Cotton swabs: why are they banned in the world. Cotton swabs: what are they really for? Why you can’t clean your ears with cotton swabs

Every person wants to create something unusual and interesting, and doing it with their own hands. If you use your imagination and show some ingenuity, you can implement such ideas without much difficulty, using ordinary, improvised things that are found in every home. For example, children's crafts made from cotton swabs always look original, attractive, and it is quite possible to make them with your own efforts; to do this, it is enough to approach this issue comprehensively and responsibly.

Cotton swabs cost pennies, are always found in the house, and with the right approach, you can turn them into something unusual, amazing, and for this you will need to show your refined taste.

Lamb made from cotton swabs - beautiful and original

On the Internet, you can find photos of crafts made from cotton swabs, they all look impressive and beautiful. If you want to make a sheep using cotton swabs, you will be able to do this with great ease by preparing the necessary tools in advance. These include: glue, scissors, wooden clothespins, cardboard, felt-tip pens.

Having prepared all the tools, you can proceed directly to creating the sheep:

First of all, you need to carefully draw the body and head, after which you will need to cut off the tips from the cotton swabs, which should be attached to the body of the future sheep. You can always look online to see how it looks in the photo so you don’t make a mistake.

As for the head, it should also be decorated with improvised wool, after which you can begin to attach it to the body, and the entire structure will need to be glued to two clothespins.

By performing such simple, simple manipulations, you will be able to evaluate that the craft is ready. Agree that there is really nothing complicated about this; clothespins are also needed so that you can attach a postcard, or, for example, an original note.

Of course, you need to clearly understand that such crafts for children can be made as easily as possible, so using your imagination, showing ingenuity and taste, you can always realize such ideas in a matter of minutes.

Features of crafts made from cotton swabs

Crafts made from cotton pads and swabs are presented quite widely on the Internet, so you can always choose for yourself exactly the option that turns out to be the easiest to make and the most attractive.

For example, if you want to make a three-dimensional sheep with your own hands, then again, you can use cotton swabs, but this is a kinder surprise egg, as a result the design turns out to be original and interesting, it looks quite unusual.

Flowers made from cotton swabs - bright and original

Perhaps you get the feeling that such compositions do not look original and beautiful, but after seeing the photo, you can take back your words. To realize such an idea, you will need to take foam balls, paints, and colored cotton swabs.

You need to insert cotton swabs into the balls that will need to be decorated. As already mentioned, they should differ in color base, this is explained by the fact that a white base, as a rule, does not look so attractive, as a result, such a wonderful gift can please for a long time, in addition, you can always give it to a loved one as a keepsake.

Now you know that you can make crafts from cotton swabs with your own hands quickly, easily, without spending much effort and time. As for such crafts in their finished form, they look great, amazing, and therefore one cannot help but appreciate them fully.

When is the best time to create?

The winter period is the most optimal time to make something unusual and interesting with your baby, and crafts from cotton swabs are the best solution.

They are famous for the fact that they are really convenient to use for certain jobs. This also includes winter crafts made from cotton swabs, which look no less impressive, original and attractive.

Applique is a simple version of a craft that uses cotton swabs, and even a child can create an interesting composition if parents begin to show interest in this from early childhood. In order to obtain not only a beautiful, but also a reliable application, it is advisable to use polymer glue, or PVA, for these purposes.

Photos of crafts made from cotton swabs

How do you use cotton swabs in your everyday life besides cleaning your ears? By the way, you know that you can’t insert them into the ear canal? With their help, only the outer part of the ear is cleaned. Plus, Q-tips can be used for anything from makeup to cleaning and even arts and crafts.

● Cleaning jewelry

Want to clean your jewelry and costume jewelry? The tips of the cotton buds are soft and gentle enough to treat your jewelry and make it look new and shiny. Soak the jewelry in the cleaning solution, rub it gently with your fingers, and clean it with a Q-tip.

● Draw patterns

Use cotton swabs to create a design. If you want to paint a polka dot design on a cup, a card, or even a manicure, start by choosing a paint color. Using cotton swabs instead of a brush, you can create a pattern of tiny dots on any surface.

● Cleaning gadgets

Your keyboard, your phone, the surfaces you touch every day are magnets for dirt. If you can't remember the last time you cleaned your gadgets, immediately take the time to wipe them down with cotton swabs. They are designed to clean delicate areas of the skin, making them ideal for cleaning expensive devices.

● Light a candle

Tall candles burn for a long time, but they also run out someday. If you don't have a special long lighter or long matches, you can use a cotton swab to light the already hard-to-reach wick of an almost burnt out candle. Wet the tip of the stick in alcohol, light it and bring it to the candle wick. Have a cup of water nearby so you can quickly extinguish the stick.

● Cleaning the car interior

You can use cotton swabs and cleaning fluid to clean areas that are most often ignored, such as cup holders, seams on the steering wheel, and creases in the seats.

