We hope you are staying healthy and sane during these crazy times! Finding ways to stay entertained seems to be getting harder, especially if you have kids at home. Have you thought about reusing your recyclables or re-purposing plastic trash as a crafty pastime? Odds are you have plastic packaging and other items at home that can’t be recycled. Instead of tossing them in the trash, you can reuse them as craft materials. Beyond keeping trash out of the landfill, you’ll also be cutting down on your carbon footprint by reusing something instead of buying new supplies that have to be manufactured and shipped to the store, (You can also pat yourself on the back for staying home instead of heading out to pick up supplies!)
In this spirit, we’re sharing some of our favorite craft projects that you can make with recyclable and trash materials. We even added some educational portions to help you keep your mind sharp. That way, you can impress your friends once we are out in the world again. (Everyone is talking about muscle gains, but what about brain gains?) For more information on our bay and what we do as an organization check out our blogs here.
Getting started: What’s recyclable and what’s not
Don’t know what is currently recyclable? Check out Integrated Waste Management Authority’s webpage, also known as IWMA, to find out what can actually be recycled in SLO County. If you are wondering why certain items used to be recyclable and aren’t now, check out our two recycling blogs here.
Art projects for little kiddos and older
Make macro-invertebrates (aquatic bugs) from an egg carton
Did you know your egg carton is recyclable only if it’s clean? What do you do with the dirty ones? Crafts!
Kids love creepy crawlies, so why not make your own macro- invertebrates?! Macroinvertebraes are insects that are big enough to see with the naked eye. Many of them live in our local creeks and rivers. These little guys are indicators—an ecosystem job that doesn’t get enough attention. It means that they can tell us a lot about the water quality in our creeks and how well those creeks can support fish and other wildlife. If we find dragonflies, stoneflies, caddisflies, or mayflies, we are super stoked! These insects are pollution intolerant, which means that they are really sensitive to pollution. If the creek were filled with pollutants, we wouldn’t find any of these cute critters. (What? We think they’re adorable.) They also serve, honorably, as the main course for our beloved steelhead trout when they are juveniles! Without these bugs, the delicate balance of our creek’s ecosystem would be thrown off.
(A silent thank you is due for these critter’s sacrifice for the fish.)
Caddisflies are nature’s ninjas! They encase themselves with homemade silk add on peddles, sand, and plant material to keep themselves hidden. For this craft you are going to need: something to make the base of the body (we used some Styrofoam), glue, anything that you would like to stick to the body like beads or dry leaves, and googly eyes (you can also draw eyes in).
What most people don’t know is that dragonflies live in freshwater as juveniles until they become beautiful adults. To make this craft you will need: an egg carton, some paint, googly eyes, a small ball (we used a ping pong ball) , glue, and paper for the wings. Bam! A super cute and easy project.
Draw your watershed on recycled paper
Have some crumpled paper packaging? Use it to draw on! Why not draw your watershed while you’re at it?
What is a watershed? It’s an area of land that drains water into a single, larger body of water like a river or the ocean. In Morro Bay, our watershed is the Morro Bay watershed. Everyone lives in a watershed! If you aren’t from the Morro Bay area, check out this map to see what watershed you are in.
Rain gauge from a water bottle
Make your own rain gauge with a water bottle! All you need is:
1.Some sort of plastic beverage container
2. Scissors or another cutting tool
3. A permanent marker
4. Some sort of ruler to measure your gauge
5. Anything else you would like to vamp up your gauge
Bonus points: Can you make a list of all the reasons why rain is so important? Write down your list and post it near your new rain gauge.
Art projects for those allowed to use tools and older
Bottle cap jewelry
Metal bottle caps aren’t recyclable by themselves. Make sure to place them into a metal can with the lid still partially attached and close the lid. Bam! It is ready for the recycling bin. If you don’t have any empty cans on hand, or you just want to try a bottle-cap craft, you can make jewelry out of them.
Make bottle cap flowers with the extras
Ways to reuse clothing
Did you know your clothes aren’t recyclable? To avoid adding more trash to our landfills, when you can, reuse your clothes for other things.
Example: Make your old t-shirt into a reusable bag.
(DIY | NO Sew T-Shirt Bag (SO Easy!!)
Want More Crafts? Check Out These Videos
20 EASY RECYCLED PROJECTS FOR KIDS
5 EASY DIY EGG CARTON RECYCLE PROJECTS FOR KIDS
HOW TO MAKE A BASKET OUT OF PLASTIC BAGS
12 AMAZING RECYCLED BOTTLE CAP ACTIVITIES FOR CHILDREN!
Even More Crafts!
Note: Try not to use glitter for your projects, even though they add a spark to your projects, they are technically micro-plastics. *GASP* Micro-plastics are known to cause hormonal issues in wildlife and possibly in people. Say no to glitter; your earth and your floor will thank you for it.
Click the links to check out these crafty websites!
5 recycling STEM challenges
12 adorable recycled crafts
Toilet Paper Roll Butterfly
6 Easy Ways To Dress Up A Tin Can
We hope these fun little crafts will help you stay sane and healthy at home!
Post pictures of crafts inspired by this post and tag us! @MorroBayNEP on Instagram and Twitter @mbestuary on Facebook.
Note: Your profile will need to be public for us to see and share your photos.) DM us if you want to share your pictures without setting your profile to public.
Help protect and restore the Morro Bay estuary
- Donate to the Estuary Program today and support our work in the field, the lab, and beyond.
The Estuary Program is a 501(c)3 nonprofit. We depend on funding from grants and generous donors to continue our work. - Support us by purchasing estuary-themed gear from ESTERO. This locally owned and operated company donates 20% of proceeds from its Estuary clothing line and 100% of Estuary decal proceeds to the Estuary Program. Thank you, ESTERO!
- Purchase items from the the Estuary Program’s store on Zazzle. Zazzle prints and ships your items, and the Estuary Program receives 10% of the proceeds. Choose from mugs, hats, t-shirts, and even fanny packs (they’re back!) with our fun Estuary Octopus design, our classic Estuary Program logo, or our Mutts for the Bay logo.
Thank you for your support!