Crafty Reuse: From Art Installation to Handmade Product

Amy Wilson

New York-based artist Amy Wilson mainly works in watercolor, but when it was time for her 5′ x 130′ vinyl art piece in West Thames Park to come down, she decided to put her crafty skills to use and keep all of that plastic out of the landfill.

She’s been turning all of that beautifully printed, salvaged vinyl into one of a kind tote bags. Amy describes her experience:

To be honest, I got the commission to create the original piece in a bit of a whirlwind, so I never really thought about the material it was going to be printed on – I just thought wow, this is a great opportunity for me and my work. And then when I was standing there during the installation, that’s when it hit me and I realized I wanted to do something to reuse the material.

She had been wanting a vegan replacement for her trusty leather purse, and inspiration just struck! Since the piece came down, she’s been handmaking and listing 10 bags per week in her Big Cartel shop.

Amy Wilson Bag

Amy predicts that she’ll be able to create about 100 tote bags from the vinyl sheet and is trying to sort out something she can make out of the leftover scraps from the creation of the totes, as well.

She’ll list 10 new bags each Wednesday at 7pm until all of the material is gone. If you want to learn more about the West Thames Park installation and her tote bags, you can check out Amy Wilson’s website or take a peek at her Big Cartel shop!

[VIA SUNfiltered]

All photos via Amy Wilson. Used with permission.

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