Fantastic Finds Fridays: Upcycled Tshirts.
I am a clothes makin’ newbie and hope to have a wonderful new product line to show off by the end of the year. Until that happens, I am in search of inspiration from my fellow upcyclers out there. This week I concentrated on googling “upcycled T shirts” and “shirts made from recycled material” to see what I could round up for a nice picture post.
Here are some of my favorite upcycled t shirts from other upcyclers around the globe.
During my scavenger hunt I also found a cool new website! Teecylce.org
Think recycling for awesome t-shirts. The founders of the company find cool shirts tucked away at yard sales and thrift shops and sell them online. They donate $1 from each purchase to support the River Revitalization Foundation. I love this idea. Now, as a consumer, you can make a conscious choice to by used! And this guy and gal will do the preliminary shopping for you. Great idea.
I am off to experiment with making some t-shirts from recycled materials!
Thanks to the following websites and blogs for providing such inspiring work!
http://www.recycledlovelies.com
http://rarebirdfinds.typepad.com
Top Ten Reuses for Film Canisters.
I majored in photography for my under gradutate degree, so I have collected a great many film canisters. They make great containers for miscellaneous small items that you need to keep close. I use them when I go camping and to keep mints or coins in my purse. Here are a few more of my favorite reuses for film canisters.
1. Carry sugar and spice and everything nice. The next time you go camping or have a BBQ at a park, take your spices in a film canister.
2. Light your fire. (From ehow.com) Keep your matches dry and neatly contained in a film canister.
photo courtesy of replayground.com
3. Film screening. I love this idea for a screen! This would take a while, but just glue your film canisters together and wha-laa.
4. Curl your hair. Yep, just take the top off of the canister and wrap your hair around it. Clip it to your hair by the open end.
5. Jewelry box on the go. Film canisters make a great traveling jewelry box. Put your earrings and necklace in a safe and secure place when you are at the gym or going for a swim, etc.
6. Mix your paints. Create your favorite colors and paint away.
7. Protect your toothbrush. (via www.sageandsassy.com) Cut a hole in the cap that is large enough to fit your toothbrush. Every time you travel, just push your toothbrush into its traveling case.
8. See things a little differently. Incredible Art Lessons gives a tutorial on how to make a Film Canister Kaleidescope.
9. Keep your pills safe. Film Canisters make great cases for pills. You can use them in your first aid kit for aspirin and the like, or when you travel to take your prescription pills with you.
10. Keep your cats entertained. Put some dried beans or rice in a container and watch your cats go wild.
11. Bonus! Season your stuff. Make yourself some super cheap salt and pepper shakers.
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photo courtesy of www.livegreatonless.com
Top Ten Reuses for Wine Corks.
Wine corks aren’t just for keeping your wine tasty and fresh. You can reuse wine corks in almost every room of the house. A cork board in your kitchen, a coaster in your living room, a pin cushion in your sewing studio, and perhaps a
Here are ten ideas on how to reuse a wine cork!
Start a fire. Wikihow.com suggests that you keep old corks in a sealed jar filled with alcohol. When you are ready to light a fire, place a cork or two underneath your kindling and newspaper and light them with a match.
Cushion your pins. Wine corks make an easy pin cushion. The next time you finish that bottle of wine keep the cork near your sewing machine for your pins.
Let people know their place. Corks make super cute and cheap place markers for a dinner party and wedding reception. Just slice part of one of the sides of the cork to create a flat bottom. On the opposite side slice a small sliver into the cork to hold your name card.
Here is a great sample from Savvy Housekeeping
Keep your pictures straight. Keep your frames balanced when you hang them on the wall. Just slice two small pieces from a wine cork (the same size) and glue them to the left and right bottom corners of your photo frames.
Sow a seed. Keep your green thumb clean and have even sowing holes and the same time. The next time you are sowing seeds in the garden use a wine cork to create your small holes. If you want to be faster attach several wine corks to a board spaced out according to your planting preferences. Just flip the board over and press the corks lightly into the ground; lift and pop your seeds in all of your new holes.
Make a Picture Pretty. Wine corks make wonderful photo backgrounds. I have a tutorial on this site; check it out HERE.
The Obvious Cork Board. A cork board seems to be an awesome suggestion, but I had to share this cool version of one. I will have to make one when I collect enough corks. Thanks CraftingaGreenWorld.com
Stamps! Carve shapes from your wine cork to make unique and personlized stamps.
Give a bird a home. Another great idea from WikiHow.com is to reuse old wine corks to build a bird house. The birds will love their new hip home.
Carry them with you. My all time FAVORITE! Make a wine cork purse. I have to figure out how to do this. And when I do I you will be the first to know. I love it! Check out an example on www.alittlebit2.com
Fantastic Finds Fridays: Upcycled Headband.
Wow! There are so many materials that one can use to make an upcycled headband! From t-shirts to measuring tape to bike tubes! I love the creativity that I have found this week while hunting down my favorite examples of headbands made from recycled materials. Way to go upcycling artists! Keep those creative juices flowing.
I love upcycling and recycling materials because it makes me feel like a kid again. The possibilities are endless.
***click on the images to visit the sites where I discovered these awesome headbands.***
How to Reuse Playing Cards to make Petal Earrings.
A while back I made some simple playing card earrings that I deemed perfect for your next poker night or crazy Las Vegas weekend. Well, I have now designed version TWO of my playing card earrings product line. This version is a bit smaller, slightly more complicated and still just as fun! So, if you have a deck of cards laying around that you are wondering how to reuse, I have a tutorial that will upcycle 2 of those cards. If you are looking to reuse playing cards, you stopped by the right blog today my friend, here you go!
