Green Options

If you have not gotten your hands on one of the Junk Beautiful books you are totally missing out.

Sue Whitney is the ultimate when it comes to taking a piece of whatever and re-purposing it into awesome decor. Examples: an old grate becomes the centerpiece of a magnificent winter wreath, washboards and a printer’s drawer become a stylish outdoor patio table, a tire and drum become a side table, a vintage wooden milk crate becomes a garden cart, dominoes become a soap dish, an old urinal becomes a planter…and that’s just ideas from the Junk Beautiful Outdoor Edition.

A good thrift store is an asset to a community equal to that of a mom-and-pop hardware store, a locally-famous ice cream/snowcone/frenchie stand, and a rockin’ adult co-rec softball team: in other words, it’s crucial.

In my hometown, we’re lucky not only to have all of the above and a library that stocks just released feature film DVDs, but several excellent thrift stores—thrift stores small and quirky, thrift stores large and conglomerate, thrift stores frequented largely by the college students, thrift stores frequented mostly by the townies. As an avid crafter whose Crafting Manifesto dictates that I work primarily with recycled materials, I have throughout several years’ worth of projects figured out a way to use pretty much any kind of thrift store junk to make awesome stuff. Here are some of the possibilities:

I love vintage glass. I have a few hoarded bottles and unique finds that are currently stashed away so my kids don’t break them. Eventually I will have all my antiques displayed around my home and not stuffed in boxes…after the kids have grown up.

If I displayed everything now it would just get broken. But broken glass pieces don’t always get wasted. There are many artists who have found creative ways to turn broken glass into works of art. Some make mosaics, others make new bottles, glasses or tumblers, and some, like Laura Bergman of Bottled Up Designs , make pretty pieces of jewelry.

Sometimes you gotta shop online. Maybe you live somewhere a little bit country, like I do, or maybe you have two little kids who would rip apart a bead store in the time it took you to pick out a single package of 3mm crimp beads, like I do, or maybe you have a favorite independent craft shop that you discovered on a vacation a couple of years ago and every now and then you have to have a fix, like I do.

Whatever your reasons, there’s no reason to necessarily shop at a big-box store’s web site; not only are there tons of sites for Fabulous Fabrics and Yearn-Worthy Yarns, there are loads of awesome craft stores, some selling supplies and some selling handmade goods, who would looooove to have your business:

One simple way to make your customers feel special when they open their purchase is to tie it up or tape it up in style.  In the first part of this series I showed you a variety of handmade eco packaging envelopes, but your special product packaging doesn’t have to end there.  Seal up your envelopes or tie up your package with my top recommendations for decorative tapes and ribbons.

It’s no secret that I love sewing with vintage fabric. Linens and remnants from back in the day just feel like they have a story attached to them. Not only are you giving something old a brand new life, you get to add to its history.

Sometimes it’s a bit tricky to track down a good variety of vintage fabric, but Megan over at Moxie makes it a bit easier with her fantastical selection of vintage fabrics!

Sure, Earth Day SHOULD be every day, but there’s nothing wrong with getting on board the Earth Day train on April 22. It doesn’t make you, you know, a “joiner” or anything.

And so what if we’re always supposed to be “crafting a green world?” Maybe you could craft a little greener on Earth Day. Or try something new. Or do without some awesome supply you might normally buy. Or take something weird out of your trash can and turn THAT into something awesome.

Or, since you’re already pretty green and already pretty crafty, you can just feel okay about that on Earth Day. That’s totally fine.

However, if you’re feeling extra-inspired, here are five eco-friendly projects all ready for Earth Day craftiness:

When I sell record bowls at craft fairs, people tend to say lots of awesome things to me, and they also tend to say three annoying things: 1) Look, sweetie, this is a record! (to their child). 2) How exactly do you make this? 3) Oh, no! You ruined all those records!

Statement one is annoying because a) the kids being shown the record bowls are always like ten years old, and their response is always to just roll their eyes at their parent, because OF COURSE they’ve seen a record before, and b) if a kid had never seen a record before, well, a record bowl really doesn’t look a lot like one, ya know? Statement two is annoying because, as my partner pointed out to me, the people who try to get me to tell them how to make a record bowl NEVER buy one from me–they just want me to tell them how to make one for themselves. Do a Google search, friends.

Statement three, though…that’s only annoying because someone says it at every single craft fair, and I have to assure them that I have a record player of my own and I only craft with the vinyl that’s way too beat up to have another use. I’m pretty sure, though, that there are people in the world (teenagers who just found mom’s old record collection, I’m talking to you here) who WOULD ruin a perfectly good, and super-valuable, vinyl record just because they didn’t know better.

Vintage suitcases are popping up all over the place lately and have been upcycled into some amazing storage options. Creating the perfect craft storage solution is a journey not a destination. As our craft stash grows so must our storage options. If you are ditching the plastic bins for vintage containers, you must consider using vintage suitcases.

Etsy seller VanityCase makes these amazing custom vanity and liquor wall cabinets. The vintage leather suitcases are outfitted with everything from mini drawers to pull switch lights. I could easily see the vanity cabinet (shown above) being used for craft storage.

I am always inspired by Junk Camp projects, like the rubber stamp photo holders. Spring is here and Ki is sharing a flower trug tutorial made from a vintage feedsack. We are big fans of repurposing feed sacks.

Do you create and assemble vintage or antique collections that are unusual and artful? If so then meet Lost Found Art: a unique design company that specializes in sculptural installations and assemblages using antique and vintage pieces. LFA may just be interested in acquiring those odd collections (you’ve been thinking of selling) for their unique contemporary art sculptures.