OK so not a climate change article but a good one for seeing how you can reuse many items to help with your projects. In addition, it’s easy to see how you can reduce the trash you would normally throw away. Also, it is good for our planet when we do this.
I’ll try to see if I can organize this.
Reusing
- Applesauce / fruit cups – My kids eat these when they are out. Instead of throwing them away I reuse them for paint, epoxy, etc.
- Plastic bags – Add dimension to your prop.
- Plastic bottles – Again, dimension to projects.
- Paper bags – Paper mache.
- Paper towel / toilet paper rolls – Other than normal kids crafts you can add these to build dimensions to props.
- Old soccer balls – Use them as heads for props.
- Shirts / towels – Tear into rags. We all have things to wipe up.
- Cardboard – Paint protectors.
- Sponges – Soldering iron cleaner.
- Fabric – Even scraps can be used for infill to something. I also love any prop or decoration that contains the name ‘patches.’
- Wood scraps – You would be surprised how you can reuse even the smallest scraps.
- Another project
- Stands to paint another piece
- Barriers for drilling into other wood.
- Clamping
- Building stakes
- And so on
Reducing
- Plastic, vinyl, latex gloves
- We all know how these should be saved for front-lined workers. Plus, even if you do want them they are 5x more expensive than they used to be. Use multipurpose gloves from any hardware store. They’re sold in packs and can be used over and over. I also keep some new ones on-hand for when someone comes to help me in the shop. They can wear new gloves as to not worry about who was wearing them before.
- Paint rollers
- You can keep these around for a while if kept in a tight bag and not in hot temperatures. Don’t throw them out right away cause you never know what your next project will be. Plus, with Halloween projects does it matter if grey and black get a little mixed?
- Plastic drop-cloths
- Don’t spend on or waste these when you can buy cheap tarps from Harbor Freight or something. They tarps will last through multiple uses whereas the plastic ones are generally done after a single project. But if you DO USE plastic, you can save it for filler on another project.
- Plastic bags
- Use as filler instead of trash.