STARS MADE FROM RECYCLED DRINK CANS!!

Festive Stars made from Recycled Drinks Cans

I’m preparing for a couple of craft fairs (details coming soon) at the moment and decided to have a go at making some Festive decorations by recycling some drinks cans I’ve been collecting. I found this tutorial the other day and thought I could adapt it to me own needs. So here goes…

What you will need:

- Empty drinks cans
- Scissors
- Craft Knife
- Ball point pen or an embossing tool with a fine point
- Sharp pointy thing – not sure what the name of this tool is!
- Cutting mat
- Metal ruler
- Sticky tape
- Some thick card – I used a cereal box
- A pair of parallel pliers
- Fine sandpaper
- Spray paint and a large box
- Cotton Thread

Step One

First you need to get a star shape printed onto paper or card and cut out. I used thisas a template and just scaled it to the size that I wanted, printed it onto paper and then transferred the shape onto an old cereal box and cut it out.

Step Two

Next you need to cut the tops and bottoms off your drinks can and give the insides a good clean – I used a craft knife to do this as well as scissors – be careful of sharp edges!

Step Three

Put a bit of sticky tape (rolled up) onto the back of your cardboard star and stick this to the silver side of your can and draw around it – I use my sharp pointy tool to do this but you could also do it with a fine permanent marker. You then need to carefully cut out the star. I always cut from the point towards the inside of the star – don’t try and turn your scissors whilst cutting as you will tear the metal.

Step Four

Silver side up you now need to score lines into the star using either a ball point pen or an embossing tool. It’s best if your pen doesn’t actually work as if you transfer ink to the metal you will have to spend time cleaning it off. Use your ruler to keep your lines straight and press quite firmly.

Step Five

Turn the star over and go over all the small lines from the center to the edge. By doing this you’ll see the shape of the star become more three dimensional.

Step Six

Begin pinching the metal gently and work around the star until the shape is formed. You can reinforce the lines by laying them against the metal ruler and pressing down firmly. I also use my parallel pliers to make the points more distinct.

Step Seven

Make a small hole in one of the points for the thread – I use my pointy tool for this – then sand the other side down as you’ll get sharp edges.

Step Eight

If you’ve used a ball point pen with ink, you’ll them have to spend some time with hot water and soap cleaning off the ink from the underside of the star.

Step Nine

Choose whether you want to keep the starts as they are or spray paint them. I decided to spray mine gold and red as I’ve got loads of cans of spray paint that were donated to me by a friend years ago and I’ve never had a reason to use them before. I just sprayed the tops of the stars. I arranged them inside a large box and took this out to the garden so as not to get overwhelmed by fumes. I left them to dry for several hours and then carefully sanded down the edges of the stars to give them a distressed look.

Step Ten

Attach your thread and then hang them up wherever you like. I think they’ll look great on a Christmas tree or hanging from a mantelpiece. I think this is a great way to turn rubbish into something really special.

If you don’t want to go to all this bother, then why not come and visit my stall at my craft fairs this year as I’ll be selling the ones that I have made this weekend. I’m still not sure whether to sell them as single decorations or as packs of three as I have no idea how to package them.