Be creative: You can turn unwanted stuff into something fun. Using your own junk and a camera, you can have a personalized "I Spy" hunt. Try to find the barrette, thumbtack and key in our "I Spy" photo. Illustrates KIDSPOST-RECYCLE (category l) © 2007, The Washington Post. Moved Tuesday, March 20, 2007. (MUST CREDIT: Washington Post photo by Bill Webster.)

Hey, is that Daytona 500 winner Kevin Harvick taking a victory lap? Make a race car out of an empty water bottle, using the items shown at right.

Once you get in the habit of seeing trash for its potential, you can come up with all kinds of ideas for cool things to make. From left, examples include a painted milk carton vase, a paper bead bracelet and a jai alai scoop made out of a plastic milk jug.

Trash. It’s so ugly and unwanted. But it doesn’t have to be.

Your family probably recycles, and that certainly helps the environment. You can do some recycling of your own by turning unwanted stuff – call it trash, if you must – into something pretty, useful or fun.

Once you get in the habit of seeing trash for its potential, you can come up with all kinds of ideas for cool things to make. We spent some time looking at what was in our bins at home and came up with these crafts that are fun to make.

Don’t be limited by our suggestions, though. Come up with your own.

Milk carton vase

Cut the top off a half-gallon milk or juice carton. Wash the bottom. Once it’s dry, rub the outside with sandpaper to make it easier to paint, and let your inner Van Gogh out. We used washable Crayola paint on our vase. You might need two coats.

Once it’s dry, squeeze the corners in a bit, and have an adult staple them to make the opening smaller, which is better for flower-arranging.

Remember to fill the vase with water very carefully so your paint job doesn’t get wet.

Paper bead necklace or bracelet

Cut thin strips of colorful paper out of magazines that are heading to the recycling bin. The strips should be about one-eighth inch wide. (It doesn’t matter if you cut straight.) Roll each strip on a toothpick and glue the end of the paper. Squeeze until the glue sticks, then pull the paper bead off the toothpick.

It will take a few tries before you get the hang of it, so don’t give up. When you have enough beads, string them on thread, elastic or even a thin rubber band. Makes a great gift!

Milk jug jai alai

This works best with plastic half-gallon milk or juice jugs – empty, of course. You’ll need two of them. Have a grown-up help you cut the bottoms off (making a curved shape), then stuff the spouts with paper towel or plastic wrap – enough to fill the hole in each one. Make a ball by wadding up some old aluminum foil, and have a game of catch.

If you cut the jug so that the handle is in back (where the edge is higher), it will be easier to throw overhand. If the handle is in front (under the lower edge), you’ll have a scooper that will make it easier to throw underhand.

If you have a cat, it might chase the foil ball when you drop it. Ours did!

Water bottle race cars

Paint an empty water bottle your favorite racing color and, when it’s dry, attach a tinfoil grill. The tires are two thread spools cut in half (have an adult do the cutting) and painted black. A straw snipped in two forms the wheel axles. Big glops of glue (we used a glue gun – you’ll need a grown-up for that, too) on the axles on both sides of the tires allow them to roll but not fall off.

Add detailing (stickers work well), and you’re off to the races.

Make your own ‘I Spy’

You will need a digital camera for this one.

Use an old bag or small box to collect little items for a few days, avoiding anything that might rot. When you have 20 to 30 things, dump them out and arrange them on a flat surface (white works best). Hide some under others so that just a little shows.

Then take a picture of your setup, print it and – voila! – you have your own find-the-object page. Make copies for your friends or family, and watch them struggle with your puzzle. Make it hard!

If you want to do the hunting, ask Mom or Dad to arrange your trash and take the picture.