Eco Crafts

As I've noted before in my treasure hunt party craft, I believe in crafts that stress the importance of reusing and then recycling materials. Some of my favorite supplies are paper towel / toilet paper rolls, plastic bottles, egg cartons, and cardboard boxes. Out of these I've made binoculars, swords, discovery bottles, and a rocket ship with a full control panel.

Today we decided to decorate for Halloween by making spiders / one-eyed-monsters made of egg cartons, pipe cleaners, and googly eyes. It's not the most original idea, but it was quick, easy, and cost nothing extra I didn't already have in art supplies. Check out our video for more details.

I was feeling so inspired on the eco craft front that I made bird feeders with the boys as well. You can find all kinds of ideas here. In the past we've just covered pinecones in peanut butter and bird seed, but today we tried something different.

I had two thicker, more durable dowels from aluminum foil packages; in theory, they should last longer in the rain. I also chose to use up some Soy Butter that did not go over well in our family. (I was looking for a peanut-free alternative for school but this was aweful. I do recommend the fresh almond butter at Ingles).

For ease of clean-up, I recommend using wax paper and plastic knives. Tips: The seed will roll on more easily if there isn't much sticky material on the paper. You can also use honey or peanut butter but you should probably stick to something you don't mind the kids tasting.

Since I had bird seed from years past and some twine in the garage, this project also cost us $0. Check out all the fun in our video.