Green Crafter Profile: Mon Ami Vie

Gillian Grant is an American artist living in Paris. A painter, crafter, and a mom, Gillian runs Mon Ami Vie where she sells her lovely upcycled accessories and is working on a self-published book on green crafting.

[Birdie Bon Bon]

Her Crafts
Right now, she’s focusing on making Birdie Bon Bons and also her new Fat Bottoms. She makes the Bon Bons with 100% biodegradable jute cloth and raffia and fills them with birdseed and dried fruit. Birds can snag the snacks inside or take the bits of fabric scraps for nest-building.

A crafter from way back, Gillian was drawn to green crafts after she had her two children. Her Fat Bottoms, an accessory “upcycled from the bottom of a plastic bottle and decorated with decoupaged magazines and vintage buttons,” are super versatile! The design allows you to use them as a necklace, a purse accessory, or even to fancy up a pair of pumps!

[Vintage pumps dressed up with some Fat Bottoms.]

Her Upcoming Book
The Handmade Revolution: Accessorize!, her self-published book, should be available at Amazon.com in late February. She describes the book on upcycled accessories as, “a little humorous, but also informative regarding waste and over-consumption.” She chose to self-publish rather than to seek out a conventional publisher to help reduce waste. Amazon prints on demand, so no paper is wasted in printing unwanted copies. If The Handmade Revolution is a hit, she’s already planning her next book project: one on upcycled housewares!

[Image Credit: photos courtesy of Gillian Grant]