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Play: Beautiful junk


Creating toys and activities for children from recyclable materials or "beautiful junk" is important for two reasons:

  • Common household materials are an inexpensive way to provide play opportunities for young children


  • Children's creativity and thinking skills can be developed while at the same time you are being an environmentally conscious parent

The following list can be used along with scissors, glue, yarn, paint and markers, in order to construct and create anything the child's imagination suggests:

  • egg cartons
  • milk cartons (all sizes)
  • plastic containers, bottles and jugs with lids
  • boxes (large and small)
  • aluminium pie plates
  • styrofoam trays
  • paper towel and toilet rolls
  • cardboard tubing
  • old wrapping paper
  • road maps
  • muffin tins
  • popsicle sticks
  • old clean paint brushes
  • wooden clothes pegs
  • used envelops
  • old Christmas cards
  • old pantyhose
  • netting
  • paint chips/samples
  • pamphlets
  • brown paper bags
  • buttons (all colours, shapes and sizes
  • egg shells
  • coffee cans and lids
  • empty film canisters
  • juice lids
  • carpet samples
  • spools; ribbon rolls
  • bottle caps
  • yarn; ribbons
  • magazines; catalogues; calendars
  • cloth scraps of different fabric
  • leather or suede remnants
  • lace, trim or rick rack
  • cardboard
  • hangers
  • beads; old jewellery
  • wood scraps; dowels; nails
  • discarded wallpaper sample books
  • inner tubes
  • pipe lengths
  • old newsprint

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