate what may be created with recycled materials for creating, here is a list of 20 art and craft projects in total.

1. What can you do with a chips tube? Turn it into a caterpillar!

The Very Hungry Caterpillar made by us with recycled materials

Caterpillar’ is what it is. Both of my children have played with the creation I produced with my son about five years ago. Simply put, all you need to make it is:

chips cardboard tube
paper (green and red)
glue
googly eyes
pipe cleaners
scissors

Thus, all that’s required of you (or the kids) is to wrap the tube with green paper and glue it. The red paper should then be adhered to the lid, and a mouth-shaped hole should be cut out of it. Pipe cleaners should be cut to the desired length and then adhered to the “head.” All you have to do is adhere the googly eyes to the lid.

You can now play a game with this “caterpillar” and the Very Hungry Caterpillar book (affiliate link; read more about what this means here) in which you cut out pieces of paper and draw the things the caterpillar consumes. The children can then “feed” the caterpillar apples, pears, prunes, and other fruits as you read the book, teaching them to count as they do so. Do you believe that recycling may be enjoyable?

2. Turn a paper roll into an octopus

Young children may easily complete this exercise since they enjoy painting, and older children can use it to hone their cutting skills. You only need:

toilet paper roll
paint and brush
googly eyes
scrissors

3.Turn a paper cup into a penguin

Or perhaps I should have stated “into a Christmas Tree Topper,” as this has been ours for the past five years and serves as a nice reminder of the creative possibilities offered by reusing materials.

The kids will adore the craft because it is adorable. You only need:

paper cup
white paper
glue
felt (orange and black)
googly eyes or felt

White paper should be used to cover the paper cup, and felt should be cut into a beak, two wings, a belly circle, and two feet. Cut some felt for the eyes if you’re not using googly eyes. The paper cup must then be adhered to with adhesive before your penguin (or tree topper) is complete.

4. Turn a toilet paper roll into a butterfly

Kids may paint, cut, and decorate recycled toilet paper rolls to create stunning, sparkly butterflies like the ones below. A toilet paper roll, glue, glitter, pipe cleaners, scissors, clear contact paper, and children’s imaginations are all that are required.

5. Or into a witch

Using a toilet paper roll, green and black construction paper, googly eyes, a roll of orange yarn, scissors, hot glue, and a permanent pen, a toilet paper roll may also be transformed into a friendly (or frightening) witch.

6. Turn a bunch of toilet paper rolls into a bunch of flowers

The bunch of flowers is a project for younger children to paint or for older children to complete independently. It requires 4 paper rolls for each flower, a stapler, a stick, paint, and glue (or any extra decorations). When the art and craft project is finished, all you need is a vase to show off the lovely masterpiece!

7. Speaking of flowers

Another excellent recyclable resource is egg cartons, which may be used to make vibrant flowers like the ones shown below. In addition to egg cartons, you’ll need acrylic paint, yellow pom-poms, paper straws, scissors, and glue.

8. How to make a bird feeder from a plastic container?

Through the use of recyclable materials and the development of fine motor skills while threading beads, you may create a beautiful bird feeder with this activity:

9. What can you do with a cereal box? Turn it into an aquarium!

This project is a fun way to reuse a cereal box, or any other box. It may be a family art project for young children, or it might be a challenge for older fish enthusiasts. The aquarium can be as colourful or fish-filled as the youngsters wish it to be, and it can then be displayed on a shelf or in their bedroom.

10. Recycle an egg carton into a turtle

The ingredients for this project are quite simple and include an egg box, green cardboard, pom-poms, googly eyes, glue, and paint.

11. Turn a plastic egg into a glowing firefly

I’ve had a few opportunities in my life to watch fireflies, but I haven’t yet been able to take my children to see some real ones. They will therefore enjoy creating some glowing fireflies out of recycled plastic Easter eggs, I surely know it!

12. or into an egg cup or a pot

You may have leftover plastic Easter eggs after making the firefly because they are sold in sets. You can use these leftover eggs to make egg cups or even garden pots for grass or herbs.

13. How to make your own herb garden? Use a drink carton!

Do you want to produce your own herbs and perhaps even some strawberries, but you don’t have a garden or don’t have enough room in the one you do have?

You can create using repurposed materials and yet have a tiny garden! Bring the kids along; they will enjoy watering the plants and seeing them develop. But first, use a milk or juice carton to create the ‘garden’. This morning, I simply rescued a milk carton that I want to use to grow some basil with the kids.

14. Turn a cardboard into a pirate ship

And sure, I will need to reserve a second milk carton since I know my children will enjoy making this pirate ship. We’ll all work together on the project; I’ll cut, and my kids will paint, glue, and decorate before we all play with the ship.

15. Turn an old CD into a spinner

Do your youngsters enjoy beads and are attracted by spinning objects? Then they should try this recyclable material craft project!

16. Turn a plastic bottle into a wind spiral

Considering that we are talking about spinning objects, how about transforming a plastic bottle into a lovely wind spiral? Plastic bottles, scissors, markers, a stick, and some strings or ribbons are all you need.

17. Turn a cardboard into an ornament

Do your children enjoy making their room or the whole house their own? Yes, they all do, don’t they? That’s what I expected. So, here is a very beautiful and easy art and craft project that results in a lovely llama ornament and uses cardboard!

18. Turn two cereal boxes into a foldable doll house

Yes, I did put “foldable,” because that’s what you get when you combine two cereal boxes: a portable house!

19.Turn a cardboard into a shield and sword

I believe the most adaptable recycled material must be cardboard. How about this shield and sword? So far, we’ve seen how to make dollhouses, pirate ships, and decorations.

20.Turn bottle caps into magnets

Making fridge magnets out of bottle caps may be entertaining and brighten the kitchen. Bottle caps, circular magnets, transparent glue, yellow spray paint, black paint marker, and tiny googly eyes are all that are required. And of course a refrigerator where these adorable creatures can be kept!

Create Craft

20 fun projects for kids – crafting with recycled materials