Create some fun masks or mythical creatures using a mix of recycled and various decorative items. These milk jugs are a perfect canvas for some 3-dimensional creativity!

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Supplies:

• Spray primer will help the paint adhere and not flake off. I use this a lot for plastic (and some cardboard projects) so I always keep some primer on hand.
• Recycled milk jugs (or laundry detergent bottles)
• Tempera or acrylic paint
• Recycled materials such as bottle caps, produce mesh, wine corks, or cardboard
• Other misc. items for decoration: pom poms, pipe cleaners, washi tape, yarn, jewels, plastic straws, beads or buttons, tissue paper, Magic Nuudles, and even items from nature such as sticks or acorns.
• Hot glue (with supervision) and white craft glue for the younger ones

We just finished our faces today but we actually started this project weeks ago when I began saving our containers. I grocery shop at quite a few different places so that gave us a variety of nice shaped milk jugs to work with. I also had some great laundry detergent bottles (not pictured above) that we finished right on time and BONUS! They were already colored!

I gave our milk jugs a quick spray with the primer before we started.

When you have a container you are ready to use, turn it upside down so the spout is at the bottom. That is how you will determine the placement of the eyes, forehead, etc…the handle will be your nose!

The girls chose their milk jug, painted it, and collaged tissue paper in some areas.

I gathered up several materials that I thought would work for features of the face or extensions of the face. I was happy to have an abundance of leftover beverage ring holders that we used for our owl project…those make perfect eyes for faces or mythical creatures!

I set everything out on our table in bowls and baskets and plugged in my glue gun. Many of these materials can be glued with white craft glue but because the milk jugs are plastic and have some unusal angles, a glue gun is your best bet for a strong, fast hold.

The girls added Washi tape, drew with Sharpie, and then selcted the materials for their faces. Since my girls are younger, I did any hot gluing for them. They just let me know what they wanted and where to put it.

Our finished faces:

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