Thrifty Thursday: Family Fun Recycles

I've been a long time subscriber to Family Fun and I absolutely love the magazine. It's always jam packed full of fun games, stories, recipes, and ideas. While there has always been articles about reusing items for crafts, it seems lately they've stepped it up a notch. I don't have much time to sit and read so I'm usually reading last month's issue this month and I miss out on a lot of fun holiday themed crafts. Well, this month I managed to catch up and I was really quite surprised. This month made me feel nostalgic. It reminded me of how things were when I was a kid. I didn't always have the fancy toys or the newest gadgets. I had imagination though. My barbies really lived it up with their egg carton furniture and book shelf homes.

While this month's magazine featured several ideas for new uses of old things, my particular favorite is "trash town." We haven't done it yet, but I know two little boys in my house who are going to have a blast with this project. Projects like this serve so many purposes. They're teaching children to reuse and recycle items that otherwise might have been trashed and to consider the fact that just because an item had an original purpose doesn't mean that it can't have another. It's also fostering creativity and teaching children to think outside the box (no pun intended). So, if you have a few little ones (or big ones) at your house and you're looking for a fun way to play and save a bit of the planet check out "Trash Town" and please.....send me pictures:)

Look Inside >>  February 2009

Another very fun looking project uses up old gloves that have lost their mates. I think we have more unmated gloves that we do mated here in our house. Poor gloves. Usually I would recycle them into a dust rag or a door stop or finger puppets, but thanks to Family Fun, I'm once again inspired. When spring hits full force here, we're going to round up those lonely gloves and make a few Quadropus animals. Since we have enough clutter here, we'll probably also donate them to the local nursing home and hopefully spread a little cheer. Once again, if you decide to try out this adorable project please send us pictures. My kids love to see what other kids are doing.

Look Inside >>  February 2009

If you're wondering where I got the links and cool widgets from be sure to check out Coverleaf. They offer several magazines digitally and if you're lucky, you might find one that you subscribe too. I love the features they provide. For years my magazines have sat around in stacks waiting for me to clip out recipes, articles, or projects I'd like to try someday. Eventually they just end up getting recycled or donated and I never get around to those projects. With Coverleaf, I can save those articles online and have a little more space around the house. If you subscribe to any magazines it's definitely worth checking out.