Recycle old CD or DVD

1. Household tips

Catch candle drips

You should always use a candleholder specifically designed to catch melting wax. However, if one is not available, a CD is great in a pinch. Make sure it's a short candle that can stand on its own with a flat bottom. It should also be slightly larger than the CD hole. Place the candleholder on a stable, heat-resistant surface and keep a watchful eye on it.

Bike Reflectors

Tape them to your bicycle wheels and use them as reflectors.

Use as sidewalk/driveway reflectors

Forget those ugly orange reflectors. Instead, drill small holes in a CD and screw it onto your mailbox post or onto a wood stake and push it into the ground. Install several of them to light a nighttime path to your front door.

Paper Plate Weights

On outdoor picnics, solve the problem of paper plates blowing away! Place three drops of glue on the outside edge of a CD-ROM and put it on the bottom of a paper plate. This will also help to stiffen the paper plate. When you throw the paper plate out, just pull the CD-ROM off the bottom.

Save Lighting Energy

Use them for reflectors on lamps, above the bulb. This magnifies the light output, without additional electric use. Make sure not to put them too close to a bare light bulb and do not put them near a halogen bulb.

Room or Doorway Screen

String the CDs into a single strands with yarn then attach the long strings to the top of a doorway to make a high-tech 60's door screen.

Hidden Plug Help

Do you ever have a problem plugging cords into the back of your computer,stereo, or other electronic device because you can't see the back without pulling the unit out? Just put some double stick tape on the non-mirrored surface of the cd, line it up with what plugs you need to find and attach it to the wall behind the appliance. Now you have a cheap (free in fact) mirror to help you out...and you don't have to worry about damaging it, as a replacement will be sent every now and again, whether you ask for it or not!

Flower Holder

When you don't have a vase that works because the stems are either too short or won't hold the flowers up - take a CD and put it over a glass of water. I put the flower stems thrugh the hole of the CD. It holds them up and the shiny surface of the CD acts like a mirror to display beautiful flowers.

Carpet Protectors

Use them under your couch and chair legs to help protect your carpet from getting the dreaded furniture indent.

2. Gardening tips

Garden Row Markers

On the CD-ROM write the name of your vegetable with a permanent marker. Glue or tack the CD-ROM to a stick and put in the ground to mark your garden rows. They may also act as a high-tech scare crow.

Scare off birds

Dangle them on a piece of string over newly planted seedlings to scare off birds - they look prettier than scarecrows when they glint in the sunshine too.

3. DIY craft projects

Use as holiday ornaments

Decorate your Christmas tree in style! Hang CDs shiny side out to create a flickering array of lights -- or paint and decorate the label side to create inexpensive personalized ornaments. For variety, cut the CDs into stars and other shapes with sharp scissors. Drill a 1/4-inch (6-millimeter) hole through the CD and thread ribbon through to hang.

Make wall art in teen's room

Old CDs make inexpensive and quirky wall art for your teenager's room. Attach the CDs with thumbtacks and use them to create a border at the ceiling or halfway up the wall. Or let your teen use them to frame his or her favorite posters.

Make artistic bowls

Looking for a funky, decorative bowl? Place a CD in the oven on low heat over a metal bowl until the CD is soft. Wearing protective gloves, gently bend the CD into the shape desired. Seal the hole by gluing the bottom edge to another surface such as a flat dish using epoxy or PVC glue. Don't use the bowl for food.

Make a decorative sun catcher

Sun catchers are attractive to watch, and all you need to make one is a couple of CDs. Glue two CDs together, shiny side out, wrap yarn or colored string through the hole, and hang them in a window. The prism will make a beautiful light show.

Create a spinning top

Turn an old CD into a fun toy for the kids (and adults too!). With a knife, make two slits across from each other in the CD hole. Force a penny halfway through the hole, and then spin the CD on its edge.

Make a CD clock

Old CDs can be functional! Turn a disc into a funky clock face for clockwork sold by arts-and-crafts stores. Paint and design one side of the CD and let it dry. Write or use stickers to create the numbers around its edge. Assemble the clockwork onto the CD.

Cover with felt and use as coasters

CDs can help to prevent those unsightly stains from cups left on the table. Simply cut a round piece of felt to fit over the CD and glue it onto the label side of the CD so that the shiny side will face up when you use the coaster.

