great design from cheap materials

Good design can be expensive. It pays its own dividends, though.
More on that later, but if you think that amazing things can't be done with even inexpensive materials........

....look what artist Tara Donovan does with styrofoam cups (bottom) and silver mylar sticky tape (tops). The mylar work is currently on exhibit at the Met. [photos via scoboco]

She also works with pencils, drinking straws, paper plates and tar paper, all of which can be seen at ace gallery.

I find these works inspirational because they are basically a repetition of simple forms using an everyday material. Labor intensive to be sure, but most churches have more wealth in hands than in money. With supervision and planning, a repetitive-form project is very doable by a church group.