How to Reuse Playing Cards to Make Petal Shaped Earrings:
1. Pick the two cards that you would like to use. I chose the king and queen of spades.
2. Cut 3 petal shapes from each card.
3. Lay the petals in a stack and spread them out so that the tops are still stacked but the bottoms are expanding away from each other.
4. Pick a button to go on the top of your petals. Get some thread and a sewing needle (tie a double or triple knot at the end). Push the needle through all three cards and then through one of the button holes. Keep sewing your thread through each button hole.
5. When you have gone through each button hole twice cut the thread where it meets the needle (you need extra thread to attach your earring hook). Now you have two pieces of thread. Tie them in a knot two times to secure your button and cards in place.
6. Hold your earring by the top of the thread and let it spin until it settles. Put the thread through the earring hook so that the front side of your earring will show when the hook is in your ear. Tie two knots to attach the thread to the earring hook.
7. Repeat steps 3-6 for the other card.
And there you go, easy as easy!
Have fun wearing your awesome new earrings.
The Big Obstacle that is Plastic.
I don’t mean to be a downer, but I get a little sad when I read statistics like, “Only 7.1 percent of our plastic waste was recycled in 2008, according to the latest data from the Environmental Protection Agency.”
Photo taken by John Makely, courtesy of MSNBC.com
Sometimes I get so wrapped up in re-USING that I forget about recycling. Statistics like the above from a recent article written by Allison Linn of MSNBC.com show that we all have a long way to go when it comes to recycling. The bummer about plastic is that it is not biodegradable and when it does finally start to whither into the earth nasty chemicals get released into the air. So, it not only takes up space, it changes the environment for the worse.
A really huge example of how non-biodegradable and obtrusive plastic can be is to take a look at this video of the plastic mass that is currently floating in the Earth’s oceans. It is so big it has a name, The Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
Read this article for more information on that mass of plastic waste.
Plastics not getting recycled is most likely due to many things. People don’t realize that the plastic they are finished using is, in fact, recyclable. And, according to the article, “Many Americans simply don’t have a convenient way do it. About 40 percent of the U.S. population has no access to curbside recycling programs, according to the EPA, and even among those with curbside recycling not all programs accept all types of plastics.” I think some people don’t think about, other people don’t care, and other people are lazy.
So, what is the next step?
Well, first things first, if you live in an area that does not have a recycling program, start one! Here is a great article I found on planetgreen.com about starting your own community recycling program from scratch.
Don’t get discouraged. I hate when I see someone throw something in the garbage I know to be recyclable. But, I still believe that one person can make a difference. And, I also believe that there is a domino effect that can occur in a community. I am not telling you to go out on the street and shove environmental propaganda down people’s throats. I operate in a bit of a different fashion. As Ghandi is quoted as saying, “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” So, concentrate on being the best plastics recycler you can be.
Educate your mind on the different types of plastic. The article I referred to earlier breaks it down a bit, so read it! Buy products from companies that use less packing. Vote at the register, I like to say. I still believe that you can make a difference by what you choose to purchase. REUSE those plastics as many times as you possibly can. Upcycle them too, if you feel like being creative. And, then, after all that, put em in the recycling bin.
We have a ways to go, but I believe that we are moving forward, inch by inch, day by day.
How to Reuse an Old Comforter to Make a Doggie Sleeping Bag.
So, just a few weeks ago I made my pretty pup Neko a cute pink doggie jacket from an old zipper jacket of mine. This week I am getting ready to take an extended camping trip with my husband and want to make sure that Neko has a warm place to sleep. Lucky for me I had an old comforter laying around that needed to by upcycled! So, I took some scissors, a sewing machine, a few buttons and Wha-La! It will take a few tries, but I think Neko will get used to it.
Here’s How to Reuse an Old Comforter to Make a Doggie Sleeping Bag:
1. Cut the comforter to width of your dog’s bed, with a little more than twice the length. You want to be able to fold the sleeping bag over the dog, leaving a little room for a flap to close at night (for extra coziness and warmth).
2. Cut out about 1 inch of the stuffing from any of the open edges of the comforter.
3. Fold both sides of the fabric towards the inside of itself and pin shut.
4. Sew the edges along the pins.
5. Fold your doggie sleeping bag in half, with about a 6 inch flap sticking over on one side, and sew it closed. Leave the side with the extra flap unsewn.
6. Add a few buttons and button holes and you are finished!
7. Give your dog a bone and see how he/she likes his/her new sleeping bag.
Make your own Glue!
As an artist I am trying to be eco-friendly in all aspects of my work. Lately, I have been using a great deal of glue to make some of my work. I thought a few days ago, instead of buying the glue, why not make it myself? It is actually not that difficult!
The easiest glue to make is from Flour and Water. That is it. Just flour and water. This works well for paper and other light weight items. Start off with a bowl with a cup of flour. Drizzle water into the bowl while you stir the flour. You are looking for a PASTE, that is not too watery, not to dry.
There are some other ways to make glue.
For Glass:
(from make-stuff.com)
Waterproof Glass Glue
* 2 tbsp cold water
* 2 packets unflavored gelatin (1/2 oz.)
* 3 tbsp skim milk
* Oil of cloves (optional preservative)
Dissolve gelatin in cold water in a bowl. Bring milk to a boil and then stir into softened gelatin. Add a few drops of oil of cloves if glue is to be kept for more than a day. To Use: While the glue is still warm, brush a thin layer on the objects to be glued. Store in an air-tight container. This glue will also gel when cooled, soften to use by placing the jar in warm water. Good for adhering glass to glass, can be used for adhering glass to other objects when in it’s gelled state.
You can also make glue from Milk!
Check out this cute illustrated instruction manual from http://summerpierre.wordpress.com/
Any other DIY and non-toxic glue recipes out there?