Plastic bottle piggy banks are a great way to recycle your bottles, save money on a new piggy bank, and give yourself a little project to do. You can take an old bottle that you would originally throw away and turn it into a useful way to save your money. It takes a few household products and art supplies, and a few steps to complete. When you are done, you will have a your very own piggy bank to put your spare change in.
Let’s get started on this fun craft! Here are the materials you are going to need, as well as the directions, to help you create your own plastic bottle piggy bank!
Materials:
Plastic bottle (such as a soda bottle or water bottle).
Scissors.
Construction paper.
Glue.
Paint (optional).
Googly eyes (optional).
4 extra bottle caps.
Small piece cleaner or ribbon.
Directions:
1. Rinse out the bottle with hot water and dish detergent to clean it.
2. If there is a label on the plastic bottle, tear it off.
3. If desired, you can paint the bottle the color you want your piggy bank to be. Let the paint completely dry before continuing to work on it. If you would rather not paint the bottle, then skip this step.
4. Take a piece of construction paper, in the color you want the body to be. Glue it around the bottle and let the glue dry.
5. Using the scissors (or a knife if the scissors are not sharp enough), cut a slit through the top of the soda bottle. Make sure it is big enough for both coins and dollar bills.
6. Glue the googly eyes on to the front of the bottle (where the bottle cap would be), one on each side. If you do not want to use googly eyes, then you can simply cut out and glue on construction paper eyes or paint the eyes on yourself. Let the glue or paint dry.
7. Cut out or paint two small pink nostrils and glue them on the bottle cap in the front, allowing the glue to dry.
8. Glue a small piece of pipe cleaner or ribbon to the back of the bottle, so it can act as the pig’s tail. Bend, twirl, or curl it if you can to give the piggy a curly tail.
9. Use the paint, a marker, or construction paper to add on a smiley face mouth under the mouth piece of the bottle.
10. Cut out ears from the construction paper and glue them to the top front of the bottle.
11. You will use the four extra bottle caps to make the legs. You can use alternatives if you know of any (for example, empty thread spools, large colorful cotton balls, and such). Glue them to the bottle (you can carefully use a hot glue gun if need be). Let the glue completely dry, especially if you have decided to use a hot glue gun.
You have just created your own plastic bottle piggy bank. Great for a child’s first piggy bank, or for anyone who loves animals. You can make one for everyone in the household, or just one for yourself. When you need to empty it, you can simply remove the bottle cap nose and gently shake out what you need. This is better than having to break your bank just to get to your money. This project will also come in handy for both home or school projects.
