Written by Lucille Chi
Published on December 24th, 2008
“Always reach for the sky–or swing your way there!” is the title of this handmade art card from Cards for Africa made by talented Rwandan artists and youth groups.
“Our Touch the Sky card is lovingly handcrafted in Rwanda by young people who have been orphaned by genocide or disease. All the paper is handmade from local Rwandan office waste, making it environmentally sustainable, too.”
Cards for Africa exists to:
- improve the quality of life for orphaned youth in Rwanda.
- represent a diverse partnership of designers from both Rwanda and around the world.
- promote fair trade principles.
- support like-minded partners who believe in the future of Rwanda.
- turn waste into art.
- recycle Rwandan scrap paper that would otherwise be burned.
- work with like-minded partners who believe in the future of Rwanda.
- support sustainable development in Rwanda.
“Why Rwanda? Rwanda is full of potential, but 10 percent of the population has been orphaned by disease and the 1994 genocide.” Read the rest of this entry »
Written by Becky H
Published on October 22nd, 2008
This is a guest post by Becky Haas, an amateur crafter/environmentalist who also tries to make a living as a professional musician. You can also find her at the craft blog Sew and So.
I’ve caught myself contemplating this quite a bit lately–whether it is actually possible for a craft that relies so heavily on paper to be done in a way that’s eco-friendly.
It seems that scrapbooking has a few extra challenges that makes it difficult to find supplies that are made from recycled materials. For one, the paper used as the base of the page has to be sturdy enough that it can handle having photos and other potentially bulkier items adhered to it–generally cardstock weight. This eliminates most, if not all, homemade and handmade papers. because they tend to be more fragile and tear easily. But the bigger challenge I’ve found in finding basic supplies is that most scrapbookers want stuff that is acid- and lignin-free.
Read the rest of this entry »
Written by Autumn Wiggins
Published on October 5th, 2008
As many of you know, I’ve been on hiatus planning Strange Folk, which took place this past weekend in O’Fallon, IL. We had amazing weather and an estimated turn-out of 10,000 people. On a shoestring budget, I set out not only to lessen this event’s impact on the planet, but also to wisen the public to the ways of upcycling.
The first part of this equation poses many obstacles. For instance, enough cash to order all the marketing materials I need printed on recycled cardstock with soy based ink from a company across the country (because no one does that locally) and offsetting the carbon emissions it takes to ship them to me. But that’s just the beginning. I’m truly starting to understand the woes of the organizers of this year’s Democratic National Convention, even if they had $70 million to work with. Pfft… pocket change in terms of going uber-green. Read the rest of this entry »
Written by Autumn Wiggins
Published on September 17th, 2008
I love those NetFlix commercials where all the different movie characters deliver themselves around the neighborhood. Maybe the fantistic voyage the actual envelopes take is less evocative than portrayed, but you have to give them props for the clever design that allows the movie to be returned in the same packaging. All you are left with is a puny flap of paper, and I’m happy to report that you can now put it to good use.
Netflix Origami has over a dozen different well illustrated examples of folded critters, containers, and more. Thinking ahead to the holidays, many would make great substitutions for bows on small presents. The cube and heart would be cute tree ornaments too!
If any of you get Blockbuster instead, I’m wondering if those flaps work for this as well? Experiment and let us know in comments.
Written by Autumn Wiggins
Published on June 18th, 2008
Cradle to Cradle by William Mcdonough & Michael Braungart may be the world’s most environmentally friendly book. Not only will it give you an entirely new perspective on how we manufacture things, but you can read it while snorkeling. The pages are made of non-toxic plastic resins and inorganic fillers combined to form a durable, waterproof paper that is infinitely recyclable. These characteristics also exist in a new substrate being produced by Natural Source Printing called FiberStone.
From their website: “FiberStone is made from 80% Calcium Carbonate (CaCOз) with a small quantity (20%) of non-toxic resin (HDPE- High Density Polypropylene). The Calcium Carbonate comes from limestone collected as waste material from existing quarries for the building and construction industry.”
The bottom line is that no trees are cut down, no water is consumed, no bleaching chemicals are used, and no air pollution is created. Along with being waterproof and recyclable, it is also tear resistant. They offer a wide range of products such as marketing and packaging materials as well. Does this sound like a dream come true for some of you struggling to find ways to reduce the environmental impact of your creations and microbrands?
