Giddy Up Friday: 3 R's (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle)

We just love Jack Johnson, so as I type this, I will be humming his Recycle song in my head!

My daughter was getting creative to make the Easter Bunny a little present. (Easter - I know - a little late...but I have had so much other stuff to do. I thought I'd save it for next year, but then realized I could show off her work for a Giddy Up Earth Day Craft on the heels of Earth Day!) She ended up going through the recycle bin and all around the house making "something" (she wouldn't tell me until she was done). An hour later - I was introduced to this little bunny and knew I had to share it!

So here is the idea. Go through your recycle bin (hopefully you rinse/clean your stuff)...and give your child some tape or glue and some scissors. Let them make something. A bunny, a piggy bank, a 2 car garage for their little toy cars, a house, a bed, anything! You can do it too!

Here are the things my daughter used...
Yogurt Cup
Napkin
Styrofoam ball
Bottle Cap
Wrapping Paper scraps
Q-Tips (these were clean & brand new - in case you were wondering!)
Tape
Pins (for the eyes & nose)
Paper scraps

The possibilities are endless! Think out side of the box...or in it...just have fun creating! If you do this project and blog about it - let me know by leaving a link in the comment field...I'd love to check it out! -kg

Busy Monday: Upcycling Cards & Photos

I have had this stack of thank you cards, birthday cards, Christmas cards, engagement photos, family photos, etc, growing for YEARS now! Many years ago when it wasn't so huge - I knew I wanted to do "something" really cool with them...but didn't know exactly what that cool something was yet.

To be honest - I'm still not so sure. But I have a pretty good idea where I want to take it - so the fire has been lit. This could still take me a long time to complete - but I thought I'd document the process here!

Here's some of the ideas I had/have...
1 - I thought it could make a really nice garland. But then I thought - it will hang around for a while, get dusty, probably wrinkled and desheveled, and then taken down and discarded at worst.
2 - Then I thought I could just throw it into an open top frame (I saw one years ago in a PB catalog)...and let them all collect in there as we go along in life - that could still be really cool, but I can't find the open top frame.
3 - I thought - I could very easily use them for gift tags - (in a bigger circle)...or notes to my girls in their lunch - but then I'd lose them all - slowly but surely!
4 - Then I thought I can do a huge collage of Jesus - since all my friends and family that cared enough to send these awesome cards and photos - would in essence - remind me of Him. But I worry I won't do a facial collage enough justice - esp with it being Jesus! (still worth a try - so the idea is not lost).
5 - Then I thought I could do a random pattern design with all of them - maybe even a little impressionist style - capturing the feel of Starry Night.

So that's where I'm at. For all of you wanting to do something similar...here's what I used. A 1 1/2" scalloped edge punch since I didn't want just a plain circle (you can get them in any craft store in the scrapbooking isle). I am fuss punching the cards and photos - but using as much of the extra as I can (fussy cutting in sewing terms - is cutting the fabric for a quilt or pattern so you get a specific image on each piece of fabric - rather than just cutting and getting whatever you get). The trick is to make sure you use the punch upside down - so you can see what you are punching out.

There will be more to post about this in the future - but for now - I still need to make a dent in this box! and I am very determined! If you've done this already - I'd love to know.  -kg