Returning from a day at the office, many of us are likely to be met with a piece of junk mail or three barring our entrance to the place we call home. From flyers for the local pizza parlour to mini catalogues advertising a host of weird and wonderful wares from self-heating socks to banana guards.
And while our first instinct may be to hurl these unwanted pieces of mail into the recycling bin, with a little thought and a dash of ingenuity we can actually turn one man’s trash into another’s treasure.
Here are 5 creative ways to repurpose junk mail that are guaranteed to deliver.
Custom made labels
Have you ever noticed the decorative pattern that often lies beneath the surface of an otherwise ordinary-looking envelope? No, well take a closer look the next time a piece of junk mail comes hurtling through your letter box. Looked at from a new perspective these designs can actually make the perfect labels for your homemade jams, soaps or other goodies. Simply cut to size, pop a blank label on top, and voila your custom made label is good to go.
Picture credit: greenupgrader
A trash bin, from trash
What could be cooler than using trash, to make the item that normally houses it? If you have the time and patience to roll up your colourful pieces of junk mail into lots of paper circles and bond them all together, you’ll be rewarded with the amazing creation below:
Picture credit:lovething at Crafster forum
Have fun with a Piñata
What better way to brighten up a child’s birthday party, or adult’s for that mind, than a sweet-filled piñata? Use your stash of junk mail as papier mache, fashion into the object of your choice, before popping the balloon and filling your piñata with the good stuff. Then let party guests bash away at the piñata to their heart’s content until they release the tasty prizes inside.
Picture credit:The Camera Girls
Jewellery
As impossible as it sounds the words junk mail and jewellery can sit in the same sentence. Simple snap up a couple of earring hooks from Amazon, eBay or similar and create some unique earring pendants using any junk mail you have to hand. If all that sounds like too much hard work you can purchase them ready made at Junk Mail Gems including the items below Security Envelope Bead Earrings ($15) below:
Create unique gift tags
There are few things more annoying than buying a 2m roll of gift wrap, only to find that there is only one gift tag attached. Do you save it for the person you really like, or the dish it out to the first person whose birthday comes up first on the calendar? Thanks to the wonder that is the junk mail gift tag, you won’t need to choose between either option.
Picture credit: blog.kandelstrand