Newspaper, Plastic Bags, Dog Hair Yarn

April 23rd, 2009 Email 25 users recommend Recycle newspaper into yarn. via greenupgrader Spin your pet's hair into yarn. Shih-tzu-phrenia.org Recycle old VHS tape into yarn. via Recycle Cindy Photo: via greenupgrader Buying eco-friendly yarn is a great alternative to traditional yarn, but the best way to reduce consumption is to creatively use and reuse what you already have. Here are eight unusual and interesting materials upcycled into yarn... Newspaper Yarn Take all those newspapers that have been piling up and try your hand at upcycling by turning them into newspaper yarn. Animal Hair Yarn Want a sustainable sweater? Human Hair Yarn Even if you don't have a pet, you can put that tutorial to use—just use your own hair. VHS Tape Yarn Do you have a pile of old VHS movies that have been collecting dust since you got your DVD player? Reclaim Yarn from an Old Sweater Instead of throwing an old sweater away, do some DIY recycling and reclaim that precious yarn. Plastic --> Yarn = PLARN T-Shirt Yarn

Lined Canvas Diaper Box You can find almost anything on Pinterest…it’s true. Upon wasting my time searching the other day, I found a fantastic tutorial on upcycling diaper boxes. Hmmm…what could I do with this? Oh, yes – toys scattered all about our living room floor: check, a desire to get said toys put away when not in use: check, cute fabric laying there staring at me: check! I decided to take on this project! I changed some things from this tutorial I found, but you could use either hers or mine. What you’ll need Diaper Box Canvas fabric (1 yard covered two diaper boxes) Measuring tape Spray adhesive Craft glue Scissors (or rotary cutter and mat) Here’s how Cut the flaps off of your box. Measure the outside width and length of the box. Width Length Cut your fabric Mine was 25 x 31 Center your box on the canvas. Measure out from corner of the box (to the corner of your fabric) 2 inches and mark it with a pin. Don’t forget to cut the 2 inches from the pin toward the box. Semi-finished product

How To Make A Bow Out Of Recycled Magazines Guest post by Jennifer Young of I Art U blog. These easy-to-make bows will be gracing a few of my presents this year. I’ve found a lot of inspiration in magazines lately. This one is from Whole Living. Making a Bow (found in Whole Living) What you’ll need: Magazine pages or any other paper material you want to use (you’ll need one page per bow); Scissors or a paper cutter; Double-sided tape; A ruler; A pencil Step by Step Instructions: 1. 2. 3. 4. DIY: Gift Bags Made from Recycled Envelopes By Jessica Jones, How About Orange Find an envelope of any size. (I embellished these by printing a label on the front of them first. You can use my design if you want; these PDFs are set up according to how my printer feeds envelopes through. If yours is different, you might need to experiment. 1. 2. 3. 4.

How to Make Your Own Recycled Paper Recycled paper can be made from old newspaper, following the instructions below. Recycling paper uses cellulose (plant fibers) over and over again, it uses less electricity, less water, a lot less pollution, and it saves trees from being cut down! You will need: a food processor or an old blender an electric iron an old wire hanger an old pair of panty hose newspaper or other paper, torn into 2-inch squares white glue water an insect screen or strainer (optional) food coloring (optional) a big sink or tub filled with 4 inches of water Make sure you have a place to work where you can make a big mess! Step One: Make a frame out of the coat hanger. Step Two: Put a handful of the torn up paper and some water into the food processor or blender. For some color, add a handful of brown or red onion skin (not the onion itself, just the papery outer skin). Step Three: Put 2 tablespoons of white glue in the sink water and add all of the paper pulp you just made.