How to Recycle Old Film Canisters

Many people have made the switch to digital cameras and have thrown out their old 35MM camera that had film in little canisters. If you are anything like me, you have both. Yes I love my digital camera, but I also love my 35MM camera. I like using black and white film in my 35MM camera. This means that I still have film canisters laying around. I have found a few things that you can do with all these film canisters.

Crafts Item storage: You can use them to store all your small craft items. Things like stickers, buttons, beads, confetti and embellishments. An easy way to find what your looking for is to glue one of the things that are in the inside to the top of the lid. This way you can stand them all up and know what your going for without having to open every canister. We all know if you did that, its always going to be in the very last one.

Camping- If you are going camping any time soon and you need to save on some space then these work great. You can fill them with ketchup, mustard and mayo. These are usually perfect size to hand everyone one of them. Also you can fill one with salt and the other with pepper, poke some holes in the top and you now have a salt and pepper shaker.

Oscar the Grouch- if you have a sesame street fan like I do then these are great to make. Get your older children to help you. They love making things for younger kids. It really makes them feel important to make something that a smaller child loves. On the top of the canister you need to glue a green pompom. Hot glue seems to work the best because it drys faster. Then glue the lid at and angle on top of the pompom to make the garbage can lid and so it looks like it is slightly opened. Add some wiggle eyes to the pompom for Oscar’s eyes. You can paint the canister grey or just leave it alone.

Pet Tags- This is such a cool ideal. Cut two small slits in the side of a film canister and insert your dogs collar through the slits. Inside the canister you can place a full piece of paper folded up. This can include your name, address and a few phone number. You can also put if your dog has any medical problems, vet information, where your staying if on vacation and so much more. This makes where you can fit a lot of information rather then the typical 4 lines you get on a tag.

Sticky Foam Stamps- You will need Sticky backed foam, pencil, scissors and a film canister. I have found the sticky foam at my local dollar store. Take a square of film just a bit bigger then the lid on the canister and draw a design onto it with the pencil. Take your scissors and cut out the shape. Peel off the paper backing and place the sticky side down in the lid. Place lid back on film canister. The body of the canister is great for little hands who have a hard time holding the typical small stamps. Dip in ink and dab on paper.