Tin can with lace trim

incredibly simple but adorable pen holder

Tin can with lace trim

As a mother of a young child, as a parent, as a responsible member of society, I also feel responsible for the environment in which we live and for the world I will leave to my children.

From this perspective, I try to do my part every day, where I can, to preserve the environment. One way I see to do this is to remember to recycle everything I can and give things a new life: That's ultimately what "recycling" means: turning something that could potentially be trash into a new suitable product of new use. A creative reuse that initiates a new life cycle for the item, which in turn takes on a higher value with this new life compared to the item or material it came from. Recycling is slightly different from upcycling, where an item is upgraded for a new use by making it more interesting on an aesthetic, price or sentimental level. You could perhaps say that upcycling has more to do with design.

Upcycling would be, for example, when an old wine crate is reused as a magazine rack, bookshelf or modular furniture for the living room, or when the drum of a washing machine is transformed into an illuminated café table with lights inside and a wooden top on top, or when an old skateboard becomes a wall shelf. Or, to give another example, when an old stack of magazines becomes a stool with the help of two belts and a cushion, when a suitcase is hung on the wall to serve as a bathroom cabinet, or when an old ladder leaning against the wall is used as a bookshelf or towel rack, or when mirrors are framed in old unused window frames. This is the kind of recycling that upcycling means. But such subtle differences in definition don't interest me now, any more than I'm really interested in whether what I've made from this empty tomato can can be defined as recycling or upcycling. I just want to tell you about my idea and, I hope, give you a little inspiration, incentive and support to make something beautiful out of what you have or would throw away and thus make a small contribution to preserving our planet and making the world we live in an even prettier place.

The tomato cans are made of very sturdy metal and can be used in many different ways. In this post, I'll tell you how one of our empty tomato cans became a pen holder for the desk. The can could also have become a vase, a flower pot, a lantern, a kitchen utensil, a lamp stand or who knows what. I can't wait to hear what you've created with a tin.

You need:

• old tin can without label

• self-adhesive lace trim

For my pen holder, I simply removed the label from the tin with a little water and a sponge. I then stuck self-adhesive lace, which you can find here, to the top edge. At this point, happy with the result, that was it and I just left it as it was. My new pen holder was allowed on the desk to fulfill its function. The question of what this ruffled tin box is all about has already sparked a nice conversation or two.

I would also like to have a nice chat with you. Would you like to tell me what you think of it, whether you like the tin or what you did or would have done? A hug and see you soon!