Flower Arrangements Using Recycled Plastic

How about helping the planet and creating a nice handmade gift to give to someone!

There is still a lot of plastic packaging that cannot be recycled!

This Instructable will hopefully show you how to make a really colourful, longlasting floral wreath, bouquet, arrangement, wall hangings, old picture frames, broaches and decoration.

Supplies

Used and washed carrier bags / cat food pouches / plastic food packaging

Used and washed plastic bottles

Card Packaging

Hot Glue Gun

Scissors

Lighter / candle (To singe edges of the material)

Old / Broken Jewellery Beads

Garden Wire / craft wire

Step 1: Preparing Cat Food Pouch Flowers

As you can see from the back of the pouch, it states that they are not recyclable!

Cut the sides from the pouches.

cut in half and fold and cut in half again.

carefully cut the shape of a petal out of the pieces you have cut.

Cut a small disc from cardboard / plastic packaging around 45mm diameter.

Step 2: Assembling the Cat Food Pouch Flower

Pleat the bottom edge of your petal and glue the pleated edge to the outside edge of the small card disc with a hot glue gun (be careful)!!!

Eventually you should have pleated petals slightly overlapping each other, all around the card disc!

do this again, so that you should have 2 layers of petals when put together.

Step 3: Creating the Centre to the Flower

Using an old washed white plastic bottle

cut a strip 45mm wide and about 7 inches long, sizes can vary (be creative!)

using scissors, cut thin slices 10mm from the edge all the way along the strip.

tightly spool the strip and glue the solid edge with the glue gun.

tease out the stripped side as in the photos.

Take a jewellery bead and thread the wire through, bend one side of the wire back and twist the wire together a few times.

Step 4: Assembling the Flower

Using scissors, carefully pierce a hole in the centre of both cardboard
discs and push the wire through the holes leaving a few mm for you to apply a bit of hot glue under the bead and in the centre of the top card disc.

quickly pull the wire tight from the back of the bottom card disc until the bead and layers are firmly glued together.

Step 5: Plastic Bag Flower Construction

take your used and washed plastic bag and cut petal shaped pieces as in step 1.

singe / scorch without touching the edge of the plastic with a naked flame (candle / lighter) to curl the plastic making the shape more natural.

IMPORTANT!! not too close or you'll set the plastic on fire!

Once you have enough petals, carefully hot glue the petals together, slightly overlapping them in a circular shape.

Create as many layers as you desire and be creative.

Follow step 3 for the centre flower and step 4 for assembling.

Step 6: Plastic Flower or Center Construction

Cut a strip of used and washed plastic packaging 75mm wide as long as you desire!

cut thin strips along the long edge about 2/3 of the width.

fold, glue and roll until you end up with the flower.

bend and twist a length of wire and pull through the centre and twist at the back.

This can be used as a flower or as a centre to a flower.

Step 7: Finished Flowers

Here are some other examples of flowers using different colours.

Be Creative!!

Crisp packets / chocolate wrappers / empty plastic bottles for all kinds of colours.

try using broken bracelets / necklaces / etc. for centres.