How to Reuse Paper Rolls
Ranked #5 in Healthy Living, #105 overall
Toilet-Paper Rolls, Paper-Towel Rolls and Wrapping Paper Rolls... Waste, Recycle or Reuse?
Welcome to loo roll heaven!
Well, this is what one of my friend bloggers have told me that she ended up in when she visited this page! :) Hope you'll find it as useful and strange (in a good way!) as she did!
This page holds a great deal of tips and links for different ways paper rolls can be reused in household, for gardening, kids crafts, etc. Hope you will find some new ways you can save some money and be nature friendly with upcycling those paper rolls!
There Are So Many Ways to Reuse Paper Rolls!!!
What's here so far....(adding all the time!)
Question Before We Start!
Household Tips
Extend Vacuum Cleaner Reach
Clever use of empty wrapping paper tube!
Can't reach that cobweb on the ceiling with your regular vacuum cleanerKeep Electrical Cords Tangle-Free
Use toilet paper tubes to stop tripping on cords lying around the house!
Keep computer and appliance cords tangle-free. Fanfold the cord and pass it through a toilet paper tube before plugging in. You can also use the tubes to store extension cordsOr this might happened to you also!!!
Don't Throw It Out: Recycle, Renew and Reuse to Make Things Last
Don't Throw It Out: Recycle, Renew and Reuse to Make Things Last
Amazon Price: $0.17 (as of 02/12/2012)![]()
What should you recycle, renew, and reuse? Practically everything! Written in a cozy style, it covers every room in the house as well as outdoor sports and hobbies, lawn and garden, the home workshop and motor vehicles of all sorts.
Use As Kindling And Logs
Fire up those paper tubes!
Make Boot Trees
Simple trick with cardboard mailing tubes
Protect Important Documents
Keep documents tidy with paper towel tubes!
Uncommon Uses for Common Household Products
Uncommon Uses for Common Household Products
Amazon Price: $4.02 (as of 02/12/2012)![]()
Save money and extend the usefulness of virtually everything you own! This helpful book will show you hundreds of new ways to put everyday items to work in your home, garden and garage. Discover tricks for quick, easy fixes that you can do yourself instead of calling in an expensive repairman. Learn the suprising but practical uses for apples, banana peels, hair dryers, basting syringes, pantyhose, twist ties, shoulder pads, cardboard tubes, and even your dishwasher.
Store Knitting Needles
Simple use for cardboard tube
To keep your knitting needlesStore String
Strings wrapped around toilet paper tube
Nothing is more useless and frustrating than tangled string. To keep your string ready to use, cut a notch into each end of a toilet paper tube. Secure one end of the string in one notch, wrap the string tightly around the tube, and then secure the other end in the other notch. Use Empty Toilet Paper Rolls as Hair Rollers
This actualy works!
Organizing Hair Bands
Simple organizing tip with used paper roll
Use a cardboard toilet paper tube to organize elastic hair bandsIt never fails. You buy a bunch of elastic hair bands and they somehow disappear. Instead of losing them and then finding them all over the place, wrap them around a cardboard toilet paper tube. They will stay in one place and won't get stretched out.
Store Fabric Scraps
Simple storage solution with cardboard tube
Roll up leftover fabric scraps tightly and insert them inside a cardboard tube from your bathroom or kitchen. For easy identification, tape or staple a sample of the fabric to the outside of the tube. Organize Underwear
Toilet paper rolls help from damage
Instead of folding your underwear and having it get lost inside your luggage
Organize Socks and Pantyhose
Put baby socks into toilet paper tubes! Two pairs in each!
Polish Your Furniture with Panty Hose
And Hundreds of Offbeat Uses for Brand-Name Products
Polish Your Furniture with Panty Hose: And Hundreds of Offbeat Uses for Brand-Name Products
Amazon Price: $0.21 (as of 02/12/2012)![]()
Over 30 brand name products are profiled in a quirky title which tells how to use a variety of common household agents to perform unusual tasks. From repulsing deer with Ivory soap to salt to repel fleas, this packs in some real surprises.
Keep linens crease-free
Use long wrapping paper tubes!
Wrap tableclothsKeep pants crease-free
Put paper towel tube on the rack
Keep Christmas lights tidy
Wrap them around cardboard tube!
Protect fluorescent lights
Use wrapping paper tubes for this!
