Five easy things to make for the holidays with an empty toilet paper roll

November 7, 11:50 PMEarly Childhood Parenting ExaminerAngele Sionna

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What do you do when you get to the end of the roll of toilet paper? Toss it into the trash or recycle bin? That's what most people do. This holiday season, turn your trash into treasures for your home and some fun for the kiddos with these ideas.

Napkin Ring Holders - Cut the roll into about six segments. Let the kiddos wrap them with ribbon, any width will do. You can also use twine or yarn for a more down home look. An empty paper towel roll can also be used.

With older kids, you can make these even cheaper by using fresh pine needles, wrapping them around the segments and tying into a knot, then tucking the long strands under the knotted segments when you've got the segment covered with knotted needles. This takes longer, but it costs nothing at all. If you opt to use fresh pine needles, wait to do this project until the day before your feast.

Dining Table Place Cards - Cut the empty tube and unroll it, flat. Repeat as many times with more empty tubes until you reach your desired place card number. Set a few heavy books on top of the flattened rolls. Gather several pretty fallen leaves. Cover the flattened tubes with leaves, gluing each on. Trim the leaves edges with glue and sprinkle on some glitter. Using card stock or construction paper, cut out rectangles and paste on the center of your place card. Write on each person's name with a marker or paint pen.

Table Centerpiece - Cover the empty roll with ribbon, material or construction paper. Gather a bunch of sticks from the yard or the park that still have leaves on them of different colors. Put as may as you can through your covered tube. Lay on the center of your table for a pretty and really really cheap centerpiece. Plus it's another fun thing for the kids to do.

Thanksgiving Turkeys - Cut the tube in half to make two turkey bodies. Using construction paper trace at least three little hands and cut out. Fan these out and glue or staple them onto the toilet paper tube for the turkey's hind feathers. Grab a few pine needles and stick them to the top of the roll as the turkey's head feathers. You could also just make a few head feathers from construction paper, if you'd prefer. Cut a circle from the construction paper, draw on a face and glue it to the opposite end of the tube to make the head. Using pipe cleaners, make some turkey legs and feet. Attach them by poking a hole thru the base of the tube.

Christmas Tree Angel - This is a classic. So classic that my dad still uses the "Toilet Paper Angel Mikey," as he calls it, on the top of his tree that he made when he was a little boy. It's quite a site. All you do is take a photo of the kids and cut out their faces. Paste the faces on the toilet paper roll. Add a pulled out cotton ball for the hair. Make a dress, wings and halo from foil and/or construction paper. You could also make the halo out a pipe cleaner. You can add glitter and other sparklies on with glue if you want.