Recycled Treasures

There is an expression, "One man's trash is another man's treasure".  I do believe this is true.   There is a magazine to prove that recycling has turned into a feasible industry.   Then there is the lifestyle of making do with what you have(I can hear my parents talking as I type this). 
 This statement can get the creative mind spinning.... There is a magazine called  Green Craft magazine, unique ways to rethink, re use and reduce our landfill.

 Rachel Wilpon made this upcycled purse out of junk mail.  She was featured in Green Craft magazine.


I can't find a link to her blog.    Check out Linda Zokan's scarf; She made it out of t-shirts cut into strips and then she knit them together. 


Charlotte Lyons used paper towel tubes for storage.





Becky Shander  repurposed dryer sheets. When well used,  she dyes them  in a tea bath for 5-10 min and
uses them in her art.   I love the dimension they add to her work.



My friend, Ingrid upcycles, she has a lot of creations in her Etsy store.  This Ipod/cell phone case is made out
of VHS tape.






PattyVan Dorin has pushed the envelope, from ordinary to extraordinary.  Her class is still available til
December.

Nifty little book; Mine is a work in progress, probably won't get it done, til next month, when school starts again.   Here is some mail you wouldn't want to toss; Here Roben- Marie  shows you how.     Check out this amazing artist's work.      If you are really into recycling and crafting, check these ideas out~


Lee of Tossing it Out, reminds us we need to look at our junk mail; He is having Toss it Out Tuesdays, finding ways to get rid of or be creative with our clutter.   I thought I would show you some creative uses!

Comments

Lisa said…
Love this as recycling is a pretty big deal to me. It's amazing the amount of stuff we throw away that can be repurposed!
Will Burke said…
Those are some great ideas! I'll be looking at our garbage a little differently now!
Sherry Blue Sky said…
Ellie, do you know about Project Genesis? This page would be a great one for taking part in it. The first day of every month many of us are linking to Project Genesis from www.oldgreymareprimitives.blogspot.com
to share ideas about reusing, recycling and other/any ideas for how to help the earth. This page of yours would fit right in. If you go to her page and scroll down, her july 25th entry tells about the project. She will put up a linky right around the 1st and we can all link our pages to it, she will post our sites on her site and everyone will visit each others' sites, in this way we may attract some traffic to our sites as well as sharing ideas for helping Mother Earth. All of the women in that circle are very very arty and crafty, you will fit right in!!!!! Check it out. These ideas are PERFECT!I have the Project Genesis button on my site, you can get one from her site..........hope to see you there!
Becky Shander said…
I grew up with very little means so using and reusing what's around has become a habit. Some habits are worth hanging on to right? It's reassuring to know that others share this green mindset.
Wanda said…
Very creative individuals. I really like the purse.
Kolleen said…
i love all of these wonderful ideas and love you for sharing them with all of us!!

i have missed visiting you....back home for 2 days and trying to catch up with everyone before i am off and runnin again!!!

hope you are well.

sending a great big hug to you
xoxox
k
Hart Johnson said…
Very cool! I actually has a friend who MAKES recycled paper and uses it for gift wrap and cards and such, so her old newspapers, junk mail, etc. get used that way.
Anonymous said…
I love this! What fantastic, creative ideas!
Diana P. said…
These are wonderful ways to upcycle! My husband and I actually smash wine bottles (after he enjoys the wine, hehe) and then fuse the shards. I clean up the edges and drill holes in them so they can be made into earrings.
Arlee Bird said…
Those are some examples of incredible creativity. I'm tossing out my junk, but at least it's going into the recycle bin. I really have to admire the ingenuity and talent involved in actually finding ways to use what most of us discard.

Lee
http://tossingitout.blogspot.com/2010/07/tossing-it-out-tuesday-junk-mail.html
unnamed lad said…
...had an apartment once that i recycled all my beer cans. the apartment had a foyer so of course i made a beer can curtain. had two windows but only made one full beer curtain. needed the other for fresh air. it didn't very well for the shower. but i couldn't stand the CLATTER! especially when after a Hard Day's Night:)
DEZMOND said…
Anything that's green wins my heart :)
Ella said…
Dez-I know fav color, like me;the mindset is
pretty cool, too!

Bud-I love your Hard Day's Night ending...brillant! I tried one summer to save soda tabs and make stuff...didn't get far. I think I managed a belt.

Lee-I am glad you are recycling; I am working on a stack right now. I have a bag ready for the thrift shop and a stack of books to take to the "Recycled Reader". You are working magic on a slew of us; It isn't even Fall, yet...

Diane-Wow, I will stop by and visit; This sounds intriguing~

Hi Michele-I love your new work...keep at it!

Hart-there is so many uses, it really challenges the mind, but so worth the effort. I bet her paper is beautiful~

Kolleen-I missed you, too...Running off again?!
Wow, Wonder Woman~

Hi Wanda-I know isn't it kewl~

Becky-We were told a lot to make do with what we had. My Mom was cutting up panty hose for her garden, long before Martha Stewart. Green is a great way to be frugal and help Mother Nature!

Sherry-I will check it out; I have heard of it, but can't tell you where. Thank you for pointing me in this direction~

Will-I think of the kids and at least we are trying to do what we can to improve some situations~!

Lisa-Upcycling is the trend; a lot of people are making money crafting with recycled items~
It is important to me, too~
lori vliegen said…
hi ellie! these are all great projects.....and i'm especially intrigued by that security envelope book! i've been wanting to incorporate them into my journals (and i have a huge pile of them waiting to be used!)....i might have to check out her class!! thanks for the links! xox, :))
Unknown said…
green craft..where can i get my hands on one... it sounds cool... I am still feeling under the weather, but had to visit your blog quickly... I have been so lame lately.
Ella said…
Lisa-Green Craft magazine will make it's appearance soon at Barnes&Noble. I will let you know when. Sorry to hear you still aren't feeling your best! Take Care xXx

Lori-I haven't finished mine,yet. I have been collecting them in the mail and having fun manipulating them. It is fun, when I get it finished I will post it~ You writing n' art in them would be gorgeous~
Cruella Collett said…
This was a very cool post (thanks to Lee for directing me here). I adore the concept of redesign. When I visited Washington D.C. (and the obligatory Smithsonian museums) I noticed a trend in the giftshops (I love museum gift shops) - fairtrade crafted figurines, handbags, picture frames, ear rings and other things all made from what we'd normally think of as junk. I bought a giraffe made from beer cans. It's definitely my favourite "piece of junk"!
Ella said…
Cruella- How amazing and so unique~ My Mom collects elephants, perhaps I should make her an upcycled one for her birthday. It is in a few months~
Sounds like a great place and so much inspiration!
I, too love museum gift shops~