Finding creative uses for old items is nothing new to artists, but the spirit of preserving the planet is more important than ever before and GreenCraft Magazine is here to honor and inspire those who find artistic uses for normally discarded resources.  You already know that one of our mottoes here is “Don’t throw ANYthing out!”  So look around you and see what you’ve got to work with 

GreenCraft Magazine will provide ideas for repurposing trash to treasure by showcasing projects where waste is repurposed into ecologically chic creations.
To be considered for publication in this semi-annual magazine, please submit …read more

Recently I received a beautiful thank you note from a young friend.  I thought at first that she had made the card herself, as she is very talented in many things.  But when I flipped it over, I realized that she had gotten it from a lovely little online shop called Organic Greeting.
Card similar to the one I received: all
are handmade one-of-a-kinds
Louise, owner of Organic Greeting, makes her cards from recycled maps, stamps, and different types of found objects.  The particular card that I received included some of Louise’s handknitted seaweed!  Very very cool.  All the cards are blank inside, …read more

Definitely don’t ever throw out your old phones.  Or any of the parts.  Who knew that you could make something this cute from the parts?

My friend Shirley sent me these pictures.  They supposedly come from the Museum for Communication in Frankfort, Germany.  I can not verify that, but I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s right.   There are four of these museums in Germany, all linked from a central website (link above).
Makes me want to go to the nearest thrift shop and start stocking up on broken phones!
I started wondering who else was out there using phones as an art medium.  …read more

Nancy Judd of Santa Fe is brilliant!  She creates what she calls “eco trash couture” as her statement to the world about conservation, and shows them at Recycle Runway.  Nancy has been commissioned by major corporations to design fashions for them too.
Nancy teaches workshops that aim to have the participants create functional pieces, with the goal of at least 90% recycled material going into each project.
Each of Nancy’s original hand sewn garments like the ones shown below take between 100 and 400 hours to make.  Her work is exhibited in airports all across the country:

Fan Mail Dress, 2000.   Junk mail.

Plastic …read more

Check out this amazing video of a textile art installation in progress at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City.
The artist, El Anatsui, sews and weaves recycled metal together with textiles to create large-scale tapestries.  Because the metal can be shaped and formed, the artist can create a different installation every time the piece is shown in a gallery.
Doesn’t that make you want to try out some different techniques?  The sky really is the limit…

Jason and Faye, of Rag & Bone, posted about this gorgeous wall piece that they made from book pages.  Now that’s what I call creative recycling!  There’s always something wonderful being posted or discussed on the  Rag & Bone blog, and don’t miss their Bindery either!

Just in case you’ve got an old abandoned eye-sore in your neighborhood, and you’re sick of looking at it, you could consider doing what artist Jennifer Marsh did: create a “cosy” for it.  You know, a cosy…as in toaster cosy, teapot cosy, toilet paper cosy… Those inexplicable fabric covers that some people insist on sticking overtop of everything.
But an abandoned gas station?  Wow!  Isn’t that great?

Information on Jennifer’s Gas Station Project can be found on the International Fiber Collaborative Website, along with information on Jennifer’s other projects.  She writes, Participants crocheted, knitted, stitched, patched, or collaged 3 foot square fiber …read more

What a great way to honor your old record collection!  And if you’re into retro colors and style, that’s an added bonus with this terrific project by Paper and Stitch.

The really great thing to me about this project is that these covers are so easy to come by at garage sales, flea markets, and thrift stores…and since the records themselves are usually scratched, the covers are just heading for the landfill.
All the how tos are found at the link above.

Finding creative uses for old items is nothing new to artists, but the spirit of preserving the planet is more important than ever before and GreenCraft Magazine is here to honor and inspire those who find artistic applications for normally discarded resources.
GreenCraft Magazine will provide ideas for repurposing trash to treasure by showcasing projects where waste is repurposed into ecologically chic creations.
To be considered for our Publication, please submit your recycled, reused and repurposed items to GreenCraft Magazine no later than April 14, 2009.

What’s Up Wednesday!

500 Found-Object Works
Juror: Suzie Millions
Editor: Suzanne Tourtillott

Entry deadline: March 15, 2009
Lark Books seeks one-of-a-kind images of found-object art to publish in a juried collection representing the most creative examples in this exciting genre. While material options are endless (recycled/repurposed wood, paper, plastics, electronics and the like), we will accept only professional quality photography. Due to trademark considerations, very few works featuring recognizable brand names or logos will be accepted. This publication is scheduled for release in Fall 2010. There is no entry fee.
Download an entry form here.