A couple of weeks ago, I started these new series where I share with you ideas for hobbies that you can try on 2025 and today I will show you ways to recycle everyday items to use them for your craft projects.
Project ideas for miniature making
- Dolls
- Doll houses
- Fairy gardens
- Craft spaces (a fashion design/art home studio)
- Food
- Campfires
- Beach/tropical scenery
- Animals and pets
- etc.
Everyday items to use for your craft projects
Egg cartons
Egg cartons are very useful and easy to upcycle. You can use the carton to make paper mache which could also act like air dry clay for your craft projects. But for miniature making, you can use egg cartons for textured walls, or to create other different types of furniture. If you are making food, egg cartons could provide the perfect texture for dough and meat. Experiment and get creative with it.
Compact mirrors from your old makeup products
Of course you could up-cycle these to become full sized-mirrors for the rooms of your doll house. But you can also cut them into smaller pieces that serve as stone floors for your fairy gardens, or make them into paint palettes for your miniature craft spaces.
Toilet and kitchen paper rolls
If you have ever been a child, you know that these could make 90 percent of any creative project. Architectural features, tables, chairs, you name it. A paper roll is a treasure for any DIY craft maker.
Scrap fabric
This may not be the most accessible everyday item to use for your craft projects, but if you have some scrap fabric on hand, you know that you can make so much out of it. Clothes for a felt doll, furniture lining and covers, wallpapers, curtains, carpets, literally anything that requires a pattern or covering to be elevated.
Corks
You could use them as plant bases, smaller chairs for smaller spaces, cut them into thinner circles and use them for decor pieces, trays, plates, etc. The fact that you can stick things to cork pieces and have them hold shape makes it a highly useful item for crafting miniatures.
Buttons
Buttons could be used as paintings, table tops, they could also be used for texturing things and they could be used as flooring in a miniature fairy garden or a camp fire.
Old Books
Certainly, you can use the back of a book as a roof for your miniature house, but you can also use the papers from it for different projects. Again, could be great as wallpapers, carpets, you name it.
Toothpicks
Toothpicks can be used to keep your items in a structured standing position. They don’t have to be seen, they could be hidden inside. You can however, use them for other purposes such as thinner frames, staircases, as broom sticks, etc.
Popsicle sticks
Think doors, window frames, bed frames, and other things that would make your miniature art project come together and look the most realistic.
