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Location: Virginia, where we have the beach and mountains all in one state!!
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I try to be but I know I have room for improvement. I recycle all scraps of paper if it will fit a punch I save it. After I finish a sheet of pop dots I cut up the sheet itself and use it. I save all packaging, rather it's stuffing or the actual "box" it comes in and reuse for 3-D items. I recycle paper from our printing at home. I receive all chipboard from work from scratch pad, legal pads, etcl... I am now trying to figure out how to store my buttons without having to buy some type of organization.
Thanks for the thread I am interested in seeing what everyone else is doing.:mrgreen:
This has come up before but I can't find the thread now. Anyway, I knew I'd reposted my reply on a UK forum I belong to so I've just popped across there and copied it so here are some of the things I do...
I try to look at anything I'm about to throw in the trash and decide if it might be useful for crafting in some way. Anything with even a vague whiff of "usefulness" about it gets saved :lol:
I get quite a few things sent to me in boardback envelopes (I'm a proofreader) which is great weight chipboard and a sort of kraft colour - that always gets saved and used for die cut or scissor cut elements.
Cereal packet board is useful for things with a bit of body, too - if it's not sturdy enough for what you want, you can stick a couple of layers together (useful for covers for mini books etc).
I save metal from tomato paste tubes (I know you guys usually buy it in cans but it's worth looking out for tubes as they're less wasteful if you tend not to use the whole can at once - you can just recap the tube and put it in the fridge ready for next time). The metal is soft enough to cut with scissors or dies and it embosses beautifully in the CBug folders and is a lovely rich gold colour inside the tube. Soda cans can be used too.
I can't remember the last time I bought buttons designed for papercrafting. Any piece of clothing that's worn out gets the buttons snipped off before it's trashed. If you use something like Copics or Sharpies you can tint a white button to match your project if you want to. I sometimes use the fabric from old clothing for papercraft projects, too (denim from old jeans can be great for those pesky masculine and teen cards!).
I store my cling stamps in CD cases which means I have the heavy clear sheets they came on originally - those make good bases for clear cards. Other clear packaging from things like Spellbinder dies etc can be used to make your own "ghost shapes" if you die cut it.
Pages from old books and magazines or sheet music can make interesting embellishments and backgrounds. Check out things like the gesso resist technique in the resources section for an idea for using magazine pages. Flowers or butterflies punched or die cut from old books or sheet music can look fun and whimsical or totally vintage!
Broken jewellery, mismatched earrings etc can give you some useful embellishments - it's worth asking in goodwill stores as they sometimes have those things that they can't put out for sale and they'll let you have them really cheaply.
I save stuff like ribbon or twine from packaging of things like chocolates and flowers (there's a running joke in this house about the chocolates that DH often buys me at the airport when he's been on a business trip - he has to choose the box by how useful the ribbon will be!).
Hope that gives you some new ideas somewhere in that lot! Have fun!
Location: Virginia, where we have the beach and mountains all in one state!!
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Angelnorth
This has come up before but I can't find the thread now. Anyway, I knew I'd reposted my reply on a UK forum I belong to so I've just popped across there and copied it so here are some of the things I do...
I try to look at anything I'm about to throw in the trash and decide if it might be useful for crafting in some way. Anything with even a vague whiff of "usefulness" about it gets saved :lol:
I get quite a few things sent to me in boardback envelopes (I'm a proofreader) which is great weight chipboard and a sort of kraft colour - that always gets saved and used for die cut or scissor cut elements.
Cereal packet board is useful for things with a bit of body, too - if it's not sturdy enough for what you want, you can stick a couple of layers together (useful for covers for mini books etc).
I save metal from tomato paste tubes (I know you guys usually buy it in cans but it's worth looking out for tubes as they're less wasteful if you tend not to use the whole can at once - you can just recap the tube and put it in the fridge ready for next time). The metal is soft enough to cut with scissors or dies and it embosses beautifully in the CBug folders and is a lovely rich gold colour inside the tube. Soda cans can be used too.
I can't remember the last time I bought buttons designed for papercrafting. Any piece of clothing that's worn out gets the buttons snipped off before it's trashed. If you use something like Copics or Sharpies you can tint a white button to match your project if you want to. I sometimes use the fabric from old clothing for papercraft projects, too (denim from old jeans can be great for those pesky masculine and teen cards!).
I store my cling stamps in CD cases which means I have the heavy clear sheets they came on originally - those make good bases for clear cards. Other clear packaging from things like Spellbinder dies etc can be used to make your own "ghost shapes" if you die cut it.
Pages from old books and magazines or sheet music can make interesting embellishments and backgrounds. Check out things like the gesso resist technique in the resources section for an idea for using magazine pages. Flowers or butterflies punched or die cut from old books or sheet music can look fun and whimsical or totally vintage!
Broken jewellery, mismatched earrings etc can give you some useful embellishments - it's worth asking in goodwill stores as they sometimes have those things that they can't put out for sale and they'll let you have them really cheaply.
I save stuff like ribbon or twine from packaging of things like chocolates and flowers (there's a running joke in this house about the chocolates that DH often buys me at the airport when he's been on a business trip - he has to choose the box by how useful the ribbon will be!).