Keep fluerescent lightThe Family Handyman: Helpful Hints : Quick & Easy Solutions / Time-Saving Tips / Tricks of the Trade (Family Handyman)
Amazon Price: $6.11 (as of 02/12/2012)![]()
Clear, well-organized, well-indexed, filled with useful illustrations and diagrams, this is a great book for anyone interested in learning about how to maintain their home, keep appliances running, and fix many things they might never have imagined they could. You will recoup the cost of this book the first time you don't have to call in a pro for a simple home repair!
Organize Garbage Bags
Easy storage solution for garbadge bags!
Many people will keep a spare garbage bag
Store Wax Candle Tapers
Protect them inside paper tubes
Gardening Tips
Start seedlings
Save some money - use paper rolls!
Don't go to the garden supply store to buy biodegradable starting potsMake a plant guard
Protect young tree with cardboard mailing tube
Rodale's All-New Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening
Rodale's All-New Encyclopedia of Organic Gardening: The Indispensable Resource for Every Gardener
Amazon Price: $19.95 (as of 02/12/2012)![]()
s integrated pest management becomes more important, for instance, the methods and products that have been known to organic gardeners for decades are now being investigated and appreciated by the mainstream. Composting, xeriscaping, permaculture, environment--all these and 400 or so more have complete entries. A useful introduction explains how best to use the book and suggests core sections for initial reading.
Make a fly and pest strip
Make a homemade pest strip from paper roll tube
Make a sheath
Protect yourself from cutting with paper rolls
1000 Gardening Questions and Answers
The New York Times 1000 Gardening Questions and Answers: Based on the New York Times Column "Garden Q & A."
Amazon Price: $9.18 (as of 02/12/2012)![]()
Hundreds of line drawings illustrate the book, providing botanical identification and demonstrating how-to gardening techniques. In addition, sidebars throughout supply supplemental information--"Dos and Don'ts of Deadheading," "Annuals that Beat the Heat," "To Prune or Not to Prune: The Clematis Question," "Air Layering," "Windowsill Bonsai"--plus quirky facts, trivia, lore, and myth. It's big, it's got heft, it's filled to the brim with information. And it's so lively, it reads like a novel--and belongs on every gardener's potting bench and bedside table.
Kiddy Craft Tips
Make a kazoo
With paper towel tube
Got a bunch of bored kids driving you crazy on a rainy day? Cut three small holes in the middle of a paper towel tube. Then cover one end of the tube with wax paper secured with a strong rubber band. Now hum into the other end, while using your fingers to plug one, two, or all three holes to vary the pitch. Make one for each kid. They may still drive you crazy, but they'll have a ball doing it! Instant megaphone
Simple yet effective reusing tip!
Paper Tube Maracas
Look What You Can Make With Tubes
Look What You Can Make with Tubes (Craft)
Amazon Price: $1.98 (as of 02/12/2012)![]()
Cardboard tubes are transformed into a vast array of toys, games, decorations and gifts.
Make a hamster toy
Pets love playing with paper rolls!
Place a couple of paper towel or toilet paper tubes in the hamster (or gerbil) cage. The little critters will love running and walking through them, and they like chewing on the cardboard too. When the tubes start looking ragged, just replace them with fresh ones. Preserve kids' artwork
Simply roll it and put inside paper tube!
Make Halloween Treats!
Halloween reuse idea for toilet paper rolls
Build a toy log cabin
Different paper rolls make this even more interesting
Look What You Can Make With Newspapers, Magazines, and Greeting Cards
Look What You Can Make with Newspapers, Magazines, and Greeting Cards: More Than 80 Pictured Crafts and Dozens of Other Ideas
Amazon Price: $5.90 (as of 02/12/2012)![]()
Newspapers uses papier-m ch techniques, decoupage, and cutting skills to make banks, clothed dolls, boxes, signs and cards, mobiles, etc. A switch-plate cover and a marble maze game are two of the more unusual ideas. Bottles, which requires potentially dangerous cutting procedures, only gives a safety warning in the introduction: "If you are having trouble cutting a container, ask for adult help." No warnings appear with individual projects, which combine plastic-container recyclables with paper, ribbon, fabric, buttons, and beads to make such items as bracelets, bookends, a desk aquarium, puppets, a playing-card holder, and decorative containers galore.
