Recycled Map Bangle

You will need:
Map
Glue Stick (does not need to be fancy)
Bangle Form (Use a bangle you already have to find something the same size. Mine is a coffee mug)
Decoupage medium (or liquid glue mixed with a bit of water)
Rotary Cutter (you can use scissors too, if you want)
Ruler
Board (to protect surface from blades
Memory wire
Scotch tape

*I got the idea for this from this instructable. I added a bit to make it more suitable for a larger size.

Using the rotary cutter, cut strips 3/4" wide. I ended up using thirteen 24" strips.

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Hanging Air Plant Basket from Recycled Wine Corks

One of my friends is obsessed with air plants and was moving into a new place, so I wanted to make a neat gift to welcome him to the new digs. Having just grabbed a huge box of wine corks left over from a wedding, I was eager to put them to use.

These little hanging air plant baskets feature two types of plants and can be hung in groupings or by themselves. They add a lot of charm indoor or out, and the plants are nearly impossible to kill. They make awesome gifts for your less-than-green-thumbed pals.

TOOLS:
- Hot Glue Gun
- Scissors
- Small round dish, like a tea light holder. The size of your dish will determine the size of your hanging basket and determine how many wine corks you will need.

MATERIALS:
- Thread. I used waxed linen thread that I had left over from another project, but any type will work.
- Wine corks. I used ten corks for each planter, but you can easily use more or less depending on how large you want your basket or how large the air plants are.
- Hot glue sticks
- Hemp or yarn (optional)
- Air plants. If you live somewhere that has a lot of airplants, it is likely that many of the branches that fall down during a storm or from squirrel activity have air plants on them that, if not picked up, will go right in the chipper with their fallen branch. I live in Florida and there are air plants littering the ground underneath every tree in my neighborhood, so hopefully you can find some free plants nearby your home. For my air plant hanging baskets I used Spanish Moss and this crazy ball-shaped plant.

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Recycled T-Shirt Journal - with Donkey Kong, Harry Potter, and other Nerdy Things

My husband loves to wear witty, ironic, awesome t-shirts, but he tends to go through them pretty quickly. Once the armpits get all weird and crunchy the thrift store won't take the shirts, so the clothing is destined for the trash.

There are hundreds of ways to reuse t-shirts all over the interent, but if you are a never-ending DIY-er like me, you have a vast collection of refashioned t-shirts dresses, t-shirt quilts, and t-shirt shopping bags.

I wanted to figure out another way to reuse the cool graphics of the shirts that could be replicated quickly and would appeal to the masses. 

I also kept seeing Star Wars and Nintendo shirts at the thrift shop that were fifty cents and size XXL, so I grabbed as many nerdy shirts as I could and started selling the finished journals at a local coffee shop. Maybe you can do the same.

We all have piles of shirts that we don't wear anymore, but for sentimental or hoarder reasons we are unable to get rid of a single tee. I'll show you how to use an old shirt to make a cool fabric-covered journal, and BONUS! These make great presents!

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Puppy Sweater : Recycled Socks

When I first got Mia, she could sit in the palm of my hand. At night she would cuddle in her blanket, trying to stay out of the cold. As a toy breed, not even the XS dog sweaters would fit her. Here is a inexpensive way to recycle old socks for small dogs or puppies. Enjoy!

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Self watering vertical garden with recycled water bottles

Here how i made my vertical vegetable garden, starting from used big water bottles as planters. An automatic watering system keep the right moisture, collecting water in excess, using power from pv panels and a little wind turbine (vawt)The green wall is composed by 72 water bottles cut and placed upside-down on a wooden shelf. 
Two independent  water reservoir are present: the main is placed on the side of the building and composed by eight 200 liters barrels linked together, for collecting rain water. The second one is composed by three plastic "new jersey" street barriers, that can contain 80 - 100 liters each, placed under the shelf.
The circulating system is composed by two 12v pumps, powered by a hybrid power system, a vawt turbine in conjunction with two 10w pv panels.
Energy is stored in a 12v car battery via charge controller and a timer regulate the watering cycle (at this moment the set up is 1 min at 7 am and 1 minute at 7 pm.
Water is pumped from second reservoir to the top of the shelf, into a PVC pipe ( Dia 4 cm) where i drilled eighteen 3 mm holes (one for each planter of the first row). After moisten the first row, water go down to the rows below until go back to the starting tank.
With hand activated valve i can refill the second reservoir with rain water from blue barrels.

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Recycled Pallet Rain Barrel Stand

The city we live in is under year round water restrictions, so having a rain water collection system helps keep the garden growing while reducing stress on the city water supply. The city supports water collection by supplying barrels and fittings as a DIY kit at a nominal cost to homeowners. We purchased two 55 gallon pickle barrels ($15 each) and associated fittings ($15 each) from the City for a total of $60. Pickle barrels will sporadically pop up on craigslist anywhere from $5 to $30 each, so the city option was cost effective one stop shopping.

