reuse & recycle d-i-y.

Shrinky Dinks are something I made growing up that still bring a smile to my face as an adult. With a little forethought and a sense of humor, you can easily reuse and recycle items in your home to make some cute key chains!

You'll need the following items:

- a plastic container, clean and free of stickers (I snagged a strawberry container out of my recycling bin)

- permanent markers

- a hole punch

Not shown:

-scissors

-a cookie sheet

-parchment paper

-an oven

- key rings

First you want to cut apart your container. Using the smooth parts (with no holes), cut out the shapes you'd like to use. I choose a rectangle and a circle (haha, kind of, I can't cut a circle for crap!). Remember to cut your plastic much larger, as it will shrink.

Punch a whole in one corner so you have room for your key ring. It's essential you make all your cuts now, the plastic will become much thicker after the oven.

Next is the fun part! Color 'til your heart's content. For Earth Day, I choose a globe and the kitschy saying "love your mother".

Heat your oven to 255 degrees. While it's heating, like a cookie sheet with parchment paper and place your designs as far apart as possible. Don't forget to discard your left over plastic back into your recycling bin!

Open a window or turn on a fan and put the cookie sheet into the oven for 5 minutes. If you see one of your designs curling, be sure to flatten it quickly with a metal spatula!

Let them cool after removing them, then attach key rings. One curled up (I purposely didn't flatten it), but it still turned out pretty neat.

You now have adorable Earth Day inspired key rings and less waste than you started with! These make cute little gifts for friends, birthdays and is easy enough to do with kiddos!

If you make some Shrinky Dinks, I'd love to see them. We've successfully covered the 3 R's today and I hope you'll join me in taking action and loving Mother Earth!

I'll be back later this evening with a post about yummy local co-ops and one of my favorite documentaries. Happy Earth Day! xo.