Apple decorations from recycled plastic bottles

Posted by: Kathryn on: 5 October, 2011

• In: Craft for mums | Festivals
• 24 Comments

Last year I saw this fabulous idea at Creative Jewish Mom: she had made apple-shaped gift boxes from the ends of plastic bottles.  For better or worse we don’t buy much in the way of soft drinks, so it was quite some time before I finished two bottles of tonic water and was able to make my own version of this great idea: a hanging decoration which we can use both for Rosh Hashanah and for our sukkah.

What I used:
– ends of two 1.25l plastic bottles (the sort where the bottom looks a bit like a flower with five petals – I used several different brands and some work better than others, so you may just need to experiment.)
– red or green cellophane (or tissue paper, or fabric.)  The beauty of cellophane is that the light shines through it.
– felt scraps for the leaves and stem
– thin ribbon or similar to hang the apple up, and a button to hold this in place.
– needle and thread

How to make this:
1. Carefully cut off the ends of two plastic bottles.  I found cutting one a centimetre or so taller than the other meant I could overlap them and they stick together even without glue.

2. Very carefully use a sharp object to punch/drill a tiny hole in the centre of one of the bottle ends.  Thread through the ribbon so that you have a loop on the outside.  Thread the ends through a button and tie it on the inside.  (The botton stops the ribbon from slipping out.  Alternatively you could make two holes and skip the button.)

3. Cut leaves and a stem from felt and stitch them together (glue might also work but thread seemed more secure to me.)  Stitch the leaves and stem to the ribbon.  If you’re more organised than me, you might even be able to do this in one step rather than in two.

4. Scrunch up some cellophane or other paper/fabric to provide the colour of the apple and put this inside.

5. Slot the plastic bottle ends together. Glue or tape them if necessary.

6. Hang and admire!

Tags: apples, decoration, New Year, Rosh Hashanah, Sukkot