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Upcycle Old Board Games

Make new things from your favorite childhood games.

Cara Smusiak

By Cara Smusiak
NaturallySavvy.com, USA | Wed Mar 18, 2009 03:30 AM ET

monopoly game


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The Monopoly money and half the pieces have gotten lost. The dog gnawed on The Game Of Life board.

When games are no longer playable but are still near and dear to your heart, why not find ways to upcycle the parts you can still find?

A previous post offered up a great word art project for Scrabble, but what about your average board game?

Here are NaturallySavvy's 5 favorite ways to upcycle board games.

Coasters
The other day I found this great photo of coasters made out of board game boards on Flickr.com. They've glued a piece of the board game to a piece of wood, but you could use small tiles or even just two pieces of the board game glued together.

Jewelry
Tokens and small game pieces—think hotels from Monopoly and weapons from Clue—make fantastic little charms for necklaces and bracelets, or found objects for earrings. Drill a small hole through plastic and wood objects to loop them onto a string or add a metal ring. For metal pieces, wrap with metal wire or sauder a small metal ring to the piece itself.

Magnets
Tokens and other small pieces—Scrabble tiles—make great magnets. Simply glue a piece of magnet on the back and you're done! (Just remember to use eco-friendly glue.)

Wine Charms
Want a simple way to remember which glass belongs to which person? This project on diylife.com turn Monopoly tokens into wine charms—but we won't discriminate against any other game.

Gift Box
Want to use the whole board in one fell swoop? Follow these directions for making a surprisingly fun gift box that is sure to wow the recipient.

Cara Smusiak writes on behalf of NaturallySavvy.com about how to live a more natural, organic and green lifestyle.

More about eco-friendly gaming
Tips To Green Your Game Night
Weekend Project: Make An Eco-Friendly Game Table
Extend the Life of Your Playing Cards

 
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