Making envelopes
Unique envelope from common paper tube
Make a castle...
with cardboard boxes and rolls
...using paper rolls and all sort of cardboard boxes. It will bring a lots of joy to kids. If kids are old enough they can even build it with you! Instructions are HERE! Turn them into a building / construction tools!
This simple craft will bring much joy to kids!
Crafter's Desk Organizer
Made of tissue box and paper rolls

Paper roll characters
- Arthur
- Arthur Arthur is a simple color, cut and paste paper craft that uses a toilet paper roll as a base to give it a three dimensional effect.%uFFFD
- Astronaut Craft
- Astronaut toilet paper roll craft.
- Athena Toilet Paper Roll Craft
- Free printable instructions and templates for making a greek mythology toilet paper roll craft.
- Baker or Chef Toilet Paper Roll Craft
- free printable templates and instructions for a Baker or Chef Toilet Paper Roll Craft
- Batman
- Batman toilet paper roll craft.
- Maggie's Ferocious Beast Craft
- free printable templates and instructions for a maggie and the ferocious beast toilet paper roll craft.
- Sesame Street's Bert Craft
- printable template for a Bert toilet paper roll craft.
- Betty Boop
- Betty Boop Toilet Paper Roll Craft
- Big Bird
- Big Bird Craft Big Bird is a simple color, cut and paste paper craft that uses a toilet paper roll as a base to give it a three dimensional effect
- Blossom
- Blossom Powerpuff Girls Craft
I've had a whole bunch of requests for Powerpuff girls so have put Blossom together... sorry for the wait everyone! - British Bobby TP Roll Craft
- British bobby toilet paper roll craft.
- DLTK's Snips and Snails and Puppy Dogs Tails Craft
- Little Boy Craft I receive a fair number of requests for crafts for birthday celebrations.
- Changing Faces - Toilet Roll Dolls
- A Little Learning For Two
- Almost Unschoolers: Rapunzel "Let Down Your Hair" Craft
- quick, Kathy Ross inspired Rapunzel craft
- Farmer Toilet Paper Roll Craft
- Cain and Abel toilet paper roll craft.
- Clown Toilet Paper Roll Craft
- free printable templates for making a toilet paper roll circus clown craft. Suitable for preschool, kindergarten and early grade school kids.
- Handyman Toilet Paper Roll Craft
- Handyman/Builder toilet paper roll craft.
- Cookie Monster
- Cookie Monster Toilet Paper Roll Craft
- Cowboy
- Cowboy toilet paper roll craft.
- Cub Scout
- Cub scout toilet paper roll craft.
- Curious George
- printable template for a Curious George toilet paper roll craft.
- Cyclops Craft
- Free printable instructions and templates for making a cyclops toilet paper roll craft.
- Craft Toilet Paper Tube Presidents | Activities | Education.com
- Show your third grader how to celebrate President's Day creatively by constructing toilet paper tube replicas of a couple famous U.S. Presidents!
- Cardboard Tube People
- Tired, Need Sleep.: Preschool Craft
- Toilet Paper Roll Cupid
- make a cute cupid out of toilet paper roll

Paper roll animals
- Bald Eagle Toilet Paper Roll Craft
- Bald eagle toilet paper roll craft.
- Bat TP Roll Craft
- free printable templates and instructions for an Australian Bat TP Roll Craft.
- Bear TP Roll Craft
- This is a cute three dimensional bear craft that is fun for young children to make and to play with.
- Canadian Beaver Craft
- This is a simple three dimensional beaver craft that is fun for kids to make and play with.
- Blue's Clues Craft
- Blue's Clue's toilet paper roll craft.
- Bumblebee Craft for Kids
- Bumblebee Toilet Paper Roll Craft
- Bull Farm Animal Craft for Kids
- bull toilet paper roll craft.
- Valentine's Bee Craft
- printable template and instructions for creating a Valentine's Day toilet paper roll bumble bee craft.
- Easter Bunny Craft
- printable craft templates for preschool and kindergarten kids Easter crafts.
- Easter Bunny Craft
- printable craft templates for preschool and kindergarten kids Easter crafts.
- Butterfly Craft
- The butterfly looks sort of like a monarch butterfly (except a bit more cheerful than the real deal).
- Butterfly Flier Craft Instructions and Templates
- Butterfly Flier Craft Instructions and Templates
- Cardboard Tube Giraffe ~ Crafts by Amanda
- This adorable giraffe is made completely from toilet paper cardboard tubes and some printed felt.
