Pinspired: Snowman Pencil Holder

I am always looking for ways to re-use things around my house.  Recently, I also found myself in need of something to corral my BIC permanent markers, so when I found a snowman pencil holder on Pinterest, made from a recycled vegetable can, I couldn't wait to make it.
I gathered my supplies (except, I ended up not using the googly eyes):

Supplies Needed 
tin can (I used the can from a 29 oz can of tomato sauce, but you can use a smaller one)
glue (white glue would work as well as hot glue)
scissors
white yarn (mine is actually off white, but pure white would look nicer)
a square of black felt
orange felt scrap
optional: googly eyes or permanent markers for the face

Instructions
1) Wash the can and remove the label.
2) Cut a square from the black felt that extends about 1/2" past the edges of your can.  Fold the square in half and make a slit.
3) Center the square over the top of the can and cut from the slit to the inside edge of the can.  Do this until you have cut the center out and can slip it down snugly over the can.  The felt will stretch, so if you cut it a little small, that is okay.
4) Cut the edges off the square, so that it resembles the brim of a hat.
5) With the remaining black felt, stretch it around the top 1/3 of the can.  You have to pull on it a bit, but it will fit perfectly.  Glue this down.  I found it a little easier to have the felt taller than the can and then to cut it down to size after it was glued on.
6) Starting on the same side of the can where the seam to the hat is, put a bit of glue down and start wrapping the white yarn around the can.  I started at the bottom and worked my way up.  I wrapped it around several times and then pushed the yarn down to keep it tightly wrapped, so no tin showed through.  When you get close to the felt, put a drop of glue down and glue down the yarn.  Cut the remaining yarn off.
7) Adjust the brim of the hat so that it sits between the yarn and felt.  Mine fit snug enough that I did not need to glue it, but if yours does not, you can glue it in place.
8) Now it is time to make the face.  I simply cut a small triangle from the orange felt and then took my scraps of black felt and cut out roundish circles, smaller ones for the mouth and slightly larger ones for the eyes.  Coal is not perfectly shaped, so this is a very easy part of the craft.  I had planned to use googly eyes, but really preferred the look of the "coal" felt eyes more. Feel free to use whatever you like.  Also, the felt sticks well to the yarn, so you can play around with the face until you find what you like, then glue them down.

The total cost of this craft was less than 25 cents, as I have about 1/3 of the black felt square left and almost all of the orange felt left, along with most of the skein of yarn. If you had to go out and buy all the materials, it would still cost under $2, as you can use a low-quality yarn. This is also a fun project to do with kids, but I would not recommend using the hot glue gun with little ones.

This has been shared on Simply Rebekah, Your Green Resource.

Save It Saturday: Give It Away

We have all come across something we own that we no longer need or maybe it just is not in the condition we want it to be in. What do we do with those things? If you are like me, you will set it aside to deal with later, either by selling it at a yardsale or attempting to repair it. Occasionally, I will simply throw the item away, or at least I used to. Today I am going to share some resources I have found that will help you declutter those items without filling up the landfiill.

Books and current (within 2-3 months) magazines are greatly appreciated by nursing homes and hospitals for the patients to use. Clothes and blankets are also often needed by homeless shelters and battered women's shelters. Also, some elementary schools also keep a stash of kids clothes in the nurse's office for when students have "accidents". A quick call to the nurse's office will let you know if that is an option. Many places also have thrift stores (check for Goodwill, Salvation Army, Deseret Industries, etc) that will gladly take your donations.

Two other options I have discovered are Freecycle and ReUse It. Both groups work in generally the same way: people post items they no longer want and those who can use those items respond, the original owner can then choose who to give it to, all transactions must be 100% free and legal. Another option through both groups is for a member to post something that they need and another member may contact them if they have that item and are willing to part with it for free. Both groups have the same idea of keeping stuff out of the trash and keeping usable goods in circulation as long as possible, reducing the need to use more energy to produce new items. Craigslist also has a free section that you can post items on without joining a group. All three groups are free to all participants.

Aside from keeping trash out of the landfills, donating/giving away unwanted items benefits mankind in general and conserves energy. It is also a great way to declutter your home without feeling bad about items being wasted.

Save It Saturday: Milk Jugs

Milk jugs are one of those items that are usually recyclable at recycling facilities, but recycling uses energy, so we are also encouraged to reduce and re-use items. Today, I will share several ways I have come across to re-use milk jugs before sending them off to be recycled.

- Save the caps, 12 each of two different colors, and use them as checkers. You could also paint the caps, 12 black and 12 red, if you are so inclined.

- Cut the bottom off and use the jug to protect plants that are growing in the garden.

- Cut around the jug, 2-3 inches from the bottom. Put small holes or slits in the bottom and fill with soil. Use this as a seed starter. Use the top part of the jug to retain moisture by placing over the top of the starter.

- Cut a hole opposite the handle and use it to store your toilet brush.

- Make a catch game with 2 half-gallon jugs, 2 toilet paper tubes and a wad of aluminum foil. Directions can be found here.

- Follow these instuctions to make a bird feeder. You can also store the bird seed in another empty milk jug.

- Cut the bottom off and use the top as a funnel.

- With Halloween around the corner, here is a great way to make a skeleton decoration using milk jugs.

- Cut into a scoop shape, leaving the handle and top in tact and useas a scoop for rock salt, pet food, soil, etc. Also, nice for the kids when playing in the sand at the beach.

- Fill with water and use to weigh down tarps or pool cover.

- Decorate and use as a piggy bank. A great idea for the little ones.

- Fill with water and use as hand weights. The more water you use, the heavier the weight.

- Help your freezer run more efficiently by filling empty space with milk jugs full of water.

And last, but not least, my personal favorite, make a milk jug igloo as shown here.

Those are the ideas I have. How about you? What do you do to re-use your milk jugs?