Every year, Australians and New Zealanders chuck away 30,000 tonnes of commercial furniture waste. The vast majority of it ends up in landfill.

Some surveys claim the green credentials of households don’t fare much better, with families disposing of around 25 kg of wooden furniture annually.

There is an opportunity here to turn some of what we throw away into something useful. An added bonus is that it allows the kids to learn about DIY and upcycling. And it can shift their instincts from discarding to repurposing.

So put on your hard hat and become a DIY expert for a day.

1. A Novelty Upcycled Bedside Drawers

If you have an old set of wooden bedside drawers, now is your chance to give it a new lease of life. Alternatively, check out a charity op shop, garage sale or online “freecycle” group.

Get the kids involved with the DIY project by letting them choose a wrapping paper with designs of their favourite characters or animals. Now, decide how and where to use it on the unit. You could use pieces you cut out to cover shelves if there are any or inside any drawers, for example.

You could also use square, oblong or circular pieces cut from the paper as well as the characters themselves.

Your step-by-step guide:

1. Remove any handles and thoroughly clean the unit with soapy water. Once dry, sand the outside with a fine paper. This helps the paint stick to the surface for a lasting finish.

2. Work out where you plan to stick the paper characters and paint the rest of the unit with a multipurpose primer. Get the kids to use a roller and a small brush for the details.

3. When the primer is dry, apply chalkboard paint on the top of the unit. Use eggshell paint for all other areas. You may need to apply several coats of each. Do the painting outdoors, if possible, or in a well-ventilated room.

4. Once the paint’s dry, use a mounting adhesive type of glue to stick on the paper pieces. Use a plastic store or credit card to push out any bubbles.

5. When all the pieces are in position, and the glue has dried, apply a coat or two of varnish to protect the unit from grubby fingerprints. Create your handles and stick them in place with strong glue: plastic toy dinosaurs and building blocks work well.

You could apply the same process and principles to all sorts of other types of wooden furniture, from dining chairs to shelves. Using a roll of unwanted wallpaper to line the inside of a shelving unit can be very effective.

2. Make a Bug Hotel

There are an estimated 200,000+ species of insects in Australia and New Zealand. We’ve only given names to around 68,000 of them. They all need a home, and many can enrich our gardens.

Here’s a step-by-step guide to building a bug hotel. You can get the kids involved in all parts of the process:

1. Plan the bug hotel by deciding its shape and size. You could use some wooden pallets or make a wooden box using nails and a hammer. Bugs don’t discriminate against accommodation that you may not have perfectly formed! The critical part of the design is to make lots of sections and compartments.

2. If you’re using pallets, take them apart with a pry bar and remove all staples and nails. Arrange the planks to form the exterior and interior walls of the bug hotel.

3. Now, create the bug rooms within the compartments. Use bamboo canes cut into small 15 - 20 cm sections. Pack them in tightly to make the bugs’ living quarters.

4. Stack small plastic plant pots on top of each other. Fill their bottoms with leaves and twigs. These are great spaces for insects like ladybirds to shelter.

5. Add in some tree branches to size. Drill holes or carve grooves in them for insect nesting spots.

6. Where necessary, glue or nail the canes, pots and branches in place so that everything gets fastened securely. Sand down any rough areas so you can easily carry the bug hotel and place it in an appropriate location. Get the kids to etch their initials on the outside wall of the bug hotel.

3. Make Your Own Kind of Music

Here’s how to rustle up a homemade guitar. You’ll need:

• An old tissue or small cereal box with an oval shape cut out from the front
• Some acrylic paint and brushes
• Two wooden pop or ice cream sticks and sticky tape
• A cardboard tube from a roll of foil or baking paper
• Plastic bands of different thicknesses and sizes
• Some coloured paper, decorations and glue

Here’s your step-by-step guide:

1. Place one end of the cardboard tube against the narrower side of the tissue box and draw around it. Cut out a hole carefully. Paint the tube and pop sticks.

2. Remove any plastic inside the tissue box, open it up and lay it flat. Paint the inside. Glue the box back together so the painted side becomes the outside. Insert the cardboard tube and secure it with the sticky tape.

3. Glue the painted pop sticks at either end of the oval hole so that they are horizontal and in line with the narrower ends of the box. Stretch the elastic bands around the entire box so they’re taut.

4. Finish by decorating with sequins, ribbon or buttons. Now it’s time to play a song.

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