Make invitations

If you're having a party, you can use them as invitations. Write down locations, names, phone numbers, etc. on the shiny part with a permanent marker (might need a few layers of the color)

Paint Palette

If you're an artist, use the small circular discs as paint palettes. They're easy to wash off and you can even use a few at a time.

Game Pieces

Make a large checker board with the spots the size of the CD-ROMs (eight squares by eight squares). Mark 12 CD-ROMs with a red "X" using a red marker and 12 CD-ROMs with a black "X" with a black marker. Kids will love to play a "high-tech" game of floor checkers.

Mobiles

I painted old CD's with craft paint, added stickers of all kinds, and drilled a hole and made a CD Mobile. When the wind blows them, the shiny side gives off brilliant colors and yet it is neat to see the other creative side. If you want, you can add bells, or whatever on bottom for chime effect. Fun to do!

Wind Chimes

Glue two CD's together using Tacky Glue. Let dry. Drill one tiny hole in top and five or six holes along bottom. Use permanent magic markers to decorate both sides of CD's. Draw a simple design with a black marker and fill in with the colored markers. Hang beads or metal rods from bottom holes using floss or fishing line. Tie a piece of same in top hole and make a loop for hanging. You can also decorate these C.D.'s with sequins or beads instead of the magic markers.

Bird Treat

Coat them with peanut butter or bacon grease, dip in bird seed, run yarn through the hole in the middle and attach to a tree branch.

Use as template for perfect circle

Need to draw a perfect circle? Forget tracing around cups or using cumbersome compasses. Every CD provides two circle sizes -- trace around the inner hole or the outer circumference.

Mosaics

Great for an old notebook that needs a new look. Break the CDs up into about 1/4 to 1/2 inch pieces. Arrange the pieces on the cover in a mosaic tile pattern. Use hot glue or spray adhesive to put them in place. This could look great in any mosaic pattern -- on picture frames, hat boxes, etc.

Party Decorations

Paint with black high gloss spray paint and then apply circles around the center to imitate 45 records with fun play-on- words made-up song titles and artists to go along with a 50's dance theme

Halloween Costume

Put CD's on old clothes for a high tech costume.

Teacher's Gifts

Painting apples on them, A B C, and 1 2 3. Use gold foil ribbon, drill a hole on each side at top, place beads on it, spelling teacher.

CD Psychedelic Mirror

Glue CDs onto a piece of cardboard, one right next to the other (shiny side up). Decorate the edges of the cardboard and attach it to the back of a door.

Postcards

Stamp a cute design on a piece of sticker paper and apply to the printed side of the CD. Use a permanent marker. to address on the shiny side... add .44 cents postage and drop in the mail. No envelope needed...and it's lots of fun!

Name Tags

Spray paint CDs. Hang them on strings with some beads. Write the kids names on them and hang them around their necks. They get to put a sticker on the CD each time they come. I also put their name on both sides so no matter how they swing, I still have a name.

(squidoo.com)

Mask

Things You'll Need

• Really sticky, firm tape
• Tin or aluminum foil
• Scissors sharp enough to cut foil and your tape
• Ribbon
• Paint (Optional)
• Glue (if you don't trust your tape)

1. Take 3 sheets of tin or aluminum foil. Overlap them in a stack.
2. Push the sheets at the same time onto your face. Push down as hard as you are comfortable pushing. Do it carefully, so the foil does not become punctured.
3. Make sure you have the general outline of your face: nose, lips, corners of your eyes, and cheek bones. Take your fingernail or a toothpick and gently (without tearing) trace around your eyes (it might be good to follow the bones around your eye socket) for where you want the eye holes in your mask to be. Also, trace around anything else you want cut out. (Breathing holes are useful for breathing.)
4. Carefully remove the foil from your face. Cut with sharp scissors around where you want the edges of the mask to be. (Try not to reverse the order on those two steps.) Remember: once you cut it, you can't really go back easily, so leave extra.
5. Carefully cut out the eye holes either by puncturing the foil with a tooth pick and tearing the foil out, or snipping in the center of the area with the tip of scissors and folding the foil back.
6. Cut holes/slots in the side of your mask for the ribbons/cord/shoelaces to attach it to your face.
7. Cut small sections of tape, and, while pressing the mask to your face to keep the features strong, gently place the tape onto your mask. When you feel the mask's features are firm enough, place all the sections of tape, overlapping, across all visible places of foil, including the back (foil is itchy).
8. Tie whatever you feel will work to the holes in the side of your mask, making sure to have enough length to not only wrap around your head, but tie in a nice knot/bow.
9. Use acrylic paints and paint whatever you want, making sure to leave it to dry in a spot where prying hands/curious pets/flying particles of anything won't disturb it. You can even sprinkle glitter on the paint while it's wet if you like.

