We as a family try our best to "go green" in as many ways as possible. We are not always 100% effective, but you would be surprised how many items that you use every day around the home can easily be recycled into something fun for the family. These recycling tips will show you how five every day items can be transformed into fun projects with very little effort.

Egg Cartons

Around our house, recycling egg cartons is not hard. There are a million fun or useful things that an egg carton can be used for. You can make simple craft creatures with some paint, pipe cleaners and markers or you can turn them into tiny treasure chests for small toys, marbles, rocks, or other cherished items. If you are an avid gardener, egg cartons make wonderful starter containers for seeds, and the plants can easily be transported when they get larger.


Tires


The obvious solution for recycling tires at home is to make a tire swing. I have yet to meet a child or many adults that didn't love a tire swing. With a little bit of chain and a good sized tree branch, you can easily make a tire swing of your own. Old tires can also be turned into colorful planters with a little bit of paint and dirt. If you bury part of the tires in the ground and paint with different colors, you can create a small jungle gym in your backyard for the kids too.



Milk Cartons

Milk cartons are another every day item around the house that can easily be transformed into a cheap craft for the kids. Make puppets and monsters or create a themed item such as a turkey or reindeer for a specific holiday. We actually use the bottom of a milk jug as a holder for crayons in our house too. If you cut the top off of a milk carton, hot glue a small dowel across the top and thread some string through, you can create a bird feeder for the yard as well.


Food Jars

Peanut butter, jelly, baby food, pickles, there are a lot of grocery items that come in jars and once they are emptied of their contents, there are many things they can be used for. Baby food jars with the labels removed make great votive candle holders. Place some around the railing of a porch for some inexpensive night time lighting. Kids can make banks out of larger jars and decorate them to suit their needs. My oldest two love to use a few jars to catch critters in for observation before returning them to their homes.

Old Hoses

Just because your hose has sprung a leak does not mean it is useless. Give it new life by poking a few more holes in it! Adults can create a soaker hose for the garden by poking many small holes in the length of a hose and turning the water pressure on low. Make a fun snake-like sprinkler for thoe kids by poking some additional holes in the hose and turning the water on high. If your hose has been severed or partially destroyed, cut off a few lengths and male homemade jump ropes or cut smaller pieces and let the kids decorate them to make their own snakes.