Take your trash and turn it into a fun activity to do with children to help them organize their pencils, markers and other desk supplies. I am entering this Instructable into the Tape Contest since you use Washi tape to make the project, or you can use Fabric Washi Tape as well (I love using this type a tape since I sell it in my Etsy shop). But I was thinking of entering it into the "Trash to Treasure" Contest, and everyone has to agree that as humans we have a lot of Toilet paper tubes going into the trash.

Funny story, when I was in High School we got our house tee-peed a few times since both my brother and I were in Sports, this is where our teammates came and threw toilet paper around our house and up into the trees. My mother doesn't like to waste things, so she had us pick it all up and put into bags and we USED that toilet paper, for well #1's and #2's, it was so embarrassing so we asked our teammates not to ever do that again. We won't be doing that here :) Thank goodness, but we will be using those toilet paper tubes that are inside, plus an old empty cereal box, or any type of box that you get from the grocery store and are going to throw out (cake box etc.)

Back to not entering it in the "Trash to Treasure" contest, even though I am using what most people consider Trash, I don't think many people would consider a pencil holder "treasure" unless you have kids like mine where they have pencils, pens and markers ALL over the place, then this is most definitely a treasure, an organizational treasure.

Let's get Started!

Step 1: Supplies

Let's get our supplies ready!

Empty Cereal Box
Toilet Paper Tube (the inner cardboard cylinder)
and washi tape of course or fabric washi
Scissors
Clear Tape

Step 2: Get Your Holder Ready

Okay we want to plug up one side of the toilet paper tube, open up your cereal box to lay flat. Ask a parent to help you with this step if you are younger, we will be drawing a circle around one end of the tube, since the tubes are sometimes not perfectly round, make a mark on where you are starting on both the toilet paper tube and the cereal box. (see picture above)

Cut out your circle from the cereal box and line up the lines and place 2 pieces of clear tape on each side, just to hold the tube and cereal box bottom in place until we put the washi tape on, the clear tape will stay on, see picture 2.

Trim if needed with scissors so the bottom is flush to the toilet paper tube.

Step 3: Now the Fun Part

Let's Washi it Up!

Place the first strip, with a little bit hanging from the bottom and from the top, see first picture, stick those to the inside or to the bottom,

Continue adding strips around, with washi tape you can just tear it, as you go. If using fabric washi tape, you may need scissors, although the Washi Thin Strips that I sell in my shop are the perfect size for the toilet paper roll and no cutting is necessary with them.

This is an easy and fun step for the kids to do all by themselves, let them pick out their favorite washi tape and watch them have fun, be sure to place only washi tape that has a color to it, if they are clear background then the "color" of the toilet paper tube will show through (see picture 3) You will not have a problem with this if you are using Fabric washi.

See pictures 4 and 5 for how the bottom and inside will look.