trash_minis_plastic

Page history last edited by Linda McD 2 months ago

Trash to treasure miniatures from plastic- how to change trash to minis for dollhouses, roomboxes and dioramas - T2T

Pop bottles, jars. lids

What can you make with them?

Also see trash minis, and trash minis organic

bottle cap

cake - by Millimari
cakes - by Leilani
footstool - by Deborah
wedding cake by Maureen Heuchert, coated with gesso (which can be tinted for coloured frosting effect. She used bunka and lace for trim. Numbered birthday cake candles are number stickers with a bit of thread sticking up.
many caps can be used as wastepaper baskets. Clear ones can be given an almost porcelain look if they're painted on the inside – or if a design is pasted or painted on the inside.
Some shampoo bottles have a flip top lid. If the top of the bottom portion is cut out and glued to the bottom of the cap, you can make a nice flip top garbage can or laundry basket. You can even make it look more realistic if you cut a small hole at the front bottom and insert a tiny foot pedal. Something like this.
toothpaste caps are good as plant pots and as lamp shades
pie tins
snack or fruit bowls
Easter/holiday baskets
foot stools
kids tables/chairs
cooking pan - drill hole in the side for a handle, glue a toothpick or staple in place, paint.

bottle cap inserts

paint a gold line around the outside to look like a fancy glass plate and put some Fimo cake in the middle.
to hold the fabric lampshade in little nursery bedside lamps, cut a hole in the middle where the lamp pole made from dowel goes through, then glue all around the outside edge and place the mini lampshade around.
make a stack of dirty dishes for in the sink, paint the liners to look like plates, use dimensional fabric paint to add the left over food bits and fill your sink.
a clear one might work for the glass in the door of a clothes dryer.

breath strip holders

in and out boxes for a desk
scanners

bottle cap rings

cut in half, makes a basket handle.
form for a wreath

computer keyboards

there is a little rubber plunger that acts as a spring to allow the user to press the key and then have the key return to its original position. The key word here (okay, pun intended) is "plunger." With just a little work one keyboard can produce enough plumber's helpers to keep Windsor Castle free of clogs forever.
keys turned upside down make great planters.

dental floss box

mail box - by Pajupupu
Next time you go to your hygienist appointment: keep the little bowl she uses to polish your teeth and the little rubber cup that she has in her hand piece to apply the polishing paste. Makes good miniatures like hats and planters.

deodorant stick container

miniature aquarium - using a deodorant stick container, by Pauline Kretler

dessicant container

disposable razor covers

magazine shelves
flower/window boxes.
covers for mini fluorescent light fixtures.

dosette

kitchen shelf - by Pajupupu

egg carton

yellowish and tan foam egg cartons make cookies. Compress the foam a little and then punch out shapes and decorate. The pink foam make nice heart cookies for Valentine's Day.
white cartons make S'more marshmallows, or egg whites...

eye drop bottle

limonade bottles - by Raijabee

film cannisters

for storing rolled paper rolls in an art shop or a Christmas scene
clothes hamper - use a very textured wallpaper, to look like wicker to cover, a little round piece on the lid and a large bead for a handle, glue the lids on, partly opened and glue a small piece of old bandage hanging out ....looks like a towel.
for shipping. if you have a mini item that can't be squished, then put a little fun-tak on the bottom of the item, stick it to the underside of the lid, and snap the canister on over the item. It doesn't move. Make a tiny hole in the lid. If it gets rough treatment and gets squashed it is less likely to pop the lid.
for storage - baked coffee grounds, small amounts of polymer clay, push pins,beads, Dremel drills and accessories
minis hat boxes - trim to desired height
trash cans
containers for mixing paint
planter barrels
Fimo storage.

fruit baskets

window mullions, balconies - just cut to order and paint!

game pieces

Paint the little houses and use the car and hat from Monopoly, use Scrabble tiles for books, dominos for mini-shelves, side tables, bingo markers for plates or lamp bases, Trouble markers for vases and other containers, dice for mini blocks, Checker trays or wall plaques, chess pieces for garden/castle statuary, gate posts, bases for furniture or hat stands. Don't forget about the Borrowers - a great project for those not quite the right scale items! The Mousetrap game has a bathtub, slide, piping. Don't forget Clue pieces - the candlestick, rope, revolver, etc.

hairbrush bristles

This is what they look like.
Lipstick in lipstick tubes
Bead tops for perfume bottles
Small scale microphones
Lollypop sticks
Drumsticks for a toy drum
Stir-sticks or straws for drinks

jars, containers and lids - plastic

save the lids for paint pallets, THEN throw them in the recycle bin!
cut an x in the bottom of a cottage cheese container and insert glue bottle upside down to keep tip from clogging.
use the clear hard oblong lettuce containers for storing your minis!
window glass

jelly container

craftroom drawers by katsway74
cat litter boxes - just paint and sand and seal with glue
sinks - paint underside white, add press stud for drain

juice container plug

baby swing seat
baby nursery mobile
kitchen towel rings
patterned bottom of juice bottle makes a nice ceiling medallion

ketchup bottle cap

craft basket - by Raijabee

lemon juice container

Citrus Motors- home of the lemon (car sales store)
lemonade stand

pizza table

office chair - by Stello

plastic cutlery

Pickle forks make perfect spindles for staircases
Use knives for spreading glue, serrated edge creates faux patterns for furniture paint finishes
Fork creates even lines in a balsa plank, simulating carving.

