How We Created a Low-Cost, Low-Waste Display for a Scarecrow Trail

Looking for low-cost craft ideas? You don't necessarily need to buy lots of new materials. With a little forward planning, everyday packaging, old clothes, unwanted toys and leftover art supplies can become something much more imaginative.

My children were keen to take part in our local scarecrow trail, which had the theme "A Night at the Theatre". We decided to make our display based on Matilda the Musical.

As well as making a Matilda scarecrow, we thought the theme would lend itself particularly well to some fun props and interactive elements.

There had to be a chokey, of course. We also wanted to include some of the memorable details from the story: Matilda's dad's hat with its rather important tube of superglue; the jug of water containing the newt that Matilda drops in front of Miss Trunchbull; and, naturally, the chalkboard with its mysterious floating chalk and message that helps drive Miss Trunchbull away.

The theme also gave us some great opportunities to involve other children visiting the trail.

My children each chose an interactive element to incorporate into the display.

The first was a "When I Grow Up..." sign, echoing one of the songs from Matilda the Musical. We provided a space where visiting children could add their own ideas about what they might like to be when they grow up.

The second was a stand where children could make their own stories in the form of zines. This seemed particularly appropriate because Matilda loves books and reading, and it gave visitors a chance to become part of the creative process rather than simply looking at the finished display.

So we had our theme, our characters and a rough idea of what we wanted to include.

The next challenge was working out how to make it all without spending a fortune.

Start collecting before you start making

One of the best ways to make something creatively without spending much money is to start before you need to make it.

When you give yourself plenty of time to think about a creative project, you can start collecting things that might otherwise be thrown away. Instead of making a last-minute trip to the craft shop, you can look around the house, ask friends and family what they have available, and gradually build up a collection of useful materials.

The result was a scarecrow and accompanying displays made largely from recycled, reused, donated and repurposed materials.

Here's how we did it.

Making the scarecrow from papier-mâché

The scarecrow itself was made from a mixture of things we already had and materials that would otherwise have been thrown away.

For the head, we covered a balloon with papier-mâché. For the face, we used a plastic Iron Man mask that had been sitting in the dressing-up box. The features weren't quite right for what we wanted, so we softened the shape by adding some extra cardboard before covering it.

For the arms, we made simple moulds by rolling up bubble wrap that had been saved from packaging.

The papier-mâché was made using scrap brown paper (saved from packaging) and a simple homemade paste made from flour and water.

Once everything was dry and hard, we painted the scarecrow using acrylic paints that had been passed on to me (this is something that has happened quite a few times over the years - when people know you are an arty person who likes to make things, they offer you art materials that they no longer want or need because they know they will be put to use). Paint that might otherwise sit unused in someone's cupboard or eventually be thrown away can therefore get a second life as part of a completely different creative project.

It's a useful reminder that one person's unwanted materials can be another person's creative resources.

I could have added a layer of varnish to make the finished scarecrow more weather-resistant, but as we happened to be making it during a drought, waterproofing wasn't exactly at the top of the priority list!

Using old clothes for the scarecrow

The scarecrow's clothing was another example of making use of things that were already available.

Fortunately, we have an eight-year-old girl in the house with some old school uniform that had become too small. This became the perfect outfit for the scarecrow.

The tie was actually a Gryffindor tie left over from a previous Harry Potter costume, but I think it worked surprisingly well.

For the legs, we rolled up more saved bubble wrap and stuffed it into an old pair of ballet tights. A pair of old school shoes completed the look.

None of these things were bought specifically for the project. They were all items that had already served another purpose and could be given a new life.

Building the 'chokey' from cardboard

The 'chokey' was made from a collection of large cardboard boxes (my husband collected these from his office - they would otherwise have been put into recycling).

We joined the boxes together to create the walls and then started looking at what we had available to turn them into something more interesting.

Toilet rolls and kitchen rolls that had been saved from the recycling were cut into spikes and pushed through holes in the cardboard walls.

