Most of us remember taking tons of pictures with 35mm cameras and somehow amassing a huge collection of those little sealed, airtight canisters that film came in. Maybe it’s because I describe myself as a pack rat or because of my creative nature, but over the years I started collecting a number of those little canisters that the movie came in, keeping them in a bag thinking ” someday I will.” find a use for these.”
I created a craft project for you to do with your kids or as a group project. Actually this would work with any small canister with a sealed lid if you don’t have any film canisters stowed away, you just had a bag of the film ones waiting for a reason to exist. So stick with those little canisters and here’s a way to recycle them, have fun with your kids, and teach them a craft project.
Supplies:
- A film canister or similar small canister with a lid
- Household glue, glue gun, or preferred adhesive
- Sharp scissors (adults only if younger children)
- Loose sparkly sequins, about the size of a pencil eraser
- Pretty Ribbon (approximately 6″ for each embellishment)
Addresses:
- Remove the cap from the film cartridge.
- Using scissors, cut a piece of ribbon about 6″. When folded in half, it will be the hanger for your decoration.
- Using scissors, poke a hole in the center of the cover, just large enough for the tape to pass through.
- Thread one end of the ribbon through the hole in the cover and tie a large enough knot in that end so that it will not slip through the cover.
- Repeat that step with the other end of the ribbon. You should now have a loop sticker sticking out of the hole in the film cartridge lid.
- Using the glue or adhesive, place a couple of dabs around the inside of the cover. Replace the cap on the film cartridge. You should now have the film cartridge with a ribbon loop.
- Find a place to hang the boat, this will make it easy to access all surfaces at the same time. Using glue or adhesive (I prefer the ease of use of the glue gun), glue the sequins in place, to the cover around the ribbon, sides, and bottom. The entire surface must be covered.
- Let your creation dry completely before using it.
Note: I made my decoration for my Christmas tree by chance, but using variations of colored sequins, you could create a hanging decoration for any holiday; how to decorate the branch of a tree, etc.
