Monday, October 5, 2009

Happy Meal Toy Wreath

Some of you may think this is ugly but you have to at least appreciate the creativity behind it along with the fact that all of these plastic pieces are not sitting in a landfill somewhere, right?

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If you are a mother of young ones you have happy meal toys, legos, and small pieces from games long gone hanging around your house. I had a blank wall in the playroom that needed something so I thought I would make a wreath for the spot out of all old toys. Crazy thought? Probably, but bear with me.

Supplies:
18” wire wreath
truckload of small toys
hot glue gun
5 or so glue sticks
heavy duty wire
strips of fabric

1. I started with an 18” wire wreath I got for $1.50 on sale at Joann Fabrics. I wanted more surface for the hot glue to adhere to so I took strips of old fabric and wrapped it around hot gluing it in place.
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2. Then I just had a field day putting the toy wreath puzzle together making toys fit in place. I used hot glue for the whole thing.

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This Elmo car was actually on top of Isaac’s first birthday cake. It is sentimental but what else was I going to do with it? I guess do what most of you probably do with stuff like that…have it sitting in a box somewhere. No way, let’s put it on display!

IMG_03523. Then I wrapped heavy duty wire around the top of it for a hanger.

IMG_03534. When it was mostly filled with toys I hung the wreath in place on a wall that way I could see how it hung and where I needed to place more toys. As you can see from the picture I still had a lot of bare spots.IMG_0354 5. Keep filling, gluing and adding more toys until it looks full and the way you like it. Legos make great fillers for small spots. Amazingly enough none of the toys fell off. I thought for sure that in the morning I would have toys all over the floor. But there was not one casualty. I guess 5 glue sticks does the trick.

IMG_0394IMG_0395 6. Stand back and admire your handiwork asking yourself is it cute or just plain ugly? Hmmmmmm….

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59 comments:

  1. I saw the title and had to see for myself! haha It's really a Happy Meal toy wreath! This is a great idea to put in the kids room. I actually have to clean toy boxes soon to get ready for Xmas. I always clean them while they are at school so I can throw these suckers away.

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  2. Very creative! Lot of hard work, you should send a pic to the McD website! Very Cool. Happy SITS day!

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  3. You never cease to amaze! :) I'm chuckling at how cute it is... and what a great threat it would make... "This is the last time I'll tell you - if you don't pick your toys up I will make them into a wreath."

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  4. I like it! What a great idea for a playroom/kids room. Cute!

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  5. ha! i LOVE it! what a great use of the "crap" in the back seat of my car and in the bottom of the toybox!!

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  6. I think it's pretty freaking awesome and I so want to make one but I never let the kids keep those toys. Maybe I should start?

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  7. If you get tired of it, you could always spray paint it. I saw something along the same line in a Christmas magazine or craft book and it was spray painted gold or silver - then you could put it out for Christmas!

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  8. I think it's wonderful! How cute for a bedroom...and love the idea of painting it gold for Christmas when you tire of looking at it!

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  9. How Fun! great idea. I bet kids would love it! Here's another cool idea for tiny toys, although I don't remember where it came from:
    http://tinyurl.com/yebfhou

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  10. Aw, I think it's sweet. What a perfect craft for a toy room!!

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  11. I love it! I don't think it's ugly at all. That's such a creative use for things that would normally get tossed. I think it's perfect for a play room. Great Job!!

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  12. Oh my gosh, that is so freakin' adorable! My kids are past the Happy Meal stage, but I remember every time I'd clean out their toy boxes I never knew what to do with all those stupid toys - now I wish I had kept them. Way cute for a "toyland" Christmas theme!

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  13. I think it was a good idea. Perfect for a toy room. Can you imagine a Barbie Happy Meal toy wreath for a little girl? Or some other theme.

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  14. Very ingenious! I have to rummage through my girls toy bins now!

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  15. Do I even have to say it?

    Love it! Will be doing it.

    Soon.

    I probably have enough to make two so that I can spray paint one silver for Christmas. Yup.

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  16. Wow... don't think I've ever been this close to the front of the comment line, or if I have it's been a long time!

    I think it's cute. It's colorful, fun... perfect for a playroom! Good for you. : ) It's more creative than me for sure... I go through their toy boxes and either toss or send it off to Goodwill. My fave (sarcasm there folks) is when people put out a huge box of McD (or whatever) toys at yard sales and try to charge you like $.50 for them! Don't do that people, if anything put them out there for freebies for the little kiddos that really are dying to get something at a yard sale! : )

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  17. LOL I think it is cute!

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  18. LOVE THIS IDEA! We have tons of these toys laying around.

    Thanks so much for sharing!

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  19. crack me up! i love it, so cute and creative for our kiddos rooms!!! even my big kids would love that :)

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  20. Even if I wouldn't put it on my front door, I say "10 points" for creativity

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  21. cool idea, Beckie. Lots of toys like that lying around in my house, too. Time for mother to put them to good use *haha*.

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  22. I like it! What a great way to display the toys without having them strewn all over the place! Great thinking!

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  23. I actually really love it! too cute for a playroom and I am a sentimental sap, but wish I were insanely organized and tidy - so maybe this is one small step in the right direction for me!

