Thursday, April 22, 2010

Crafting with Recyclables - Design a Robot Kit

In honor of Earth Day, I thought we would do another fun craft with recyclables -- a kit to design your own robot! Of course, we craft with recyclables year round, since it's better for the environment, plus I consider them to be free art supplies. Emily has been on a robot kick lately, as seen here, so this craft was a big hit at our house!

To make the robot, I used an empty potato chip bag, washed it thoroughly and allowed it to dry completely. Then, I turned the bag inside out, and cut several shapes for the front and back of the head, body, arms, and legs. I ran each piece through my sewing machine with a zig-zag stitch around the outline, and trimmed them with pinking shears.

My original idea was to attach magnets to the backs of each piece and let Emily have a go at designing her own robot on the refrigerator. However, Emily preferred to have all the pieces sewn together, and instead decorated her robot with gem stickers (to look like lights!).

I wasn't sure whether or not the stickers would work on the mylar surface, but they stuck just fine! She added lots of "lights" to her robot!

Then... play!!!

I never knew a robot could be such a cuddly friend!

I think a smaller version of these robots would make fantastic gift tags for a special birthday gift! Happy Earth Day!!

For more craft ideas featuring recyclables, check out our Recycling Craft Round Up!

20 comments:

Mark said...

Dear Valerie,

Hey.. what did you do with the chips that were in the bag?

MY POTATO CHIPS!!!

Love,
Mark

An Almost Unschooling Mom said...

Oooh, the gift tag idea is excellent - I wonder if poptart wrappers would work? Not that we have any of those around our house! :)

Valerie @ Inner Child Fun said...

@ Mark -- Nom nom nom nom nom!!! CRUNCH! MUNCH!!! Mmmm...... ;-)

Ticia said...

Oh man, my boys would love this. I do the same thing with crafts from time to time, construct them with my sewing machine.

Valerie @ Inner Child Fun said...

@ An Almost Unschooling Mom -- Oh, pop tart wrappers should work perfectly! What a great idea! Potato chips never last long in our house.

Valerie @ Inner Child Fun said...

@ Ticia -- It might be fun to fill them with some stuffing too. The sewing is very quick, only a few minutes. Have fun!

Christy Killoran said...

Collin is all about robots lately. He would love this. I love the gift tag idea too.

Suddenly I am craving potato chips.

Natalie PlanetSmarty said...

OK, I would never ever think of that. Obviously this robot is super cuddly too :)

Anonymous said...

you are so awesome and creative! that's so great!

Valerie @ Inner Child Fun said...

@ Christy -- How neat! Emily has several friends (boy & girls) who are really into robots now too. So fun!!

@ Raising a Happy Child -- I thought about using chip bags as liners for reusable snack bags... just haven't tried it yet!

@ Sew Impatient -- Thank you so much!! xoxo

Sherri said...

Love this idea...and her hug says it ALL!

Joyful Learner said...

Emily has the best toys!! We need to get some potato chips in our house!

Have a great time at the concert! We missed The Peter and the Wolf this year but hope to catch it next year!

Debby@Just Breathe said...

This is a great idea. I love how shiny it is.

Petula said...

That is so cute and cool. You're right, gift tags would be awesome!

Jen said...

so clever!

katherinemarie said...

seriously WONDERFUL!!!!

Merry said...

That is a super cute idea! She looks like she loves her new robot!

Night Owl Mama said...

Omgosh too sweet I love her hugging it in the end

Mama King said...

I love the idea of sewing it together. So clever! This is a craft even the youngest crafter would love.

Anna said...

I have a robot loving boy who doesn't like to craft, but I might be able to persuade him with this one. Thanks.

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