Written by Julie Finn
Published on January 2nd, 2009
I don’t know about you, but Christmas week at my grandparents’ house isn’t exactly a hotbed of activity. Papa does get up at around 5 am, of course, so if I got up, too, I could hang out with him while he sits at the kitchen table and reads the newspaper and drinks coffee for three hours. Then we can move into the den and watch Fox News for a while. We could yell at the dog, watch through the front window to see what the neighbors are up to, and when the postal worker comes, well, we are going to hop up and get that mail RIGHT AWAY. We have to hurry, you know, because if we’re going to go to Western Sizzlin’ for dinner, we have to be there by 4:45 pm at the latest.
Yeah.
So you may not be surprised that while my Papa watches Fox News all day, I putter. This is where I found the million of Christmas cards from people we’re not even related to anymore and got permission to upcycle them into gift tags. One time I found a bunch of my Mama’s really old resin record albums and ripped them all to my computer. I dug around in the attic until I found all my old Strawberry Shortcake dolls and Transformers and He-Man guys (remember this dude? He’s my favorite).
And then, a couple of days ago, I found the quilts. Read the rest of this entry »
Written by Kelly Rand
Published on June 30th, 2008
Steampunk, a genre combining future living with the romance of the Victorian era, started to come to prominence in the 1980’s. Influenced by fantasy and science fiction writing, and inventions for time-travel by H. G. Wells, steampunk has started to trickle into the mainstream in recent years.
It has gone beyond being relegated to the novel and expanded into all other aspects of art and design, making its way into fashion as well. The style is most often characterized by the use of found and repurposed objects, open circuitry and exposed gear cogs. There is also a blog devoted to all things steampunk called The Steampunk Workshop.
The mentality of do-it-yourself that is pervasive within steampunk is what helps this aesthetic cross into green culture. The clothes, jewelry and modded phones and computers are all created with vintage or thrifted items to achieve the proper “look.”
Read the rest of this entry »
Tags:
Clothing & Fashion,
craft,
cufflinks,
diy,
eco,
environment,
pendants,
recycle,
rings,
steampunk,
upcycle,
Vintage
Written by Melissa Stajda
Published on December 14th, 2007
Etsy is a great shopping resource, especially for crafting supplies. When you’re looking to make your own jewelry and want one-of-a-kind beads or findings, vintage is the way to go. Making use of vintage supplies is also great for the environment because you’re recycling! Browse these great shops for rare vintage beads, metal findings, and other supplies.
If you love super colorful and quirky beads and trinkets then Atomic Veggie is the shop for you. This shop has a huge stockpile of candy-colored vintage plastic beads, retro metal findings, and adorable novelty charms. You can grab some pretty large batches of supplies at really affordable prices here.
Love, Gemma is one of two Etsy shops from artist Brooke Medlin. Brooke is well known for her beautiful, handmade jewelry using vintage beads and hand fabricating metal, and she is now sharing some of her jewelry-making stash with us. Check out her shop for a great selection of vintage lucite beads, and metal findings.
Zivile is another great shop that carries large quanities of really colorful beads, the most popular being floral inspired. Besides beads, you will also find vintage home goods, figurines, and even handmade jewelry.
[Images courtesy of
Etsy]
