Recycled paper necklace

Junkmailgems makes gorgeous recycled paper beads out of junk mail. This brilliant idea got me thinking about when I was a kid, and I used to roll up bits of paper around a toothpick and dip them into colored candle wax to set them up. Honestly, it didn’t work all that well, but I found some great ideas online:

• More Recycled Paper Beads. This technique uses simple Elmer’s glue to hold the bead together. You can finish it with clear nail polish or an art spray to make it hard. Use spray varnish if you really want it to last and have the shine of real opaque glass beads.
• To get the JunkMailGems effect, use strips cut like backgammon triangles and start rolling the wide end first.
• Dress it up with alternating metal beads or clear glass beads.

This is a great way to make use of old magazines and other paper goods before sending them out to the recycling bin. You may even be able to sell your wares on Etsy.

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Posted in Do It Yourself, Going Green on February 28, 2008