plastic foam egg cartons

stack about three cut-off cups one inside the other for a handy pin cushion that cleans the glue and wet paint off picks and needle tools.
use the sides for flat chair and seat back cushions to upholster in 1:12 scale. (Press the edges down.)
useful in 1:48 quarter scale for furniture elements.
use punches to punch out cookies, pancakes, thin cake layers, and other foods; frosting or otherwise painting them as needed.
engrave/etch cobblestone or brick shapes into the foam and paint.

plastic toy animals

elephant - Cut all four legs off. Hollow out from top. Put canes (and/or umbrellas) in the best
one - - - swap or gift off the other three. Mount head over a LARGE fireplace - Put back half in an adjacent room.

plastic child's bracelet

hula hoop
kiddie wading pool

plastic clothes tag barb

in QS use foor wine bottles.
use plastic thread for a straw, or a handle for candy apples/lollypop.
use the rectangle flat end to make nameplates for your flower or vegetable bed

plastic containers and packaging

shower and toilet by Stello - playscale
cosmetic display - by Askartaja
use a pop bottle for the structure, make a scene inside
cut to size, use as window glass
the plastic pieces that hold such things as gum, lozenges, pills are sometimes the right shape and size to make loaf pans.
the stem inside some glue sticks is great for a spiral candle. Cut into desired lengths and paint or leave white.
the round butter/margarine containers from restaurants make good dishpans and round sinks. set into a counter. They can also be used as storage bins in a child's bedroom or in a miniature craft room.
clear plastic razor cartridge: makes shelves. When painted white on the outside only and covered with a mirror: makes a bathroom cabinet
pop bottles make great dust covers while the finish coat is drying. Cut the tops off several sizes of bottles. After putting on varnish, polyurethane, etc. just flip one of these over the mini until it dries.
depending on how the bottom is made & the size of the bottle, these make great temporary containers for paint, stain, glue, water, mineral spirits, beads, brads, etc. Just cut off the bottom to the height you need.
look at your empties. One with a ridged band around the center looks just like window frame molding in about the right scale for 1/12. Experiment: cut out and glue to a plain strip of basswood. Paint and try as molding for windows, fireplace trim, etc. Another one has 1 /4" stripes of 1/4" dimples. Several possibilities there for using as decorative trim depending on whether the depressed side or the opposite raised side is desirable. Use in strips or cut apart for the individual dimples. Again, depending on the design of your bottle, strips can be cut, painted, and used as border edging in your mini garden.
glass - just about everything you buy these days, if it doesn't come in a box, comes in a rigid plastic "bubble". Don't throw any of these away without first looking at its potential for "glass". Use in picture frames, for windows in your house, on table & vanity tops, in ponds, or to cover anything to make it shiny!! Study them all!!
cut out designs from the plastic to make a mobile. You can use the plastic from the clear ones to use as a TV or computer screen.
Use a Recycled Plastic Pencil Cap to Make a Dollhouse Miniature Pitcher- from About.com

plastic grapes

Pull stems from some old plastic grapes, insert florist wire as"strings. (twist the top of the wire into a circle and "screw into the grape. Use white caulking to fill the hole in. Then paint them bright balloon colors. Glue to dolls hand!

plastic needlepoint canvas

bathroom cabinets with shelves & a curved top with a matching wall cabinet & waste basket. Sew the sides together with yarn.
round canvas can be used for a toy train track
cut into pieces for ice-cubes
trellis, lattice trim
crates - tie with wire
hanging flower baskets - put green floral foam in and stick in flowers and vines from all angles
trays, bed trays, bins, folding screens, trellis, toy furniture for dolls, bookcases, telephone tables,
hamster cage (just snip out horizontal pieces and leave bars). A little strip bent round makes a nice exercise wheel to go in it.
make the ventilated shelving like you find in closets.

plastic straws

bendable straws make piping or chimneys for pot-bellied stoves
make paper chains from coloured straws

pony beads

punch a 1/4" round of poster board and paint it gold, silver, or color of your choice and glue to the top of any color pony bead, adding a label to one side to complete the illusion. For a very pretty bubble bath bottle, stack 4 or 5 tri-beads, sometimes called propeller beads, with glue in between. Top with a round gold bead for the cap.

push pins

sundaes - cut off the pin, apply a dollop of Polyfilla, glass paint for syrup...
To remove the pin, just under the metal pin for a moment heat it and then take a pair of pliers and it pulls out easy peasy.