How to Repurpose Cardboard Boxes into Beautiful DIY Crafts

Piles of cardboard boxes are definitely a part of our life or have been at one point or another, sometimes because you moved to a new home or because you’ve been ordering a lot of stuff online. I know that sometimes all those boxes can appear to be useless; still, you can put them to new use in various ways before being recycled.

Every year, the average American consumes about seven trees of paper goods. Recycling cardboard boxes can save up to 9 cubic yards of forest space and consumes only about 75% of the energy used to manufacture fresh cardboard.

Recycling Cardboard

Cardboard, as well as paper, are both made out of fiber from wood. Corrugated cardboard and chipboard, also known as paperboard, are the two different types that exist. Both types are easy to recycle as long as you do it properly. Normally, there are recycling centers in every city that will take your cardboard. You just have to bring it to them torn apart and flattened. Some municipalities might even have the pick-up service if it’s a significant amount of cardboard.

An important thing to consider is that some recycling centers won’t take cardboard for recycling if it’s wet since the fibers lose value after being dampened; also, if the cardboard is stained with the grease of some kind, like pizza grease or wax, they won’t take it.

If that is the case, you can still compost it or use it for other purposes like as a garden lining for weed control. Thankfully, for all of you who like to repurpose cardboard before sending it to the recycling center, there are endless ways to put it to use around the home. 

Ways To Repurpose Cardboard at Home

Storage bins. Storage bins are probably the most popular way to reuse cardboard boxes because you can style and decorate them to your liking. Use wrapping paper, decorative fabrics, and any other stuff you want to add that you find attractive or that matches your home decor.

Shoe holder. You don’t necessarily need to buy a shoe rack since you can easily build one with the boxes that your shoes already came in. Assembling a shoe rack is as easy as stacking all the boxes and holding them together with a glue gun to make it more stable, or, if you are feeling crafty, you can try to build this space-saving cardboard shoe rack.

Dividers for drawers. Supposing you are one of those people who like to keep things organized inside the drawers. In that case, this is a perfect and costless way to achieve the organization of your underwear drawer, cutlery, utensils, or bathroom drawers.

For Home Decor

DIY photo frames. First, pick the photos you want to frame, then measure and cut two cardboard pieces of the size you want, one for the back and one for the frame, then place them together and glue or staple three out of the four sides, leave one side open to be able to slide the photo inside the frame, then decorate the frame to your liking. You can check out this tutorial for more details.

Lamps. You can create lamps and lanterns with cardboard cut into geometric shapes for a beautiful dimmer light accent at home. Think of any geometric shape you like, then just cut and fold the cardboard, add some light inside, and voilá!

Mirrors. Make a mirror frame to glam up those boring mirrors you have at home, cut cardboard into shapes, glue the mirror to the cardboard, and decorate with all kinds of things, like rope, fabric, and beads.

For Your Pets

Cat bed. Everyone knows cats love boxes, so why not pamper them with a cardboard cat bed made especially for them? They will greatly appreciate a private hiding spot; you can try some of these creative cat bed ideas.

Cat scratcher. These are known to be expensive if bought in a pet store and take space at home, but you can make your own cat scratcher with used cardboard boxes for free. That way, you won’t feel bad when you send it to the recycling center once your cat is done with it.

A house for your dog. This is a perfect indoor hiding nook for your little friend, you just have to cut a door for your dog to get inside, place a warm blanket inside along with his favorite toy, and there you have a new dog house!

Birdhouse. A variety of birdhouses can be created with sturdy cardboard, just make sure to coat them with waterproof painting, then you can place them on your patio.

Repurposing Cardboard Boxes in the Office

Document storage. For all those old files and documents you don’t want to throw away,  but you still want out of your sight. Put them in boxes, paint those boxes, wrap them in a nice-looking paper or fabric, label them to keep your paperwork organized, and then store them in the closet.

Desk stationery. Make some nice-looking document holders out of cereal boxes, cut the boxes diagonally, paint them, wrap them with paper or fabric, add ribbons or any other thing you consider suitable, and store your everyday paperwork and files.

Pencil holder. Use oatmeal boxes wrapped in a nice patterned fabric that matches your office décor to keep your markers, pens, pencils, highlighters, rulers, and any other office supplies you have.

DIY Crafts for Kids

Playhouse. Use a big box to create a kid’s playhouse, with a cutter cut some windows and a door, you can also use smaller boxes to create appliances and furniture for the kitchen like a toaster, a microwave oven, a stove, a refrigerator, then let your kid draw the details of the decoration with some colors, markers or painting and his imagination you will have hours of fun!

Dollhouse. Creating a cardboard dollhouse can be as simple or as detailed as you want. You can make a single-floor house, create miniature furniture with cardboard, or make it as big as your imagination can go, creating a multi-story house with a backyard, a garage, a rooftop, and balconies.

Backyard fort. Small kids love to create fortresses, and they also love big boxes, so let them create their own fort in the backyard or garden with as many boxes as they want, maybe making a great structure with high walls and tunnels, or as simple as placing a bunch of boxes outside where they can crawl in, just make sure to check the weather forecast to make sure it doesn’t rain and ruin your fun plans.

Toy car, ship, plane. Whichever vehicle your kid likes, you can make it out of cardboard using a cutter, scissors, or a knife to cut the windows and entrance, then let the kids draw the handles, wheels and controls.

If we put some effort and get creative, we can find countless ways to bring back to life used cardboard boxes, and at the same time, we are reducing our household waste and helping to lessen the carbon footprint that we leave on the planet. Get creative and find new ways to make crafts for your home, your kids and your pets, it is good for the planet, fun for the kids, and a great activity to spend some time with your family.