Tips

• The good news is that even when covered in tape, foil retains its flexibility, so any features lost in the taping process will still conform to your face when you wear the mask.
• If you want to add on any features (horns, a pointed nose, antlers), just mold them out of foil and tape/glue them onto the mask.
• Acrylic paint dries fast. A little bit of paint goes a long way, so use sparingly and put the caps on your paint tubes.
• Use packing tape if you want your mask to look crinkly and metallic.

Paper airplane

1. Start with an ordinary sheet of 8 1/2" x 11" - 21.6 x 28 cm (U.S.standard writing paper size). The exact size is not important, it should be rectangular and not square. The paper should be at least 20 Lb. bond or copy paper.

2. Fold over the left hand corner as shown.

3. Crease

4. Result

5. Fold over the right hand corner.

6. Crease

7. Result

8. Carefully close in the sides as shown.

9. Fold down the center line from front to back.

10. Fold the resulting left hand tip up as shown.

11. Crease along the bottom edge.

12. Repeat the same procedure on the right section.

13. Fold the left hand point back.

14. Crease

15. Mirror the same folds on the right panel.

16. Bend the left panel as shown.

17. Crease from back to front only 2/3 of the way.

18. Study photos 18 and 19 carefully. These folds are difficult to describe. Try to duplicate them as shown in the photos.

19. Mirror the folds on the right.

20. Turn the plane over and fold the point back and crease as shown.

21. Turn the plane over again. The result should be similar to the photo.

22. Crease wing as shown.

23. Moisten the crease with your tongue. Do this slowly and carefully or you could receive a painful paper cut on your tongue.

24. Carefully tear off strip of paper. Save the strip of paper because you are going to need it to make the tail.

25. To make the tail, fold down the center of the strip of paper to form a trough.

26. Tear as shown to form control surfaces. The folds should be parallel with the bottom of the trough.

27. Fold wings up.

28. Fold the right wing down as shown in photos 28 and 29. Take special care to angle this fold in such a way so that the leading edge of the wing is slightly higher than the trailing edge.

29. Study this photo and you will see that the fold is not exactly parallel with the trough at the bottom but slightly angled as described in photo 28.

30. The plane should look like this at this point.

31. Bend the wingtips up.

32. Insert tail into slot under wing.

33. Finished at last!

34. Aircraft shown with landing gears down. Note: the craft does not fly as well with the gears down.

35. Ready to fly!

Paper hat

You will need: A piece of paper. A full-size newspaper would create hats of an average size. Instructions:
	1. Fold the paper from top to bottom, bringing together the two opposite ends.
	2. Crease the folded end.
	3. Fold the paper from side to side, bringing together the two opposite ends.
	4. Crease the folded end.
	5. Unfold the paper once, noting the middle crease.
	6. Fold the top left tip so that it touches the middle crease.
	7. Crease the diagonal end.
	8. This is what you should have now.
	9. Fold the other tip so that it touches the middle crease, and crease the diagonal end.
	10. Fold one bottom flap upward.
	11. Crease this folded end.
	12. Flip the paper over.
	13. Fold the other bottom flap, and crease the folded end.
	14. Tuck in the edges of the flaps so that they don't stick out. You may want to tape them.
	15. Decorate your hat.
	16. Wear it! Talk about wearing hats.

