We buy stuff because we can. And I'll be the last to say you should stop buying new things, because there's so many pretty new things to be bought... But up- or recycling the old is quite fun too... There's a bunch of dusty old stuff we've long forgotten about which could often be revived in the most simplest of ways. Bet you never realized that vintage strainer you dug up in a box in the attic makes a cool new hanging lamp? Or old tin cans, which you may or may not have found in the garbage, who turn into sweet little punctured lanterns ( which I nearly spend a fortune on when I saw them in a shop the other day!!! )?
So here's a couple of ways to recycle the things you have or make collecting tin cans and plastic bottles an adventurous quest:
1. Who doesn't eat peanut butter or apple sauce? Well I do. By the dozen! I collect empty jars to throw them away at the end of each month. I hate carrying the heavy bag of empty jars... But no more bringing those to the dumpster! Clean them and paint the lid in a fun color. If you have kids just steal a couple of miniature farm or zoo animals ( they won't notice, kids have plenty of toys these days ) or buy them over at
Tiger ( they sell them in all countries, but somehow you can't order them online in every country ). Paint the little creatures in the same color and have them dry for a couple of hours. Then superglue them to the lid and they make unique and funny storage jars!
2. I often eat fresh vegetables, but any sensible human being has a stash of canned food - just in case, you never know when crisis hits - so have I. Canned beans, canned pineapple, canned spinach... you name it. I've always had a thing for
Zenza lamps, but they are a little above my budget. But they are easily made with a bunch of old tin cans! Just take off the label and remove the glue. Paint if you like. Puncture the cans using a thick needle. You can use a pattern. I'd like to puncture them all over, just like my beloved Zenza lanterns. I finally found myself a reason to empty the cupboard and eat canned food for a month. Yay!
3. I somehow keep buying strainers because I'm convinced the old ones are old and rusty ( but they never actually are... ). So we have 4 strainers now. Yep, you never know when you need to strain four things at the same time... Which is ridiculous, because we have only one sink.
But if you fancy an original lamp... Here's how I can make three!!
Make a hole in the bottom using a drill. Make the hole big enough to fit the cable through, but small enough to keep the plastic attached to the cable to stay on the inside of the strainer. Choose a light bulb you like... and attach to the ceiling just as you would with another lamp.
4. Popcorn buys basic shirts quite often... because I tend to ruin them in the dryer. But what to do with all these shrunken t's? Why... make grocery bags out of them of course!
Here's how to make them!
5. Made enough punctured tin can lanterns to light the neighborhood? Well, you might consider to make something else out of them too... Like these colorful vases! Just paint them and crumple them ( crumple before painting! ). Holland is known for flower bulbs that grow tulips, daffodils and hyacinths. I think they would look cute in these DIY-vases!
6. We used to make wasp-traps out of old bottles, because my little sister was scared of them. She's still scared, but living on her own now... So instead of making those horrible wasp-traps, I can now make hanging vases out of them! Clean the bottle, cut it in half and make a little hole on each side. Fill with water, hang them in your garden or on your balcony en pick some poppies or dandelions ( which grow in the ugliest of places as so called weeds - I love them! ).
7. Save up as much bottles as you can... Or ask your neighbors to collect them for you. Hang them upside down on strings dangling from the ceiling. Hang a simple 'cold' light bulb in the middle and a designer's hanging lamp is created - just like that!
8. Try to find old plastic globes and hang them together! Look for them in thrift stores or online. They're not that difficult to find! I love traveling, so a lamp made out of globes would remind me of all my travels and look incredibly cool at the same time!
Have fun creating amazing things out of old items! Recycling is the bomb I tell ya!
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