We no longer live in a cement urban jungle, we live in a plastic one. To celebrate World Oceans Day Maira Hermann Zeh has uncovered some novel ways to use plastic at home
Plastic saver #1 Bottle vertical garden
This is the perfect project for spring to get your green finger-tips tingling no matter how great or small your humble abode may be. A vertical garden is ideal to grow small plants and you can do it even in very small spaces. Plus, you can stock your kitchen ladder with things like herbs, lettuces and smaller fruits and vegetables such as strawberries, tomatoes and chillies. These are just a few ideas to get your green juices going but the world really is your oyster.
You can get a pretty amazing visual effect by stacking them vertically because the bottles are hidden from view depending on the plants you use. Or, you can spread them horizontally all over an entire brightly-coloured wall if you have the space.
For the full instructions on how to build the vertical stack, click here.
Plastic Saver #2 Spoon chandelier
What about an UBER COOL Scandinavian-style chandelier to take centre stage in your dining room that will cost you next to nothing? And the best bit is that it’s good not only for the eyes but also for the soul AND Earth! All you need to make this beautiful chandelier is a 5L round (not the square ones) plastic bottle, a bunch of plastic spoons and some hot glue. And actually, you can also use as a modern decorative vase as well so it’s a DOUBLE WAMMY! And you can find more designs here.
Plastic Saver #3 Totally groovy 70’s style lava-lamp
For readers out there craving a little piece of 1970’s nostalgia, this is the project for you. AND you don’t really need to do much, the trick is the water-oil mixture inside, some bright neon-coloured food colourings and an AlkaSeltzer tablet to kickstart the bubbly-licious show. And if you want to hypnotise your kids to get a little well-deserved moment of peace you absolutely need to try this. For full instructions on how to make this cool piece of 70’s memorabilia, click here.
TIPS:
- To maximise the visual effect of your home-made lava lamp, place a whole bunch of them together and shine a light through them. Perfect if you are thinking about a 70’s-themed dinner party. And for a ghostly nightly glow, instead of using water, use tonic water and make it fluoresce with dark light. Home-based cooler-than-cool nightclub, TICK.
- You can make a permanent version using isopropyl alcohol and rubbing alcohol instead of the alka-seltzer tablet.
Plastic Saver #4 Plastic bottle vase
Are you, like me, fed up with the extremely fast turnover of all your beautiful crystal vases? Do all your glass and crystal pieces resonate in fear and spontaneously break as soon as your husband gets home from work? If, like most people out there, you have a husband (or wife for that matter), kids, a friend, a flatmate that breaks something every single day to the point of making you believe they are keeping the global glass industry moving by themselves, then this is a super-cool idea to try. Find the full instructions on WikiHow
Plastic Saver #5 Pop-top lamp shade
This one is really functional and fun to make. You can go for a monochrome minimalist look or full-neon to decorate the kids bedroom. And all the equipment you need is a lamp shade with the top and bottom hoops and a whole load of pot-top can openers. For the full set of instructions click here.
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