- Toilet Paper Tube Dragon "Puppet"
- Almost Unschoolers
- Elephant Mask %uFFFD Little Running Teacher
- make some masks and look just like Elmer!
- Curly Birds: Zoo Exhibition
- cut the roll into 2 snake shapes
- Cat Craft for Kids
- Cat toilet paper roll craft.
- Toilet Paper Roll Caterpillar
- Free printable instructions and photographs for making a caterpillar craft.
- Chameleon TP Roll Craft
- Free printable templates for a chameleon tp roll craft for preschool, kindergarten and gradeschool kids.
- Cheetah TP Roll Craft
- Cheetah Toilet Paper Craft
- Cheetah Cub Craft
- Leopard toilet paper roll craft.
- Easter Chick Craft
- printable craft templates for preschool and kindergarten kids Easter crafts.
- Chick Toilet Paper Roll Craft
- Printable template and instructions for a chick tp roll craft.
- Cow Farm Animal Craft for Kids
- Cow toilet paper roll craft.
- Cow TP Roll Craft
- This is a cute three dimensional cow craft that is fun for young children to make and to play with.
- Cowardly Lion Craft
- Materials you will need are a toilet paper roll, printer, paper (I prefer construction paper or another heavier paper), scissors, glue, raffia or string, and something to colour with.
- Crocodile Craft for Kids
- Crocodile toilet paper roll craft.
- Twig and Toadstool: It's Flower Power Week!!!
- Let's Make a Recycled Rainbow Flower Wreath!
- Cardboard Tube Princess Bracelet
- Crafts by Amanda
- A Little Learning For Two: Racing tubes
- Today we made some simple 'racing tubes' for the matchbox cars.
- Little princes crown
- Cute project for little girls
- Bonnie Bagpipes Craft - Crayola OFFICIAL Site
- Take a musical road to Scotland! Craft your very own pretend bagpipes with a paper bag and recycled gift wrap rolls.
- flipflops and applesauce: Rain Sticks from Wrapping Paper Tubes
- Rain Sticks from Wrapping Paper Tubes
- House of Baby Piranha: Toilet Paper Roll Birds
- use toilet paper rolls to make 2 cute birds.
- A Little Learning For Two: Paper Plate Ring Toss Game
- traditional ring toss game with a twist
- Catholic Icing: DIY Printable Nativity for Kids
- needed 13 TP rolls
- Everyday Mom Ideas: Freedom Rockets - Family Craft Tutorial
- Have a wonderful Independence day!
Make English crackers
Spirit of holidays with simple paper roll
DIY Star Ornament with TP rolls
Ever thought of using toilet paper rolls for scrapbooking?
More crafty ideas
- Mexican Bean Bracelets
- directions for children to make a mexican bean bracelet craft.
- Camouflage Binoculars Craft
- The daddy in our house spends far too much time dressing Barbies and tidying up the doll house for his daughters... he really enjoyed playing with his binoculars *grin*.
- Mexican Bird Rattle
- In Mexico, paper mache rattles are popular
- Great stART: Piep Piep Piep or making watches with toddlers
- Redtedart Blog Bringing Colour & Art to Children
- Loo Roll Marionette Birds
- story + Art = great stART - Walks in park, Leaf Trouble, Loo Roll Marionette Birds
- Make a Marble Obstacle Course | Activities | Education.com
- With a few simple household items you can use marbles to teach your child about simple science concepts like gravity, speed, weight, and balance.
- Make Your Own Bowling Game | Activities | Education.com
- Do you want to turn basic addition into a fun game for your first grader? Simply save up some old paper towels for a do-it-yourself bowling game.
- Fingerprint Fall Tree Craft
- Fall fingerprint tree craft for kids. Kids will enjoying making the different colored leaves of fall by dipping their fingers in fall colored paints and making their fingerprints on the tree in red, orange, yellow and green.
- Hurricane cover
- A Little Hut - Patricia Zapata: recycle project no. 16
- Stop Sign Craft | Toddler Craft
- My kids love to play Red light, Green light 123! Today we made a great preschool craft that added some more fun to the game and created a whole bunch
- A Mommy's Adventures: Toilet Paper Tube Apple Tree
- Toilet Paper Tube Apple Tree
- Spooky Skeleton Crafts
- Spooky skeletons are probably one of the first things that pop into your mind when you think of Halloween. And making skeleton crafts is a great way to create a spooky Halloween atmosphere in your home, or in your classroom
- Baby Brainstorm: Good Deeds Manger for Baby Jesus
- Simple TP roll craft
- Faux Metal Wall Art
- Suzy's Artsy Craftsy Sitcom: Feature Friday
- zencrafting: How to Make a Knitting "Ned"
- This tube can be used to make necklaces, bracelets, potholders, frames, etc.
