DIY Archives - The Island Spark

19 November, 20211 December, 2021

Eco-Friendly with the Cricut?

I debated getting a Cricut for years. Part of it has been my draw to minimalism, and part of it has been my dislike of wasteful plastic (hello vinyl!) Any crafter knows, Eco-friendly is a challenge!

Well, then I started making coloring kits using as little plastic as possible – and cutting the paper by hand bought back nightmares (and blisters) of uni days as an Architecture student.

Well Hello Crucut!

I got my Cricut Maker right when the Maker 3 came out. As vinyl is NOT my priority, I got to benefit from the ‘old stock’ Cricut maker discounts. Cricut is based out of Utah, USA – but many accessories come from China. The machine ships in a glossy box and enough recycled cardboard packaging material to be secure. Yay for no Styrofoam! Most of the machine is plastic, as are most of the accessories. Blades and housings are of course metal.

Cutting mats are plastic with a sticky coating – if you don’t take care of them, they will wear out quickly. To avoid this, be meticulous about keeping them clean, and making sure you are always cutting to the correct depth.

So What Can Cricut Cut?

If you are like me, you want your Cricut Maker to cut everything OTHER than vinyl…

Cotton – Use a Strong Grip Mat
Linen – A little harder to stick to the mat…
~~Banana Palm~~ – Does not work due to natural hydrophobic coating…
Sticker Paper – (Not Plastic Free) Backing is hard to recycle due to silicone sticker release!
Paper – with the ‘Snap Mat’ feature you can use up all your scraps!
Card – 250 gsm is great for cards and packaging boxes.
Basswood – Thin Ply, needs Cricut Knife Blade
Cardboard – Corrugated card can be cut, but it will dirty your mat quickly. Thinner corrugated cardboard or pressed cardboard cut beautifully with the Knife Blade. I use a lot of cardboard in my coloring kits that has been fished out the recycling bin!

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10 December, 201917 February, 2020

Low Waste Party Decorations

I was recently put on a mission – plan and buy the decorations for a 50th wedding anniversary brunch. The brief was: helium balloons for the couple, and some birthday balloons for two more people at the party. After explaining that helium was a scarce resource and balloons are not biodegradable, we agreed that the desire was height. Perfect, living on a tropical island! We have plenty large leaf plants, which make great simple low waste party decorations.

The solutions are: Bunting, tissue paper decorations, paper lanterns, and lots of dramatic greenery.

Bunting

Bunting was traditionally made with fabric, but today plastic bunting is unfortunately all the rage. Paper bunting is easy to make, and pretty durable. Keep it dry and it will last for years! Our bunting is printed on 250 gsm lightweight card-stock. We like to use jute twine or raffia paper ribbon so any damaged bunting can go straight into the compost!

Tissue Paper Decorations & Paper Lanterns

You can make your own quite easily, but party shops often have a wide variety of paper lanterns and tissue paper decorations.

Stick to neutral colors and you can use them again and again! These can add the height and drama of balloons, without the plastic or latex waste.

Dramatic Greenery

Sea grape, dasheen, taro, palm leaves and banana leaves make great centerpieces. Herbs make great place setting decorations.

Avoid toxic plants like oleander, Christmas bush ( Comocladia dodonaea), and desert rose, as well as potentially invasive species like snake plant (Sansevieria). Keep in mind that many edible plants like taro or dasheen need to be prepared and cooked a special way – they are toxic raw, and the sap can be irritating.

Sea grape ( Coccoloba uvifera ) leaves are bright green with pink hued veins. They can be dinner plate sized, and are often used to decorate buffets. Banana leaves are used in a similar fashion.

The pink flowers below are quail grass, a Celosia that grows like a weed and flowers year round. The orange are Heliconia psittacorum. They are native to the Caribbean and flower year round.

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However, for our St Maarten / St Martin visitors we encourage you to shop local, and every effort has been made to provide a local source. Please let us know if you want to be included!

4 January, 201910 December, 2019

How to Make a DIY Recycled Piñata

A piñata can be a fun centerpiece for more than just birthday parties. Colors, shapes, and themes are endless, especially if you have a few spare hours to make your own. A recycled piñata helps reduce our waste, while encouraging a little DIY fun.

DIY Recycled Pinata: How to make a recycled pinata

Tip: Make the piñata compostable by using cotton string (we use food grade kitchen twine), small amounts of natural or DIY paints, and home made paper-mâché glue. You can vary the materials according to the needs, but the more you recycle the better!

12 December, 20184 January, 2019

Easy Eco-friendly DIY Christmas Crackers

Christmas crackers are a family tradition. We like them for the silly hats and groan-worthy jokes, but at the end of the meal the table is littered with plastic trinkets that no one needs. So we thought, why not make our own? There are scores of instructions for complicated crackers requiring lots of cuts and folds, but we found an easier method using recycled craft paper. (You can buy cracker wrappers, but I promise making your own is not hard!)

We like to garden and we compost, so this year we used paper based washi tape, recycled craft paper, and paper raffia ribbon.