Rhonda Weppler

↩︎ DIY Tutorials

Pistachio spoon

May 2020
Museum of Arts and Design, New York City

Make a stylish spoon from an empty pistachio shell and melted plastic recycled from shampoo, mustard, milk, and other plastic bottles. Tiny but mighty, this spoon will dig its way into your loved one’s heart, after it digs its way into a standard sized envelope.

The short version…

A hole is punched into a soaked and softened pistachio shell using a small nail and a hammer. Two wires are strung through the hole and twisted to form the core of the handle.

HDPE plastic (#2 only) is cut into small pieces with scissors and wire cutters.

A mold is made by cutting and folding aluminum from a pop can.

The plastic pieces are tightly stuffed into the mold (leaving the top off) and melted in a toaster oven set at 325° F. As the plastic bits soften and shrink they are pressed together using a silicone spatula wrapped in parchment paper.

The pistachio shell/wire is pressed into the plastic once the mold is almost filled. More plastic pieces are laid on top to bury the wire.

Once the mold is completely filled, the mold top is clipped on. Turning the oven off, the mold is returned to the oven to cool slowly.

The finished spoon is trimmed with sharp scissors. The shell can be permanently dyed by soaking it in food coloring for a few days.

In the wild…

It made it! The bowl and spoon I made in this video arrived at my friend Jenny’s house in Dufftown, Scotland. Here it is on her shelf.