Recycled art and craft: a reading and project-planning collection

Explore a material before collecting more of it

Recycled art and craft can begin with a simple question: what can this existing material express or become? This collection offers places to read, look and learn, followed by an original planning sheet for a modest household project.

It is a resource collection rather than a reproduction of magazine pages. The linked organisations and artists own their work. Follow their instructions, age guidance and reuse terms when using a learning resource.

Artist-led starting points from the National Gallery

The National Gallery of Australia's Art Steps by Rowena Gough explores wearable art and joining found materials. Read the artist's prompts and materials list directly. It is a useful starting point for thinking about how objects can connect, rather than copying a finished design.

The Gallery's online teacher engagement with Lauren Berkowitz is an on-demand learning resource connected to the artist's practice and reimagining materials. It is a recorded resource, not a current booking invitation.

These links provide two different ways into a project: begin with a joining process, or begin with an artist's way of considering material and space. Use the original resource for the full context and attribution.

Creative reuse and practical destinations

Reverse Garbage provides a starting point for creative reuse and its current learning opportunities. Check the organisation's own site for what is available and what it accepts; a general interest in reuse does not mean every unwanted household object is suitable for donation there.

For material that does not belong in your project, use Recycling Near You to investigate an appropriate local route. Keeping unusable leftovers indefinitely is not a requirement of making something thoughtfully.

Plan one small project

1. Purpose: what would you like to make or explore?
2. Material: what do you already have, and can you identify its condition and origin?
3. Reference: which artist or resource informed the idea, and how will you credit it?
4. Joining method: what instructions will you follow and what skills are needed?
5. Scale: where will the finished work fit, and how much material is enough?
6. Ending: can the components be separated, reused or disposed of appropriately?

Begin with a sketch or a temporary arrangement. For a family activity, select a resource suitable for the participants and follow its supervision guidance. Avoid improvising a children's activity from unknown, contaminated or sharp scrap.

Keep useful reading notes

Record the title, creator, original link and what the resource helped you understand. Distinguish your own experiment from the artist's work. If you want to share a tutorial or image publicly, check its permission terms; linking to an original resource is different from republishing it.

A useful note might read: “I explored repeated shapes after reading this artist's prompts; these are my own materials and arrangement.” That makes the relationship clear without claiming the artist designed, approved or endorsed your project.

Historical context for Junkies readers

The former Junkies art/craft section was part of a wider eco-design magazine. A February 2018 archived view records that historical section. This new collection gives readers a current route into creative-reuse learning; it is not an issue archive or a continuation of the original editorial team.

For household decisions beyond a craft project, see reuse, repair or recycle. For unwanted usable materials or belongings, see donation and resale planning.

Sources checked on 15 October 2026: the National Gallery's learning pages, Reverse Garbage and Planet Ark. No archived photographs, magazine layouts or artists' instructions have been reproduced.

About this guide

Prepared with AI assistance using the sources linked in this guide, checked on 15 October 2026. Published by Simply Maid. No independent practitioner review or product testing is claimed. This is original guidance, not a reproduction of the former website.