Cute apple

Materials Needed: 3 inch Terra Cotta Clay Pot 3 inch Terra Cotta Clay Saucer Small Wooden Spool Fun Foam Paint Clear Acrylic Sealer Spray Glue (hot glue gun preferred)

Instructions: Wipe down your terra cotta pot and saucer with a damp cloth and let dry completely. Paint the clay pot and saucer red (figure 1) - let dry. Paint a face on pot (figure 2). Paint the wooden spool green. Once all your paint is dry, spray it with the clear acrylic sealer. Flip the saucer upside down and place it as a lid on top of the clay pot. Glue the wooden spool on to the bottom of the saucer (figure 3). Cut a small leaf shape out of fun foam and glue it to the wooden spool. Your apple is now done! A great place to keep treasures, candy, or other small items.

Tissue box cover

The tissue box cover is essentially a single flat shape which folds up the sides of your tissue box, and is fastened at the top. This shape can be made in two different ways:

a) From a single piece of outside fabric, plus a single piece of lining.

b) From a number of pieces of outside fabric, sewn together in such a way that the pattern is always upright on all four sides of the box. Plus a single piece of lining.

These two options (and the direction of the fabric) are illustrated below:



Either method is fine - it depends on the fabric you're using and whether or not it has an obvious "right way up".

1) To create the above shape, we firstly need to figure out it's dimensions. Measure the size of your desired tissue box, taking note of the following lengths: W, H, L, X & Y:

Based on the above, this is how your cover measures up:


Don't forget to add 6mm all around for seam allowance!

2) Cut out this shape from your cover fabric using either method a) or method b). Cut out the lining fabric to match.

3) Pin the cover and lining fabrics together right sides facing. Cut two pieces of elastic each about 8cm long, and create two loops. Pin the loops in place between the fabrics, as shown:

4) Sew around the outside of the entire shape, 6mm in from the edge, leaving a gap at the end of one of the side flaps as shown above. You may like to run the machine back and forth over the elastic loops to make them extra secure.

5) Turn the piece inside out and iron flat, then hand stitch the hole closed. (Note: You may wish to test the cover on your box first, to make sure it fits nicely. If any of the flaps are too long you can always turn it back inside out and shorten them).

6) Now just position two buttons as shown below (the elastic loops should be nice and tight), and you're done!

Thank you to Heather for making the original tissue box cover from which this tute was developed!

Decorate an Old CD

Take any CD you have and color it with a marker .
Stick different kinds of embellishments.

Thouse kind of crafts can be as home decoration or even a place to put a cup.

Pen/Pencil Holder

Materials:

• Balloon
• Paper mache paste (3/4 parts glue & 1/4 parts water + newspaper strips)
• Strips of newspaper
• Strips of white paper (3 sheets or so of old computer paper works well)
• Red paint
• Green paper

Instructions:

• Prepare your paper mache paste
• Blow up the balloon until it has about a 5 inch diameter and tie it
• Cover with 2 to 4 layers of newspaper paper mache and let it dry. About 24 hours to dry unless you leave it somewhere sunny and warm.
• Don’t cover the tied part (this will be the hole for the pens/pencils).
• Cover with 2 to 4 layers of white computer paper and dry.
• Reach through the hole with a sharp pin and pop the balloon. If you can, pull out the balloon bits.
• If necessary, take a fairly damp cloth and widen the hole to the desired size. The damp cloth will soften the mache so you can work with it.
• Crush the bottom of the holder so that it stands without help. Set the holder on a damp paper towel or damp cloth for about 15 min to soften the mache. Then push gently to make a flat surface on the bottom.
• Paint the holder red and let it dry.
• Cut two simple leaf shapes from green felt or construction paper and glue to the top of the apple.

Paper-folded box

Use any rectangle or square. Try covers of magazines. The thicker the paper is, the stronger your box will be, but the harder it will be to fold; so try to maintain a good balance. Make sure all the folds are strong and well-formed.






Fold the paper in half, extend it back out and then fold each half inwards again to end up in the middle line.

Turn paper sideways and do the same exact thing as in step 1. But this time after the second fold, fold back out again and straighten the paper.

Fold the four corners inwards but do not exceed the lines that appeared after the second fold on step 2. Make sure not to fold in more than a third of the width.

Fold the edges on the middle line out over the triangles made in step 3 in a straight line.

Pull out slowly both sides over the middle line strengthening the edges and corners as you proceed.

Make two and fit them together. In order to do this, leave a little more space in the middle when you do the first fold in step 1.

Congratulations! Your paper box is at your service.
Have fun!