If your family eats a lot of yogurt you may be overwhelmed by the number of empty yogurt cups that go in the trash or in the recycling bin. Instead, you can use them for an assortment of craft projects and games. Don’t worry about the appearance of the cups, you can paint them or cover them with glue and then colored tissue or other decorative paper.
Make Musical Shakers
You will need two single-serving size yogurt cups that are the same size and some dried rice or beans (or beads). Fill half of one cup with your noisemaking material. Set the empty cup on top and connect the two cups by wrapping masking or duct tape around the seam. You can decorate the two cups with decorative duct tape or paint each with acrylic paints. When dry, give your music maker a shake.
Create a Desk Organizer
You will need three-to-five single-serving size yogurt cups. They can be different sizes. You will also need a piece of foam core board and a hot glue gun.
Decorate each cup however you desire. Some ideas: paint a thin layer of white glue over a cup and then cover it with small pieces of colored tissue paper or pictures from magazines, catalogs, or calendars. After the glue on each cup is thoroughly dry, position them on the piece of foam core board. Ask for an adult to affix the cups in place with the use of a hot glue gun. Now, fill each cup with something different: paperclips, push pins, erasers, pens and pencils, or whatever has been cluttering your desk and drawers.
Make a Ball Toss Game
You will need six or ten yogurt cups of the same size. With acrylic paints, decorate each cup a different color. When the paint dries, set the cups in a pyramid shape with one cup pointing at you, two cups in the next row, three cups in the third row and so on. You will also need a small ball that will fit inside the cups.
Stand a couple of steps from the cups and toss the ball. You can create whatever scoring system you’d like for each ball that lands in a cup. Give yourself more points for the furthest cups. As your accuracy improves, take a step back and make the game more challenging.
Design an Earring Holder
You will need a large yogurt cup. Ask an adult to use a push pin to punch holes in the yogurt cup. You will be sliding earrings into the holes, so set the holes in sets of two; leave some space below the holes, particularly if you have hanging earrings.
Set the opening of the cup down onto scrap paper. Paint the cup with acrylic paints in a pretty pattern that won’t distract you from finding your earrings. When the paint is completely dry, you can slide your earrings into the holes. Lift the cup and place your hand inside to slide the backings onto the studs. Place your earring holder on your dresser.
Remember, you can always use yogurt cups to give yourself a premeasured snack. The cups are also great for mixing paint or providing clean water for your art projects. Yogurt cups with covers are perfect for sorting beads for craft projects. You’ll probably think of other uses for them as they are a very useful size.
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