Holiday Crafts

• Use a large plastic bottle to make a basket for Easter. Cut off the bottom third of the bottle for your basket's base. Use duct tape or electrician's tape to make the edge safe; tape all around the curved opening on top of the basket so sharp edges won't cut anyone. Punch holes on opposite sides of the bottle and use chenille stems or ribbon to create a handle. Fill your basket with Easter grass and a few eggs or candies.
  Use a large plastic bottle to make a decorative candle holder. Cut the top off the bottle, just below the neck (so it is a straight cylinder without the tapered neck). Sand the outside of the bottle lightly and brush off the dust, then paint it in a festive color. Make orange jack o' lanterns at Halloween, white snowmen at Christmas, or pink and red hearts at Valentine's Day. Add facial features or other decorations and let dry. Then pour some sand in the bottom of the bottle and add a small votive candle.
  
  

Bottle "Brushes"

• Turn plastic bottles into flower stamps. Dip the bottom of a 16-ounce soda bottle into some paint, and stamp it onto your surface such as a T-shirt, card or canvas wall art). The bumps on the bottom of the bottle will resemble flower petals when stamped. Use the lid of the bottle, dipped in yellow paint, to form the center of the flower. Add stems with a paint brush.
  
  

Outdoor Crafts

• Make a bird feeder by cutting a large hole in either side of a soda bottle and punching a smaller hole underneath each one. Stick a wooden dowel or pencil through the smaller holes to make a perch on either side. Use sandpaper around the opening of the larger holes to dull sharp edges. Fill the bottom of the bottle with bird seed, and tie the top with a piece of yarn or string so you can hang it from a tree.
  Make a horseshoe game using wooden craft sticks and empty 2-liter soda bottles. Fill the bottles with sand or water and place them at increasing distances from a starting point. Glue three craft sticks together in a "U" shape and let dry--these will be your lightweight horseshoes. Toss the horseshoe sticks at the bottles for a fun and safe back yard game.