Easy Easter Baskets from Recycled Grape Bags

Recycling Rioblanco grape bags easily into Easter Baskets.

I love grapes. I think I could live on them if I had to. The problem was that I had a hard time tossing the plastic bags holding the grapes which have a zipper closure at the top and room to hold other goodies.

With a few small steps, I discovered that these bags could be recycled into perfect Easter baskets.

All I did was stamp a bunny graphic onto some old tags I had lying around. I punched a hole into the front cover of the bag (only through the one layer of plastic) and threaded through some colorful yarn and tied it in a knot to secure the tag. The lucky recipient's name can then be printed on the back of the tag.

I filled the bags with Easter grass and plan to pick up some sweet treats at my next grocery run to place in the bags.

I think I will be looking for other uses for these pretty bags. They could easily hold a plastic bag filled with small plants for a spring gift. Or be filled with small pieces of cheese and crackers for a hostess gift accompanying a bottle of wine. Since they already have lovely pictures of grapes on them, this is a no brainer!

Finding Treasures at a Reuse Center

With the emphasis in our society these days to Reduce! Recycle! Reuse!, cool places like the Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse are popping up all over.

Housed in the same building as Construction Junction, which promotes conservation through the reuse of building materials, the Reuse Center is a somewhat organized place full of trash or treasure, depending on your viewpoint.

For me, I fall somewhere in the middle. I love to find some simple treasure that I can carry home and turn into something else. But because I really don't need another thing in my home, I am careful (at least some of the time) to only pick up items I think I may be able to use.

But it is so much fun to go through everything in the store, looking for that one special item which will catch my eye. On my last trip I found a few small things that I brought home (see photo above). Their value may not jump out of the photo at you, but it's possible they will become some awesome new thing. If and when they do, I will try to remember to photograph them and show you the transformation.

Check back.

For more information, visit Pittsburgh Center for Creative Reuse and  Construction Junction.

Pin Some Glamour to Your Coat

I made this pin out of a piece of .99 clearance craft item. All I had to do was glue (with strong glue) a pin back on it and attach to my winter coat.

Voila! It was so easy to do and I have gotten a lot of compliments on it. Reminds me of how back in the day  women always had pins attached to their coats. It's a trick that can add color, whimsy or elegance to your outfit.

The pin (which didn't photograph well for some reason!) is colorful enough that people think it's a spring accessory. If  that's all it takes to bring on spring, I say Yea!