Green Options

I didn’t get to make as many handmade gifts as I had planned but I still made a few. Here’s a bit of my handmade holiday show offs.

I made my mother another memory shadow box out of items I found in my grandparents old stuff. This one matches the one I made for her last year.

Now here’s what a little creativity can come up with; Motherboard Gifts is a company that utilizes old motherboards and computer parts to make reclaimed gifts like money clips, picture frames, clocks, coasters, jewelry, bookmarks, binders, business card cases and even Christmas ornaments.

These are eco-friendly gifts even the most tech savvy, computer geek may love.

Kimi Chronis is the owner and designer of Fish Lips Paper Designs, a classy and eco-friendly wrapping paper company based in Florida.

Fish Lips is a one woman show that is a great example of what someone can do with a little creativity and the desire to offer earth friendly products.

Green Guide for Artists: Nontoxic Recipes, Green Art Ideas, & Resources for the Eco-Conscious Artist is the one book all green crafters and artists should have. It lists craft and art supplies that are green (and at a minimum less toxic) as well as gives recipes to make your own green supplies like natural paints and glues.

I had no idea that Gorilla Glue is “green”. My husband uses it all the time and I figured it was just another glue from the hardware store but it is actually non-toxic and VOC free. Though when I have performed searches for green supplies it never comes up.

That’s just one reason why this book is so great.

“Artists and crafters have always been recyclers, but for many, it has not only become a thrifty choice, it has become a moral imperative. 1000 Ideas for Creative Reuse contains a cutting edge collection of the most inventive work being made with re-used, upcycled, and already existing materials. The work in this book ranges from clever and humble personal accessories to unique and important large-scale works of art, including paper art, fashion, jewelry, housewares, interiors, and installations.”

Upon window gazing in San Francisco, this immense coral yarn sculpture reminded me of one of the most unique, and unusual TED Talks I’ve ever seen and it’s about coral yarn crochet. In this TED (Technology and Entertainment Design) talk, Margaret Wertheim shares the coral project she started with her twin sister that is all about crocheting the coral reef.

The idea of this yarn filled coral sculpture garden is inspired by endangered sea coral, the ancient art of domestic handicrafts, and the new discoveries in mathematics by Dr. Daina Taimina on the beautiful math of coral.

Empty cardboard toilet paper rolls are one thing that everyone seems to have.

My kids love to play with them to make binoculars and all sorts of fun playthings.

I have found several creative ways to transform toilet paper rolls. Favor boxes for special occasions and parties are one way to put them to good use.

Anyone can easily take empty rolls and turn them into fun party favors, especially for Halloween.

Via the UK Telegraph, I recently learned about Alex Queral, an artist currently living in Philadelphia, PA who creates portraits of celebrities and politicians, but what is interesting about him is that he carves these portraits out of discarded phone books.

Queral started using phonebooks when off looking for some wood and happened upon some abandoned phone books. They can be advantageous to use as they are often a free material that can be found in recycle bins and trash piles. Queral carves the famous faces into the phone books and slowly peels away the layers to create a low relief sculptural portrait.

The Big Green Book of Recycled Crafts ( Leisure Arts #4802) is a collection of fun and fabulous crafts made from all kinds of trashy, upcycled products.

I see quite a few old favorites in this Leisure Arts publication from other Leisure Arts books including the Trash to Treasure books.

I also see a few new crafts and one that I am thrilled to have found the instructions for.

There are days when my relatively crafty self looks at my piles of crafty-goodness and let’s out a long sigh… What on Earth can I create (or entertain all these kids) out of all this JUNK????

Enter Trash Matcher from Imagination Factory.  On the left side of the grid are types of trash (foil, paper, beads, plastic) and the right a description of what you can make out of it.  If you click the trash word, you will be redirected to a tutorial, complete with substitutions (I hadn’t thought of using leftover white house paint as gesso).

With a metal coat hanger,…

Tonight I’ve been pondering crafts involving old books.  Obviously collector books, library quality books and books we just plain love get pampered and kept on our shelves and tables…

What about the rest?  Obsolete manuals, damaged books, those which have only kind of survived the toddler years… where do they go, what do they become?

Disclaimer: If a book is not salvageable (or any parts of it that are beyond reuse), please tear it apart and recycle it.

If books are in good shape and no longer needed in your household, please consider donating them to a hospital or shelter.  A great idea for children is to have a book exchange party or a books for the children’s hospital party (ask everyone to bring their gently used books to donate).

Here are some great ideas I found for making a book into something new.