Hope that gives you some new ideas somewhere in that lot! Have fun!
I too recycle my buttons. The only buttons I've bought are clear.
This has come up before but I can't find the thread now. Anyway, I knew I'd reposted my reply on a UK forum I belong to so I've just popped across there and copied it so here are some of the things I do...
I try to look at anything I'm about to throw in the trash and decide if it might be useful for crafting in some way. Anything with even a vague whiff of "usefulness" about it gets saved :lol:
I get quite a few things sent to me in boardback envelopes (I'm a proofreader) which is great weight chipboard and a sort of kraft colour - that always gets saved and used for die cut or scissor cut elements.
Cereal packet board is useful for things with a bit of body, too - if it's not sturdy enough for what you want, you can stick a couple of layers together (useful for covers for mini books etc).
I save metal from tomato paste tubes (I know you guys usually buy it in cans but it's worth looking out for tubes as they're less wasteful if you tend not to use the whole can at once - you can just recap the tube and put it in the fridge ready for next time). The metal is soft enough to cut with scissors or dies and it embosses beautifully in the CBug folders and is a lovely rich gold colour inside the tube. Soda cans can be used too.
I can't remember the last time I bought buttons designed for papercrafting. Any piece of clothing that's worn out gets the buttons snipped off before it's trashed. If you use something like Copics or Sharpies you can tint a white button to match your project if you want to. I sometimes use the fabric from old clothing for papercraft projects, too (denim from old jeans can be great for those pesky masculine and teen cards!).
I store my cling stamps in CD cases which means I have the heavy clear sheets they came on originally - those make good bases for clear cards. Other clear packaging from things like Spellbinder dies etc can be used to make your own "ghost shapes" if you die cut it.
Pages from old books and magazines or sheet music can make interesting embellishments and backgrounds. Check out things like the gesso resist technique in the resources section for an idea for using magazine pages. Flowers or butterflies punched or die cut from old books or sheet music can look fun and whimsical or totally vintage!
Broken jewellery, mismatched earrings etc can give you some useful embellishments - it's worth asking in goodwill stores as they sometimes have those things that they can't put out for sale and they'll let you have them really cheaply.
I save stuff like ribbon or twine from packaging of things like chocolates and flowers (there's a running joke in this house about the chocolates that DH often buys me at the airport when he's been on a business trip - he has to choose the box by how useful the ribbon will be!).
Hope that gives you some new ideas somewhere in that lot! Have fun!
These are all great ideas and really get me thinking. Thanks for the tips.
I save all the 'extra' buttons that come with clothes. Those are all in a recycled prima jar. Then the tiny plastic zip-bags the buttons are usually in are used to store brads, eyelets, etc. I recycle out of space necessity! Those little baggies take up so much less room than the cardboard/plastic packages stuff usually comes in! lol!
Pidgesmom, I absolutely loved all your ideas! I can't wait for next week's new idea!!!
I also recycle ribbon and rafia attached to anything that doesn't move. I've been known to cut those satin-ey ribbons used to hang a garment on a hanger out of a shirt and use it in a project.
I have a friend that is always on the look out for me (and I didn't even have to ask!) for items. She finds things I might never have thought of. I love having 2 sets of eyes looking for items to be repurposed!
This is an odd thing to admit to, but when I have an order from Papertrey Ink I cut up the top band of paper that is around the clear boxes. (Of course I save my clear boxes). The top bands have a nice design and I can use the scraps for punches or to cut them the same shape and make lots of squares for a card background, etc...There is enough area that does not have writing on it that it seems worth saving those scraps, at least to me.
I use my small wintermint containers for brads & eyelets. I also, save and recycle buttons. I save the brown paper from the stampin up boxes and I use that for under my stamping projects. Any types of ribbons, threads, string from packages, gifts etc. I reuse Christmas cards and make gift tags with them.
It is not a ton but at least it is something.
Pidgesmom, I absolutely loved all your ideas! I can't wait for next week's new idea!!!
I also recycle ribbon and rafia attached to anything that doesn't move. I've been known to cut those satin-ey ribbons used to hang a garment on a hanger out of a shirt and use it in a project.
I have a friend that is always on the look out for me (and I didn't even have to ask!) for items. She finds things I might never have thought of. I love having 2 sets of eyes looking for items to be repurposed!
This is an odd thing to admit to, but when I have an order from Papertrey Ink I cut up the top band of paper that is around the clear boxes. (Of course I save my clear boxes). The top bands have a nice design and I can use the scraps for punches or to cut them the same shape and make lots of squares for a card background, etc...There is enough area that does not have writing on it that it seems worth saving those scraps, at least to me.
I try to be but I know I have room for improvement. I recycle all scraps of paper if it will fit a punch I save it. After I finish a sheet of pop dots I cut up the sheet itself and use it. I save all packaging, rather it's stuffing or the actual "box" it comes in and reuse for 3-D items. I recycle paper from our printing at home. I receive all chipboard from work from scratch pad, legal pads, etcl... I am now trying to figure out how to store my buttons without having to buy some type of organization.