- Magnetic pen holder
- Here's an easy Toilet Paper Tube Craft idea that turns a normally useless item into a great pen holder for your fridge.
More tips about reusing different common items
Have You Found a New Way to Reuse Toilet Paper Rolls...
... wrapping paper rolls and all the other carboard rolls?
If you know any new way of reusing TP rolls, and you don't see it listed on this page, please leave it here so everyone can use it!
And tell us: Reusing, recycling or wasting? What is your choice when this question is asked?
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ImpartialGreg
Jan 30, 2012 @ 12:56 pm | delete
- DIY rocks! Recycling just makes sense!
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shermanmorrison
Jan 29, 2012 @ 10:42 pm | delete
- First REDUCE, then REUSE and as a last resort RECYCLE! Thanks for a great lens. Who would have thought you could do so darn many things with toilet paper rolls?
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armidabooks
Jan 28, 2012 @ 2:52 pm | delete
- very nice ideas, thanks
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MillBucks
Jan 24, 2012 @ 11:49 am | delete
- Great lens! As kids we used paper towel rolls as make believe telescopes, our favorite characters were Pirates so we would color the rolls with crayons to make them unique to us,we would then use plastic wrap on the ends secured with rubber bands as the lens. Thanks for helping to bring back some fond memories!
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Joseph Smith
Jan 24, 2012 @ 7:50 am | delete
- Nice idea..! Thanks for ones marvelous posting! http://bit.ly/p0rYH3
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myamya
Jan 23, 2012 @ 2:01 pm | delete
- interesting lens!
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KandH
Jan 22, 2012 @ 9:43 pm | delete
- Excellent ideas... and so many of them too, thanks for sharing!
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webkangaroo
Jan 22, 2012 @ 11:29 am | delete
- Cool ideas -- and a really great lens. Congrats on making the top 100!
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nelsonkana
Jan 22, 2012 @ 9:17 am | delete
- Nice lens here. Am taking a tour of top lenses. This is one of them. I like it.
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therence
Jan 19, 2012 @ 3:43 am | delete
- It really make sense to lessen our garbage..Nice lens......
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nelsonkana
Jan 19, 2012 @ 2:24 am | delete
- Nice lens. Today am exploring top lens. Your lens is interesting and informative.
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elizathielker
Jan 18, 2012 @ 7:04 pm | delete
- I love the seedlings idea. Shall be using that. We used to have a shed full of plant pots, but I left home and now I have none. So toilet tubes to the rescue. Brilliant idea. Great lens
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Vallygems1
Jan 18, 2012 @ 2:40 am | delete
- Brilliant
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leeleon
Jan 17, 2012 @ 2:18 am | delete
- wow. nice lens. I have recycling info in my lens. Welcome to see it.
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Thrinsdream
Jan 14, 2012 @ 3:24 pm | delete
- My daughter is an avid maker of "stuff" so the rolls go to her. I mis-read part of this lens and read it as paper tube mascara I was one confused puppy for a second! Love the idea of using them to put your underwear in on journeys, oh and the bit about putting them on cloth hangers to stop the creasing. Brill ideas. With thanks and appreciation. Cathi x
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Even More Ideas - Shared by Squidoo Members!
"We used to spread peanut butter all over it, roll it in birdseed, put a string through the hole and hang from the tree for the birds.".... by KAB
"Our kids and grands love to "battle" with Christmas paper rolls - the real long ones. And yes, Nancy O, the "hoo-hoo's" is a perfect name for them. Makes for great parades down the hallway!".... by Joan4
"...they are great for puppy treats. Fold over one end pop in a few dog biscuits then fold over the open end to close it and give to your puppy. They have fun trying to get the treat out and it keeps them out from under your feet when you're trying to hang out washing or sweep the floor!".... by Lou16
Let's Start with Simple and Unexpensive Things!
Use tote bags instead of plastic bags!
by a_willow
I always try to trash as little as possible. This lens is product of my research on ways to reuse paper rolls.
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