I asked a representative from the company a few questions with the indie craft community in mind… Read the rest of this entry »
Written by Skye Kilaen
Published on June 10th, 2008
This week in Fabulous Fabrics, I’m venturing a little outside the normal to include a recycled fabric product that’s halfway between fabric and paper. On Kim Kight’s yummy fabric blog True Up, I saw this recycled paper/fabric hybrid from a company called Soolip. It’s a wallpaper weight paper made out of “recycled cotton rag that comes from unused off cuts of clothing from India’s garment district.” Kim speculates that it might be good for sewing projects as well as the gift wrap that Soolip suggests.
You can see all of the patterns here – but make sure you notice there’s a page two, navigation is in the upper right. Most of them come in additional colorways and you have to click through to see them. Each sheet is about 22×30, and they sell for $6 or you can get 3 sheets of the same pattern for $12. Read the rest of this entry »
Written by Skye Kilaen
Published on June 5th, 2008
Ah, the journal. I have about 5.2 billion of them scattered throughout the house, much to the annoyance of some other people who live here and don’t understand that when I ask for “the green one,” I mean that green one and not that green one. I have a journal for notes on films, a journal that reminds me what to look for when thrift shopping, and a couple of journals with notes from conferences I’ve attended in the past couple of years. Journals are so lovely.
Kelly has written about Ex Libris journals and Night Owl Paper Good journals, and Tara tipped us off about her friend Nicole’s recycled wallpaper journals from Freshly Blended Press. I took a spin through Etsy to see what other upcycled, recycled, and handmade journals I could discover…
Holy cow, it’s insane over there!
I had to narrow it down to journals that use recycled, found, or scrap paper inside as well as recycled material in the covers, because otherwise my brain was overloading. I didn’t even scratch the surface, but here are some of my favorites: Read the rest of this entry »
Written by Tara Hogan
Published on April 9th, 2008
My friend, Nicole, from Freshly Blended Press, is amazing with recycling wallpaper. She uses all those old wallpaper swatchbooks for material that would otherwise be thrown away . All of the wallpaper is used exquisitely for the covers of her wallpaper journals.
So, next time you come across wallpaper scraps think twice before tossing them out.
Nicole also donates part of her profits to The Humane Society.
Written by Kelly Rand
Published on April 7th, 2008
Based in Birmingham, “Owlbama,” Night Owl Paper Goods is a letterpress stationary company that gives a hoot about the environment.
Their letterpress designs are printed on sustainability harvested yellow birch, creating unique postcards and journals. The wood is sliced thin to produce a large number of cards from a small amount of raw material. Each piece is different due to the variation in the wood grain and very little water and power is used in their production. The birch trees are also replanted.
Their designs are simple, cute and whimsical. They are full of natural elements done in simple line drawings or simple-complex geometric shapes, reminiscent of quilt designs. They describe themselves as “modern yet folksy.” The postcards are easily marked with pen, pencil and markers. Whooo, knew that you could send wood through the mail?
You can also find their designs on journals that use the same thin sustainably harvested wood. What makes the journals extra special is that they contain 100% post-consumer recycled paper. Perfect to jot down your own eco-friendly notes and scribbles, on.
[Image from Night Owl Paper Goods' website.]
Written by Juliet Ames
Published on March 10th, 2008
Here at Crafting in a Green World, we clearly like crafting with recycling paper! Emma’s post on maps and Autumn’s posts on recycling folded paper and Playing Card Bags made me want to risk the paper cuts to craft. I am discovering, through writing these blog posts, that I am pretty fascinated in paper crafts too. I have already tackled junk mail, paint chips, and old photos, but as I pack up my recycling for the week, I noticed a kind of paper then gets no love, newspaper! Sure, we have all used it to pack a box, but think of all the possibilities!
One of my favorite ideas from Emma’s map post was the adorable Paper Cotton Bird. I could not resist sharing this one made out of newspaper. This Etsy seller from England pays great attention to detail as she hand stitches each bird with embroidery thread using her own pattern. They are so darn adorable, I can’t stand it.
When talking about recycled newspaper crafts, I must mention Newspaper Jewelry. I had the pleasure of seeing these in person, and they really are spectacular. This stuning pendant is made up of newspaper headlines that were hand formed into beads and stitched together with Swarovski Crystal beads. Read the rest of this entry »