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  24. You are so super creative! This can turn in to a fun I spy game too. I love it!

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  25. Oh that's hilarious - yet I love it! We have so many of these that fall to the bottom of our toy boxes, so this is totally a great idea! I might just be doing this one soon! Cute - or silly I can't say - but the idea is genius! LOL

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  26. P.S. Too bad I can't do it w/all my girls extra Barbie shoes and Polly Pocket stuff that has had it's other half lost! They'd melt w/the hot glue - but guess I could try another kind of glue! HAHA

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  27. That cracks me up! I like it. A lot.

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  28. That is awesome!!!! Brilliant!

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  29. I think a lego one would be fun for a boys room!

    Thanks for keeping tabs on me, and dropping by my blog. We are staying with my in-laws for a while, since my husband got laid off and we had to move. Now we are stuck between houses, not sure if we want to rent or buy. All that to say, I don't have my own computer or my own craft space, so posting is light right now. Thanks again for checking up on me, I feel priveledged somehow, now that you are totally famous in blog-world!

    Did you read that book yet?

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  30. I think it is absolutely beyond adorable. It's the most creative idea I've seen in a long time. I'll be redoing my sons' rooms soon and I think there will be one on both of their walls. (I'm thinking matchbox cars?)

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  31. Fun ideas...and Lord knows I have enough toys to work with!

    Sadly, I think my 2 yr old might have a heart attack when he sees his treasures hanging on the wall!

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  32. OMG I could make 100 of these and still not empty all those timy toys out of her toybox! Great idea and will add it to my list.

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  33. Call me crazy but I LOVE it! I would totally hang that in a play room. My kids would think it was the greatest!!! God's blessings, Sarah :D

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  34. I think that would be perfect for a kids room or play room!! Who says you can't have a fun childish wreath? I love it!

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  35. Yes, you are creative!! Awesome decoration for a kids playroom, very very clever!!

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  36. Great idea! I just don't think it would work in my house. I have to bury that stuff deep in the middle of the garbage can. I'm sure if they saw it hanging there they would NEED it!

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  37. Okay, what about using the same idea but making letters to spell a word...maybe "PLAY" or something. OR making a large square one and turn it into a frame for a chalk board. So many options with this...

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  38. So creative! And the ideas that others have come up with - - love the lego idea, or spelling out a word!! Sadly, we do not have tons of the little toys hanging out at our house. I have a strict rule - - if Momma steps on it, it goes in the trash! Mean, I know, but at least I'm not killing myself in the middle of the night!! This is working out fine now, but what about the day when they turn that rule on me? EEEEAAAAAKKKKKK!!!! Lots of little crafty things could be thrown away!!

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  39. THAT is adorable. What kid wouldn't love that wreath?

    Gwyn Rosser
    www.gwynrosser.blogspot.com
    The Pink Tractor

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  40. I think it's really cute! I wish I'd read this about 12 years ago! I'll have to remember this for my grandkids someday.

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  41. Brilliant! I will be copying your genius this weekend, using all the little bits and pieces of toys that no longer work, are missing pieces, or that are choking hazards now that I have a mobile baby in the house again.

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  42. That's too cute! It would look great as a mirror frame or a picture frame for a kids room or play room, will have to try this!

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  43. Okay - Beckie, whether you like it or not (I can't tell if you do), it gets all there crappy (oops can I say crappy in blogland?) toys off of the floor and we don't have to hear the tears when they ask, and they will ask, "where's that cracked train with the unrecognizable mouse sticking out of the top, you know the one missing the left, back tire, mommy?" And you just pointed to the trash....tears guaranteed...thanks for solving that one for us all. Genius. Yep. You. B:)

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  44. I love this SO MUCH! Perfect for a kid's room, play room, or for an adventurous adult. It's fantastic and soooo creative! I'll be linking.

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  45. I love what you did with these toys, we have tons and it is a great way to upcycle them! Thanks for the inpsiration.

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  46. Great idea - just makes me wish I still had a stash of those toys lying around. ;)

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  47. I think this is a great idea!! So creative and I think it's really cute!! Makes me wonder what else I can make a wreath out of! LOL

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  48. Going to feature this on my site. LOVE this idea!!

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  49. Saw this at Living Locurto - I think it's sooo cute and a great way to use up all those itty bitty toys. I'm laughing because I recognize a few of those toys from the bottom of our toy box! LOL

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  50. Wow! Where did you hang this? I just went through and got toys ready for a garage sale and I hated to get rid of some but this is a brilliant idea!

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  51. I thought this was such a great idea I included it in my blog's weekly Reading Roundup. Thank you for sharing!

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  52. The toys all over my son's room floor are destined for this kind of wreath. What a cool idea!! Thank you thank you...my feet thank you!!

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  53. brilliant idea, just so beautiful.

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  54. If I had a dime for every McDonald's Toy I tripped on I could buy out McDonald's. This is priceless!!!

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  55. You're featured on re-nest by apartment therapy http://www.re-nest.com/re-nest/decorating/5-wreaths-you-can-whip-up-before-the-holidays-132856

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