How to Make Clorox Bottle Piggy Banks

Recycle a bleach bottle into an amusing plastic pig you can use as a piggy bank. Children can make this craft with the help of an adult. The materials are inexpensive and easy to find. You can incorporate this craft into lessons about recycling or saving. You can use any size bleach bottle for this project as long as the bottle has the distinctive bleach shape with the handle on one side of the top.

Things You'll Need

• Bleach bottle
• Box blade or X-Acto knife
• 4 corks
• Hot glue and glue gun
• Dark pink felt
• Light pink felt
• Scissors
• 2 black buttons
• Black marker
• Pink curling ribbon

Instructions

1. Wash out the Clorox bottle to remove all traces of bleach. Let dry.

2. Lay the bottle on its side with the handle at the top. Use the box cutter or X-Acto knife to cut a slit in the top. The slit should be about 2 inches long and 1/4 inch wide.

3. Glue the four corks to side of the bottle opposite the slit, for the pig's legs. Apply a dot of hot glue to each cork, then stick to the bottom at a slight angle. Turn the pig on its back and allow the glue to dry.

4. Cut out two triangles of dark pink felt and two slightly smaller triangles of light pink felt for the pig's ears. Also cut out a square of felt 2 inches by 2 inches. Round the corners of this square to form the pig's nose. Cut out two circles of light pink felt for the pig's eyes.

5. Use white glue to glue the light pink triangles inside the dark pink triangles for the pig's ears. Let dry.

6. Glue the pig's ears to each side of the top of the bottle for the pig's ears. Glue the nose to the lid for the pig snout. Glue the eye circles on either side of the handle.

7. Glue a black button inside each felt eye circle. Attach the buttons at the bottom center of each circle.

8. Draw two dots on the nose with the marker for nostrils.

9. Cut a 6-inch length of curling ribbon. Pull the ribbon across the blade of your scissors to curl. Glue the ribbon to the bottom of the bottle for the pig's tail.

Tips & Warnings

• You can decorate your pig with "spots" cut from felt.

• When you're ready to take money out of the bank, trace the outline of a large cork on the pig's belly. Cut out the resulting circle, retrieve the money and use the cork to stop up the hole so the bank can be used again.

• Be very careful not to burn yourself when using hot glue. If making the bank with children, the adult should apply the hot glue.

References

• Christianity Cove: Pig Bank

Resources

• Martha Stewart: Bottle Bank