Earth Month Arts & Crafts

Reduce, Reuse, Then Recycle

Recycling and composting your waste are great ways to shrink your environmental footprint. But finding creative ways to reuse products is a great way to reduce your total waste stream, and cut down on how much you're buying.

This Earth Month, consider the following craft projects. Not only are they a way to keep you (or, if applicable, children in your household) occupied during these days of remaining indoors, they're a great way to be sustainable at home.

Seedballs

Seedballs are a great way to help restore native plants to sensitive or inaccessible areas. A ball of clay, compost or rich soil, and seeds is tossed to propagate species without trampling or trespassing. They also save labor in the field, as they needn't be planted below the surface.

Seedballing was developed independently by Japanese and indigenous North American horticulturalists. The process closely resembles endozoochory as seeds start life in nutrient balls scattered over an area. It's used as an educational tool by groups as diverse as the NY Botanical Garden and NASA. HarborLAB leads seedballing activities with schools and volunteer groups. Among peers it can seem like a knitting circle.

The Office of Sustainability is co-hosting a web demonstration and seedball-making activity with HarborLAB on Earth Day (April 22) at 3:30 PM. They can even send you the seeds. Click here for a full guide with details about how to make seedballs and our event.

Throw Pillows

We all probably have a number of old t-shirts on hand in the back of a drawer or a closet. One way to upcycle these into a keepsake you can display is converting it into a no-sew throw pillow.

All you need is a shirt, scissors, and stuffing to give your old shirts a new life. Check out the full guide from DIY Network.

Magazine Coasters

As the weather warms - and grows more humid - the season for condensation on your glasses is upon us. With a stack of old magazines, a pair of scissors, and some glue, you can make attractive coasters and help preserve your lovely wooden surfaces. Here's a full guide from Instructables on the process.

DIY Face Masks

Finally, the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention recently recommended that if you have to leave the house for a public area, you wear a face mask. They've also helpfully provided a guide for how you can make your own using materials you probably have on hand.

If you have to leave the house, take five minutes to assemble your own today. Their guide can help you out.

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