●Hide scuffs on shoes

A few scratches can frustrate you to the point where you no longer want to wear that good quality pair of shoes. However, most unsightly scratches can be rubbed out. Simply dip the tip of a cotton swab into shoe polish (alcohol, detergent) and gently rub the damaged area. It won't take long, and your boots will be smooth, shiny and ready for your next outing.

● Fix a jammed zipper

How many clothes have been sent to landfill due to a stuck zipper! If just such a misfortune has happened to your favorite jacket, look what a cotton swab can do. Using it, carefully apply a drop of Vaseline, soap or oil to the problem area and gently move the zipper slider to release it.

●Place them in your travel makeup bag

The beauty routine you perform every morning becomes much more difficult when you're away from home. Free up space in your travel beauty bag by packing a mini beauty kit. Instead of packing an eyeshadow palette, apply eyeshadow to the ends of cotton swabs and store them in a bag. Once you reach your destination, simply take out the sticks and run them across your eyelids. This trick also works with lip gloss and perfume.

Vladislav Sergeevich Zaichenko, otolaryngologist at SM-Clinic, tells Letidor how to properly clean your ears and why ear sticks are completely unsuitable for this.

What's happening

With the start of sales of cosmetic cotton swabs in our country in the early 90s, otolaryngologists everywhere noted an increase in the incidence of external otitis media, primarily of fungal origin, and an increase in the number of patients with sulfur plugs.

In fact, the main purpose of these sticks is to correct makeup, that is, they have nothing to do with the ears.

Most people use cosmetic sticks to remove wax from their ears, to “clean” them. However, in reality, by doing this they not only do not achieve any better results compared to washing their ears every day, but also create conditions for the development of many diseases.

Why are ear sticks dangerous?

Using cotton swabs to “clean” the external auditory canals, the patient not only removes wax from the areas adjacent to the eardrum, but also “clogs” it there, creating wax plugs for himself.

Earwax, secreted by the glandular cells of the skin of the external auditory canal, has a protective function. It has antimicrobial and antifungal effects and is a natural mechanism for removing dust and foreign bodies from the external passage. That is, wax is needed and you cannot clean your ears until they shine.

The skin of the external auditory canal is extremely thin and delicate, and the use of even such a seemingly delicate instrument as cotton swabs leads to the formation of scratches and abrasions on the skin.

As a result, the patient independently creates the preconditions for infection, practically opens the door wide for it, and first of all (including due to the widespread and uncontrolled use of antibiotics) we are talking about fungi.

It should also be taken into account that in the external auditory canal, especially in its deep parts, even under normal conditions, conditions are extremely favorable for the development of fungi and microbes: it is warm, dark and humid.

Thus, “cleanliness lovers” very often develop external otitis, both fungal (otherwise known as otomycosis) and microbial, and sulfur plugs form. And in those who are especially diligent, an injury to the eardrum may occur.

How to clean properly

It’s not for nothing that ENT doctors have a joke: it’s not without reason that nature created us in such a way that you can put a finger in your nose, but not in your ear. As you know, every joke has only a grain of joke.

Many people who care about the aesthetic side of the issue will probably angrily object: how can it be that everyone now walks around with dirty ears?!

Of course not.

Their doubts will be dispelled by the fact that, due to the anatomical structure, only the outer parts of the external auditory canal are accessible to visual inspection, especially at a distance (and rarely does anyone, except an ENT doctor, look very carefully into your ears). washed with the tip of the little finger during a normal shower.

Thus, the optimal care for your ears is daily washing.

People prone to the formation of wax plugs can use special products in the form of drops (sold in regular pharmacies), which dilute the earwax and increase the likelihood of it coming off during washing. But it is almost impossible to remove an already formed plug using such drops (as well as other products that are sold for these purposes). And in case of unpleasant symptoms, you should immediately consult a doctor.

● Cleaning jewelry

Want to clean your jewelry and costume jewelry? The tips of the cotton buds are soft and gentle enough to treat your jewelry and make it look new and shiny. Soak them in the cleaning solution, rub them gently with your fingers, and clean them with a Q-tip.

● Draw patterns

● Cleaning gadgets

● Light a candle

● Cleaning the car interior

You can use cotton swabs and cleaning fluid to clean areas that are most often ignored, such as cup holders, seams on the steering wheel, and creases in the seats.

●Hide scuffs on shoes

A few scratches can upset you to such an extent that you no longer want to wear this good and high-quality one. However, most unsightly scratches can be rubbed out. Simply dip the tip of a cotton swab into shoe polish (alcohol, detergent) and gently rub the damaged area. It won't take long, and your boots will be smooth, shiny and ready for your next outing.

● Fix a jammed zipper

●Place them in your travel makeup bag

Both adults and children can make crafts from artificial materials. For work, you should use items commonly found in everyday life, for example, cotton swabs. The advantage of this approach is that you do not have to collect material for a long time, but can start working almost immediately.

Working with kids

It is advisable to develop creative abilities in children at an early age. From the age of two, you can involve your child in drawing or making crafts. Of course, they still shouldn’t put sharp or other dangerous objects in their hands, but the interesting ideas we offer for crafts made from cotton swabs will help you diversify your leisure time. In early preschool age, it is very difficult to manage pencils or brushes. Cotton swabs will help create a pattern without risking the child's health.

