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For these sorts of projects, reclaimed papers – like used wrapping paper or junk mail – are a great supply! For paper crafters that are into origami, reclaimed paper can work well, too. Magazine pages are a joy to fold, and junk mail makes good origami paper. The trickiest area for using green paper products is with archival paper crafts, like scrap booking. Scrap bookers need paper and embellishments that are acid free, and that can be a little bit harder to track down....

You know we love a good t-shirt reuse project around here, so I was pleased as punch when reader Nancy Sharp was kind enough to share her idea for reusing a sentimental t-shirt that was past its prime: Nancy was kind enough to share a photo of the shirt all framed up! Very cool. How have you guys repurposed your old t-shirts when they’re not wearable anymore? Do you have any fun reuse projects in the works?...

Did you guys know that Crafting a Green World is part of a whole network of awesome, environmentally-focused blogs? We are part of the Important Media Network, which means that we get to work with some great writers in areas ranging from ethical beauty products to sustainable food to solar power. We call the other sites on the Important Media Network our “sister sites,” and this week we’re introducing you to a couple of the sister sites that we work most closely with....

Soy-gel is made from soybeans by Franmar Chemical and works way better than all the stinky, nasty stuff you find in the hardware stores. And it works without all the toxic checmicals and odor. My husband and I were able to use it in our basement without stinking up the whole house. (For safety you should still crack a window but honestly I didn’t smell a thing and I have the nose of a Bloodhound)....

This winter has actually been pretty mild here in Atlanta, but even if temps haven’t been particularly brutal, the dry air has done a number on my skin. These sugar scrubs for winter skin will help exfoliate and moisturize to heal your dried out hands, feet, knees, and elbows! Sugar scrubs work best when you store them in an airtight container. I like to use mason jars or reclaimed glass jars....

These embroidery floss macrame pendants are a little more challenging than, say, my yarn tassel or Ojo de Dios summer camp crafts, but I think they’re suitable for older elementary kids on up. I love that you can use this simple macrame technique to make a pendant that will hold anything your heart desires, from a favorite rock to the prisms in these photos to a toy dinosaur. Size the floss down to make finer jewelry, or size up to cotton cording to make plant hangers....

What You Will Need: An empty coffee can. I used a small one, but any size will do. Recycled paper. I used book pages. Crayons Brown spray paint. If you can, use a low VOC spray paint— it’s more eco-friendly! Hot glue/hot glue gun How To Do It: Clean your coffee can. Spray paint the coffee can brown. Remember, multiple light coats will give you the best results with spray paint....

Want to do better? Whether you want to incorporate just a few eco-friendly ideas or go whole-hog sustainable, check out the following plans to green every part of your Easter basket. Have tips of your own to contribute? Please add them in the Comments, and together we can build a community-driven ideas resource. The Basket candle holder: Empty jars from container candles make excellent small-sized Easter baskets–think teacher gifts, party favors, or baskets for older kids who’d rather have gift cards than stuffed bunnies....

1. Repurposed Plush PlazaBella Dolls made the sweet little plushie above from repurposed sweaters! Bonus points if you use eco-friendly stuffing. You can use leftover thread and teensy scraps to amend your stuffing materials, so it won’t take as much new material. You probably wouldn’t want to use all scraps to stuff, though, because the finished piece would come out a bit lumpy. Next » Bottlecap Rainbow

Vegan Yarns This big pitfall with yarn is wool. Wool comes from sheep, which means it’s not a vegan product. While smaller farms might treat their sheep humanely, commercial wool comes with a huge dash of animal cruelty. Sheep live in terrible, unhygenic conditions and suffer from mistreatment and cruel practices all in the name of producing merino and other wool yarns. If you want to read more details on the horrors of commercial wool production, This Dish is Veg does an excellent job of explaining what’s cruel about wool....

Pillows are a good beginner craft project, and there are lots of ways to make a pillow. We’ve rounded up four beginner-level pillow tutorials to get you going! There are even lots of kinds of pillows that you can make. Sure, there are throw pillows you can whip up for the sofa or your favorite chair, but you can also make therapeutic pillows to soothe aches and pains. We love a good pillow tutorial around here, and I scoured our archives for some of the best beginner pillow projects that I could find....

Cork is a great jewelry material. It is 100% recycled and recyclable, flexible, and water repellent. Each piece is individually cut from a single block used for storage and display. Will fit men and women. Sold by STUDIO 1 a.m. for $48 Designed & Made by Donna Piacenza

Welcome back to my two-part series teaching you how to make EPIC embellished building blocks for your kids. On Monday, we took this set of building blocks that PlanToys gave me for free to embellish and personalize, and my kiddo and I stained them these vibrant colors using liquid watercolors. After the building blocks were all colorful and beautiful, however, we still wanted to do something else special to them....

Spending a happy Sunday afternoon digging through the bins at the Goodwill Outlet Store, I happened upon the awesomest huge alphabet blocks. Nevermind that both my daughters are just a bit too old for alphabet blocks–in my house, we do not turn down such things as vintage blocks, painted on two sides and featuring woodcuts of a letter and something awesome that starts with that letter on the other two sides....

Has reality set in yet? Kids, job, partner, just doesn’t equal farm bliss. Well listen up and take heed. You can now, partially, live out your dream of running away to tend sheep with a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) share from Martha’s Vineyard Fiber Farm. With a share in the Farm you buy into the Farm and have a stake in its success. The goal is to have yarn or bats for spinning at the end of the process, but you get so much more....

Eco Wool comes in DK weight in 50 gram balls. It looks quite lovely and natural. This yarn comes in five different and natural shades. Each skein is created by blending the natural colors of raw wool. No dyes or chemicals are used in the processing of this yarn. I especially love the color Earth and Flint. What’s yours?

We’re right smack in the middle of Fall festival season, and I’ve been sewing up a storm! All that time hunched over the cutting table and sewing machine is definitely taking its toll on my body, and I’m sure I’m not the only crafter that suffers aches and pains after a crafting marathon. Rather than pop a couple of ibuprofen this year, I’m trying to relieve my muscles a little more naturally with yoga poses that target parts of my body that take the most abuse during this time of year....

The key to sewing all the zippered pouches that my heart can handle is the stash of tons of reclaimed zippers in my notions bin. They are all taken from old pairs of jeans, and all the perfect size for a zippered pouch. If you sew, and especially if you enjoy refashioning clothing or upcycling pieces to give them new lives, you should be reclaiming the zipper from every single pair of pants that wanders through your workshop....

Since then, my mind has been truly turned on to all the glorious ways that one can upcycle Altoids tins. I’ve been begging them off of all the mint fiends in my life so I can make myself more little shadow boxes and organizers and a million other things. Thank goodness for Freecycle, because the mint afficionados in my life cannot keep up! Here are my current favorite ways to upcycle Altoids tins, because if I can’t beat my upcycling obsession, I might as well get you to join me!...

Cardboard and toilet paper roll tree Toilet paper roll wall art Make a toilet paper roll cuff DIY toilet paper roll yarn holders TP wreath Toilet paper roll shamrock Toilet paper tube snake Recycled toilet roll curtain Toilet paper roll apples Toilet paper roll leaf tree Christmas lights Book page pillow boxes 7 steps to starting a garden with seedlings in TP rolls Make a heart stamp Toilet paper roll valentine...