Sunday, August 24, 2008

"Recycled Crafting"

What is "recycled crafting"? I am not an expert, this is just something I wanted to do to have fun & feel like I'm doing one more small thing to help the environment. There is a plethora of items available online & in craft stores for the use of crafting, scrapbooking & card making. I have bought thousands of items over the past 8+ years & have yet to use them. They are taking up space in my life & serving no purpose. So, it's about time I started to use what I have around me to get creative.

So, recycled crafting is using what you already have or items that have been previously used for the purpose of creating a new project.

I first had this idea come to mind when I received a really cool FedEx booklet in the mail after signing up for an account. It is a slim booklet with spiral binding & tabs. I could already envision a great scrapbook or memory keeper just by covering the pages, adding some ribbon, stickers, brads & of course PAPER!! I do not have it finished, but hope to unveil it soon!

In the meantime, I have been stashing things on the shelves in my craft room that I would have either thrown away or put in the recycling, figuring it would be much more fun to see them come alive with crafting materials.

Just a few of the things I have been hoarding.....plastic zippered bags that hold pillowcases, old multi-paned windows, a broken vase, interesting junk mail, baby formula cans, boxes, canisters from baby snacks, tags from clothing & shoes.

So keep checking back to see what I can come up with!!!

Key Holder

What started the idea.....this is actually not the first project that spawned my idea for "recycled crafting". It was a FedEx booklet that I'll post later on, but this is the first project I was able to FINISH. I completely forgot to take a picture before I painted it, but it was cream colored with ugly blue lines & a very faded looking picture on the front of a dilapidated looking home. Mark has been asking for a key holder, so when I saw it at the thrift store for $1.70, I figured I could turn it into something more our style.


The first picture was too dull & I know the next picture has a glare, but it shows the glossy look I was quite pleased with. This project was all about using things I already had, which is what I hope every project can be based on!

Here is it hung up on the wall. I use the clip to remind me what I need to put in the mailbox on my way out the door!

Here's a rundown of what I used:
1. old key holder purchased at thrift store - $1.70
2. spray paint found in garage, purchased ages ago & never used
3. 'Home' metal embellishments - bought at Dollar Tree over a year ago - $1.00
4. Ribbon - all from my ribbon stash
5. Clip - found in my pile of office supplies
6. Flower - bought at Big Lots over 6 months ago - big pack of them - $1.00