Arts and crafts are fun because they can be created out of so many things. Items found around the house, such as buttons, socks, or clothes, can be creatively put together to make something unique and fun. Children can really show off their artistic skills by getting involved with arts and crafts.
Craft activities always involve a little bit of patience. Instructions need to be followed and the proper materials should all be handy. These activities are great for children because they really encourage them to learn new things while also learning how to pay attention to detail.
Here are some great activities for your kids to do.
Button Earrings
For a cute pair of earrings, here is what you will need:
• A pair of matching buttons
• Jewelry glue
• Flat earring backs
Smoother and flatter buttons works better for this activity. All you need to do is apply glue to the back of the buttons and then place against the earring backs. Simple, easy, and stylish!
Fun Sweatshirt
Got an old sweatshirt that needs a touch of cute style? Apply some buttons! The only other materials that you will need are thread, needles, and scissors.
Lay your old sweatshirt flat. Then, get your designer skills going by creating a pattern with the buttons. Sew them into place and you’re done!
Sock Puppets
For some reason, we always lose socks in the laundry. The black hole at the bottom of our washers and dryers always seem to win in this battle. What we are left with are random socks that go around solo and therefore can be useless if it doesn’t match with any other loose socks.
Sock puppets are easy and fun. All it takes is a loose sock, a child’s arm, and some creative decorating. Use a black permanent marker or googly eyes so that your puppet can see. Glue on cutout pieces of construction paper or felt for ears. Depending on how much time or how elaborate your child would like to be with the decorating, the things that you can do with sock puppets are limitless.
Tank Top Beach Bag
Save one of your child’s old tank tops to make a bag for warm days at the beach. Here is what you need:
• Tank top
• Some trim
• One yard of cord
• Appliqués
• Fabric glue
• Scissors
• Safety pin
Cut open about 1” of the hem of the tank top. Attach the safety pin to the end of the cord and push through opening into the hem. Work the cord and pin around the bottom until you reach the opening of the hem again. Remove the safety pin once you see both ends of the cord sticking out.
Using the end of the cord, pull up from the bottom of the tank top and gather until it is as tight as you can get it. Double knot and tie the ends together. Trim the ends and push up the knot inside of the hem. Glue an appliqué to the bottom of the bag. Then, decorate your beach bag as much as you want!
What to Do With Old Clothes That Can't Be Re-purposed
Sometimes, no matter how hard we try, we can't come up with a way to re-purpose an old clothing item. Whether it's too damaged, too stained, or affected by some other problem, we just can't find a way to keep it in our household.
The answer isn't to throw it in the garbage. Many people may choose to do this, but all this does is fill up our landfills unnecessarily. There are only a handful of cases where it makes sense to throw garments out, such as if they are terribly soiled. Otherwise, try these suggestions.
First, use the old fabric as a rag. Rags are always useful, whether for car projects, painting, cleaning, or anything else that requires a cloth of some sort. It doesn't matter if the clothing item is already dirty or badly torn, since it will only continue to get messier as a rag.
Second, you can try to recycle your old clothing. Many people don't think about textile recycling when trying to come up with a new purpose for their old clothes. Textile recycling bins can be found in a lot of major cities. Some companies even let you mail your old clothes in to be recycled. It takes extra work compared to just throwing your old clothes in the bin, but it's worth it for the positive impact it will have on the environment.
If you have garments that can't be used for crafts, but are in good condition, donate them to a thrift store or charity. These days, finding a place to donate clothes has never been easier. You can also consider re-selling them on platforms like Mercari, eBay, and Facebook Marketplace. You won't be able to get back what you paid, but you can get a portion. Just be sure you're able to ship the products out within a reasonable timeframe, as these platforms generally expect relatively speedy shipping.