It is necessary to moisten the cotton part in the paint and allow the baby to apply the image on a blank sheet of paper or a drawing already drawn up by the mother. For example, in this way the spots on a giraffe are painted or snowflakes flying over a house or Christmas tree are depicted.

By dipping a stick in red paint, the child will create bunches of rowan berries or a bunch of grapes. You can use this tool either individually or build a convenient device.

It is necessary to fasten several blanks together or attach them to some kind of base. This will create a circle outline, animal tracks, a flower with petals, or a rainbow.

Some ideas for crafts

To work with older children, the task should be made more difficult by teaching them to carefully handle devices. We will present children's crafts made from ear sticks with descriptions that will help parents organize family leisure time.

Flower made of sticks with foam

To make a craft you need to make a foam ball, take thick wire and tape. You will need scissors and watercolor paints. The ball is divided in half or left whole. The resulting blanks should be painted in the required color.

For a flower, a yellow version is suitable, and for an ornamental plant or Christmas tree decoration, it is advisable to show your imagination by choosing an original color.

Cotton swabs are cut in half and the cotton side is dipped into the paint. After the base and paint on the sticks have dried, you need to insert them into the ball or its halves. This should be done in a checkerboard pattern, moving from the middle to the top, and then you should fill the lower part of the foam base.

A wire is inserted into the ball from below and covered with floral tape. The resulting flower or a whole bouquet can be placed in a decorated pot or vase, as can be seen in the photo of crafts made from cotton swabs.

If the wire is inserted into the half of the ball from the side, then it is advisable to glue the plant to a sheet of cardboard - you will get an original postcard. To get a Christmas tree decoration, a loop is attached to the top of the ball, but the stem is not made of wire.

Sheep made from sticks and disks

Take a sheet of cardboard and glue the sun and clouds. It is advisable to cut them out of cotton pads first. They can also be decorated with watercolors, leaving enough space for the craft being made. To make a little animal you need:

glue a circle as a body;
4 cotton swabs, which will be the legs, are carefully inserted under the disk;
the head, ears and bangs are cut out of the disk base, and then glued to the base;
Colored beads are used as eyes and nose.

Funny little animals

If you don’t know what crafts can be made from cotton swabs, then this original option will help you. An oval or circle for the body is cut out of thick cardboard. Wooden clothespins are glued to the back as legs.

The cotton blanks should be cut off, leaving only the plastic base with the cotton. This is the component we will use. The heads should be glued to the front part of the future animal. Don't forget to leave room for attaching a cardboard cut-out and decorated animal head.

If you need to glue a sheep to a sheet of paper, then do not use clothespins, but make legs from ordinary cardboard. Pre-paint them with an original pattern.

Hedgehog

For the craft, you should take the remaining capsule from Kinder Surprise. Make holes in it for the animal's needles and legs. Then cut the cotton blanks to the required length and secure them in the holes.

Calla lilies

A beautiful bouquet of these flowers in a decorated vase will decorate a child's room. Our master class on crafts made from cotton swabs will help you.

To do this you will need:

Paint one head of a cotton swab yellow to create an analogue of a stamen.
Secure the blanks in green cocktail tubes. These will be the plant stems.
Wrap the stamens in one or two cotton wool discs to create the desired flower. Then secure them with tape.
Place a bouquet of made calla lilies in a vase.

Snowflakes

Detailed instructions for crafts made from cotton swabs will make it easier for you to decorate your Christmas tree or apartment. Homemade snowflakes will look great on glass or wood.

For decoration you will need plastic bottle caps. For each snowflake you need to take 2 pieces. One lid is filled with plasticine, but so that there is enough leftover for attaching the second half with a small margin. The second cap is also fixed on plasticine. The halves should not be fastened tightly - there should be a gap between them for the workpieces.

Cotton swabs are cut off on one side and this end is placed in a plasticine base between the lids. They should be placed evenly in a circle, alternating long with short.

The snowflake can be glued to cardboard. To do this, you need to take a blue sheet and draw the outline of a snowflake on it. Depending on the length of the individual elements, blanks with a white plastic base are cut. They will need to be glued along the contour of the drawing.

Winter town

If you have not yet decided how to make a craft from cotton swabs with your own hands, then you can build the composition “City in Winter”:

Make the outlines of multi-story buildings from colored cardboard or paper, depict windows and doors, and attach them to the base with glue.
Build roof structures from cotton swabs and secure them on top of the houses.
One or more trees should be made from sticks. Whole ones are taken for the trunk, and halves for the branches.

Snowman

For the design, take three foam balls. They should be glued together. The cotton heads are cut off and the plastic tip is inserted into the foam base. To depict the eyes, nose and mouth, the heads are painted a different color. Hands can be made from whole sticks.

Do-it-yourself crafts help not only occupy a child’s time, but also contribute to the development of his creative abilities. With a little imagination and perseverance, you will get an excellent result.