This part of the project was made almost entirely by my children.

That was one of the best things about the project. The children weren't simply following a set of instructions using a collection of new craft materials. They were involved in problem-solving, designing and making – working out how ordinary objects could be transformed into something completely different.

Creating the chalkboard

For the chalkboard, we used the side of a large cardboard box and covered it with black paper.

I drew the lettering and my daughter painted over it in white.

We also needed some 'floating' chalk. To make this, we rolled up cotton wool, covered it with paper and attached it to a piece of wire. The wire was then pushed through the cardboard so that the chalk appeared to float in front of the board.

The solution wasn't complicated. It was simply a case of looking at the materials we had and working out how they could be adapted to create the effect we wanted.

A newt made from a recycled toy

A small plastic crocodile (from our box of toddler toys) was suspended above a jug of water using some elastic string (practically invisible).

That's it.

It didn't need to be painted, cut up or transformed. We simply looked at an existing object and decided that, in the right context, it could represent something else.

Sometimes creative reuse doesn't mean changing an object at all. It can simply mean seeing it differently.

Turning a top hat into a bowler hat

The hat came from a Willy Wonka costume in our dressing-up box.

It was a top hat, but with a small modification it could work as a bowler hat. I glued the top edges together to change its shape and make it better suited to the character.

We then made a little 'superglue' label and attached it to an empty sewing-machine-oil bottle.

Once again, a few small changes turned something we already owned into a prop that fitted the display.

Making the zines display

The zines display started with a cardboard card display rack that I already had (a relic from when I sold art cards at an exhibition).

Because it needed to be outdoors, we filled it with stones to give it some weight and stop it from blowing over.

The sign was made from another piece of old cardboard and a couple of sticks from the garden.

We also wanted people to be able to have a go at making their own zine, so we tied a plastic folder containing paper, scissors and a laminated instruction sheet to one of the sticks.

This meant the display wasn't just something to look at. It also gave visitors an opportunity to make something themselves.

And that felt particularly appropriate for a project based around creativity and making: the display itself became an invitation to create.

The 'When I Grow Up...' display

For the 'When I Grow Up...' display, we used an old hairclips holder and some ribbon to hold a cardboard zine.

We then attached two small bags to the bottom: one containing pegs and another containing scraps of paper and a pen.

The idea was to give visitors the opportunity to contribute their own ideas and thoughts.

Again, very little needed to be bought. The structure was made from things that were already around the house, while the activity itself used simple, inexpensive materials.

The secret to low-cost making? Start collecting before you start making

Looking back at the finished display, what strikes me most is how little of it required buying something specifically for the project.

That wasn't because we had an enormous collection of craft supplies. It was largely because we started thinking about the project early enough to notice what we already had.

Cardboard packaging became buildings and signs.

Toilet rolls became spikes.

Bubble wrap became arms and legs.

Old school uniform became clothing.

A discarded costume accessory became a hat.

A toddler's toy became a newt.

Stones from the garden became weights.

Donated paint became the finishing touch.

And a collection of ordinary household objects became a whole series of creative displays.

This is one of the things I love about The Making Practice: creativity doesn't have to start with a trip to the craft shop.

It can start with a cardboard box.

Or an old toy.

Or a piece of packaging that would normally go into the recycling.

Or some paint that someone else no longer needs.

Or simply the question:

"What could this become?"

Make your own collection of creative materials

If you want to try more low-cost, upcycled craft projects, one of the easiest things you can do is start a box for potential making materials.

Save useful bits of packaging, cardboard tubes, scraps of paper, interesting pieces of cardboard, ribbons, string, fabric scraps and other clean materials that might otherwise be thrown away.

Don't worry about knowing what they will become yet.

That's part of the fun.

You can also let friends and family know that you're happy to take unwanted art and craft materials. If people know that you make things, they may have paints, paper, fabric, beads, tools or other supplies sitting unused that they would rather see put to good use.

You don't need to buy everything new to be creative.

Sometimes, the best material is the one you already have.