To support the barrels, a stand was constructed from recycled shipping pallets which I was able to find on craigslist for free. This Instructable details the construction of the rain barrel stand, and the assembly of the rain barrels to enable rain water collection. The remaining decking planks from the pallets were used to make a trellis to surround the tanks so that we can grow a creeper around them to beautify the installation.

Initially our plan had been to use the rain water for our vegetable garden. Several resources on the web including university research reports advise against this due to the chemicals present in the typical USA asphalt shingle roof, and the presence of bacteria from birds, squirrels and other animals. Things might be different in your country but research first. Anyway, the water is perfectly good for watering your lawn, shrubs and other non-edibles which is a major water source of water consumption anyhow. So lets get building!

It's quite likely that I will miss a tool/part/material or 7 from this list. If you see something pop up in a photo that wasn't on the list, get that item as well!

For the recycle pallet stand: 3 x Pallets – I used standard 42” pallets. Make sure you select heat treated pallets – search Instructables for detail information on pallet types. Claw Hammer – a roofing hammer would be ideal Big Hammer – I found a 3lb hammer to be a great help Pry bar – longer is better. I used a 18” pry bar Electric/Battery Drill Kreg Pocket Hole Kit with 1 -1/2” and 2-1/2" pocket hole screws 1-1/4" All weather screws for screwing down the decking Miter Saw Table Saw Woodworking clamps
For the trellis Table saw to cut the decking planks into 1" wide strips Miter saw to cut strips to length and cut joining strips as needed Nail gun and air compressor to drive nail gun with ¾” brads (18 gauge) Elmer Max waterproof wood glue Square – carpentry or roofing square Measuring tape
For the rain barrels: 2 x 50 gallon Pickle barrels. Check craigslist in your area for the best pricing. Faucet with standard ¾” house thread for connecting a garden hose Hose Reel Leader hose for connecting the two barrels together Replacement house nut Dual channel valve 1 ½” PVC tube 6 foot long and right angle PVC fitting for the same 5/8” Drill bit for the faucet. 1” spade drill bit for the PVC fitting 6 foot lung plastic gutter extensions (the extensions supplied in the kit from the City were too short for my barrel location Gauze/Mesh to use as a leaf trap Utility knife Heatgun for shaping the overflow tube Channel Locks (Waterpump pliers) for assembling the faucet That's all for the materials. And here's the disclaimer:
Please make sure you understand safe working practices for your power tools. They can cause serious injury very quickly. Make sure your wear appropriate safety equipment recommended in the manuals that came with your power tools. Always read the manuals for safe operation. A power saw can kick the work piece back at you at high velocity - always work outside of the "line-of-fire" - check your manual..

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Build this Easy, DIY Desk Lamp from Recycled Blank or Burned CDs

Remember when burning CDs was a thing, and everyone had stacks and stacks of blank or burned CDs stored on spindles? Well, if you still have some of those spindles and no need for the CDs anymore, this easy DIY project turns them into a fun desk or hanging lamp, perfect for your workspace or home office.

The project comes to us from the folks at Hack a Day's new Life.HackaDay page, and the video above does a great job of showing you how to build both types of lamps, the desk style and the hanging style. All you need in both cases is an under-counter LED strip-light, a ton of used CDs, and either some sturdy wire or a nice long rope to make it all work.

The whole process only takes a couple of minutes, and you won't even need any special tools. It's a fast and simple project, the end product doesn't look horrible, and a great way to put those spindles of blank or burned CDs you have lying around to good use. Hit the link below for more detail and photos of the finished product, all lit up so you can see what it would look like on your desk.

2 Minute Recycled CD Lamp. No Tools Required. | Life.HackaDay

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Recycled ikea-bag backpack

Waterproof, hardwearing, cheap and made from recycled materials this bag is ideal for outdoor use, such as carrying climbing gear and ropes. This was made using things I had lying around the house, for example the toggles came from an old raincoat. You can be inventive and adapt/swap materials to what you have available. You will need:

1) 1x Ikea bag and part of a second one
2) An old backpack - only the back and handles need to be in good shape, I used one where the bottom of the bag had fallen out
3) A pair of shoelaces
4) 2x small toggles
5) sewing thread

Equipment:
1) sewing needle,
2) scissors

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3D Objects from Recycled Materials

This instructable is part of "something out of nothing" series, this time "nothing" is material - recycled paper, banana skins and more. I've actually came across this idea, making sheets of paper for my art and soon realised that I get left over pulp, which goes to waste and could be used to make other things. This is how I started making 3D paper objects, that are not just nice to look at, but can be useful too and actually more fun to make. 

Materials:

recycled paper
banana skins (optional)
grasses, flower pedals (optional) 

Tools:

blender

There are countless objects to be made of paper pulp. Some suggestions: cup for organising pencils or bowl for coins and other small items; make the lid and here's a great box for jewellery and other stuff that need to be protected from dust. Balls on rope could be useful for making christmas decorations.

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