Upcycling: From Junk to Masterpiece
Have you ever looked at something in the trash and thought,
“I could use that to make a perfectly good something else?” If you have, then you have thought about
upcycling, or taking someone else’s junk/trash/discarded goods and making them
into something new. You can make
something useful, crafty, artistic, or simply reuse something to help reduce
waste and make the Earth a greener place.
Whatever your reasons, upcycling is an awesome way to continue the
trends of reduce, reuse, and recycle that we all know are so important in
today’s world.
One of the cooler upcycled projects I made recently was a
farmhouse-style rag rug (the kind that you used to see in your grandmother’s
kitchen). I made it out of two old king-size
flannel bedsheets that a friend donated to me because her very industrious dog
had chewed a huge hole right smack in the middle of each of the fitted sheets
in the set. The loom I used was also
made of upcycled junk consisting of old garden stakes, nails I stole from one
of my husband’s buckets of random stuff in the basement, and old closet
poles. Modern ingenuity - gotta love it!
After weaving for about an hour a
day for two weeks, I had myself a very pretty rug. Some people might ask “Why on earth would you
take the time to sit and make a rug that you could buy in pretty much any home
store?” The simple answer is, because I
enjoyed the heck out of doing it myself.
There is just something so fulfilling in seeing a useful and beautiful object
coming from the labor of your own two hands.
But do not get me wrong, I know this level of time commitment is not for
everyone, nor is the desire to teach yourself how to hand weave a rug. But there is something out there for
everyone’s level of ability and commitment.
All you have to do is look for it.
Want some ideas? Check out the Library’s catalog. There are some great things there for the
taking, both in print as well as e-book formats.
Upcycling: Create Beautiful Things with The Stuff You Already Have, by
Danny Seo and Jennifer Levy, is available at several of our branches and covers
a wide variety of projects and levels of skill and use.
UpcyclingCelebrations: A Use-What-You-Have Guide to Decoration, Gift-Giving, &Entertaining by Danny Seo is an e-book available for download through eLibraryNJ
that specifically covers gift giving and one-of-a-kind creations for all of
your holidays and celebrations.
Trash to Treasure: A Kid’s Upcycling Guide to Crafts by Pam
Scheunemann is perfect if you are looking to get your kids interested in
upcycling, too.
If you prefer the Internet to
books, there are literally hundreds of different blogs and websites out there featuring
upcycling, DIY, and repurposed materials to fit everyone’s level of skill,
enjoyment, and personal taste. Just a
few that I frequent are listed below.
Whether you are into detailed
projects or just want to make something quick and fun with your kids, upcycling
is an excellent way to get creative while helping keep things out of our
landfills. So get out there and get
started! Look at that pile of junk in a
new light, and you just might see your next great treasure waiting to be
created.
- Megan, Twin Rivers Branch
This is so neat!
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