Thanks for the thread I am interested in seeing what everyone else is doing.:mrgreen:
I use old Ball canning jars to store buttons in. I have an old fish bowl that houses scrap ribbon.
Location: along the bluffs of the Upper Mississippi River
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I'm "green" in many areas. I buy as much organic food as I can, I recycle lots and also got everyone at work to recycle, I keep lights off, hand clothes to dry, I take old magazines to area laundromats, etc. When my kids were little I was even better at it. But with my card making....not so good. It's passes my mind to green up my cards but I haven't done it. Maybe I will get some inspiration from this thread.
__________________ All I want is the chance to prove money won't make me happy!
This is an odd thing to admit to, but when I have an order from Papertrey Ink I cut up the top band of paper that is around the clear boxes. (Of course I save my clear boxes). The top bands have a nice design and I can use the scraps for punches or to cut them the same shape and make lots of squares for a card background, etc...There is enough area that does not have writing on it that it seems worth saving those scraps, at least to me.
I cut up the clear box and used the pieces as "clear cardstock".
I try to participate in challenges here on SCS, so whenever I have an odd assortment of cards around (which really seems like efvryday) I put them in the clear boxes and give them as gifts. Sometimes I have a use for cards I make, and some of them I don't, or I don't personally like them but I know someone else will like them more. I consider the boxes valuable and could never cut one up!
Aw, I did not mean the boxes were not valuable - I cut it up because I loved how sturdy and thick the plastic was! That is quality plastic there!!! I used it as cover sheets for my precious clear stamps, so the actual box material IS still around - covering up my clear stamps!!
I never ever ever ever have any odd card lying around!!! I am sooooooo behind on card making!!! Every time I get one made, it is already spoken for. My husband gets first dibs on everything so if he likes it, I have to make a second one for the intended recipient. Also, my goal is to send one card a day to my nephew and niece (which, it is more like once a week).
Another thing I try to recycle is cereal boxes. I make templates from them. Also, sometimes I do cut them in half and string some ribbon through, so it can actually be a holder for something. Or I use it as chipboard, like someone else said.
Once I made a book from the backings of the watercolour paper pads (the sturdy chipboard-like backing). That took a LOT of effort though and I'm unlikely to do that again! But I can still use it as chipboard.
I like to save the containers that frosting comes in, because they are easy to alter and reuse for orgainization. Cereal boxes make a nice layer of sturdy backing---hate flimsie projects! Old magazines are fun to use the packing tape technique. Love to cut up old phone books, dictionaries, children's books........anything goes, right?
This has come up before but I can't find the thread now. Anyway, I knew I'd reposted my reply on a UK forum I belong to so I've just popped across there and copied it so here are some of the things I do...
I try to look at anything I'm about to throw in the trash and decide if it might be useful for crafting in some way. Anything with even a vague whiff of "usefulness" about it gets saved :lol:
. . .
I save stuff like ribbon or twine from packaging of things like chocolates and flowers (there's a running joke in this house about the chocolates that DH often buys me at the airport when he's been on a business trip - he has to choose the box by how useful the ribbon will be!).
I, too, will also clip ribbon, string, or twine from packages, including chocolates.
I also have been known to disassemble a cat's old collar to get the buckle portion or the metal clips on it to use for ribbon slides.
I've saved some gift cards that have decorative edges or punched designs on them so I can use them (some day) for paper piercing--I have a brass one from Target that has punched holes for 3 different sized snowflakes.
Today, I just cut apart an about-to-be discarded tissue box because it was a pretty floral pink--I might need the pretty part at some point.
I save bubble wrap and boxes to a point. I also save the packing peanuts that come with merchandise. The local UPS store will take and recycle them, which I think is great.
__________________ Brenda
<-My sibling kitties, Milo and Rousseau
I am a green stamper. I save everything. I use the plastic from my packaging instead of acetate.
I use boxes for chipboard. I cut out unusual patterns on my packaging.
Tonight my son gave me a B-day card. He got it from Hallmark. Don't shoot him, lol. It's so beautiful and he spent a fortune. The envelope was made out of nice paper. I cut it up to use on a project.
I have a shelf in one room I dedicate to recycle crafts. I also use soda cans and tin cans in my crafting.
I have repurposed small pop top cans to have for a gift. I made up a couple gifts for Christmas using them for my mom and friend that both stamp and scrap. They loved it. My friend pryed the bottom off, so she could keep from popping the top and use it again. LOL
When I buy new clothes I save the tags. Mostly on my kids clothes because some of them I redo but alot have cute sayings etc. Recently on some back to school clothes I got my DD it had two tags, a clear one with a palm tree and an orange/yellow one with a sunset. Not sure what I will use them for yet.
Also I reuse old pill bottles. I will fill them with m&m's or red hots and attach a card that says take two of these & call me in the morning. I decorate the bottle too.
I save just about everything and when I am shopping I look at the container food comes in for ideas.
Oh I almost forgot, when we go out to eat at fast food, I save the containers that fried or nuggets, etc come in to use as a pattern for future projects.
Green Stampers
