Reuse. Rehabilitate. Restore. Architectural salvage and repurposed pieces for the home.
Build it Green’s Crafted at the Canal starts tonight! Come and get your free beer from 5-9pm courtesy of Brooklyn Green Drinks.
About 30 crafters are taking part in the 5 day show which is on all of this weekend and next.
These are some of my newer creations. Haven’t gotten them online yet, so you’ll have to stop by if you want them. 🙂
You probably saw the title and thought this would be totally cheesy, but this guy is impressive! Pumpkin artist Scott Cummins of Texas is a highly skilled craftsman, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have a go and these sculptures too. He does have a tutorial on his site, so go for it!
Yesterday we covered some plastic DIY projects you can do around the house. Today it’s wood! Inspirations from the Solar Decathlon.
Isn’t that inscription on the deck a lovely idea? It can be done on decks, siding or just about any old piece of wood you have around your house.
There are a couple of ways to go about the writing. You can burn it in. Remember those wood burning instruments we all had as kids? (If you’re over the age of say, 35?) Well, that technique is called pyrography. Thing is…do you really want to go out and buy that tool now? Perhaps you have a Dremel or router around the house. If so, then you can carve the letters out then stain them any color you want.
First you’ll want to line it up properly with a straight edge. Tape a stencil down and trace the outline. No, you don’t want to leave the plastic stencil there to be burnt or cut. The rest of it ain’t rocket science. You can figure it out.
Check out that cool shower base. You know what? I’m not even telling you to make it yourself. You can probably buy shit like that at Ikea and plop it right down. I just like it, is all.
I’m not quite sure if this is recycled shipping pallets or a piece made from scratch. Either way, it gave me the idea to do it with shipping pallets. A while back, I thought I’d be really cool and build a bunch of stuff made from the reclaimed wood of pallets. Well, it was crazy trying to take all the slats apart. So why bother? Just cut them down and build stuff out of them that way.
I’m feeling the love towards the bark! Ok, so bark siding is pretty pricey to purchase if you can’t find a tree that it’s coming off of. But I’m not talking about residing your whole home with it. Perhaps a 4×4 framed square to use as a cork board? Or as a backsplash in the your kitchen? An entire wall behind the bathroom sink? A line of bark shingles instead of chair railing? The possibilities are endless.
Brooklyn Craft Central is holding their first ever outdoor market. The curated fair will play out tomorrow under the arch in Dumbo, hence the name “Shop the Archway”. There will be something for everyone and I swear I’m not just saying that.
Shopaholics!
Gawgeous handmade jewelry by Victoria Stevens . That Lego ring is ta die for!
Witty witticisms by our favorite t-shirt gal, Miss Wit. She’ll be set up right next to us (oh yeah, Reclaimed Home will be on the job) and we’ll entertain you if you stop by. Promise.
Marlene’s Lost and Found will have their decoupaged antique postcard boxes on hand. Love.
Animal Peeps!
Money raised selling raffles to win items donated by vendors will go to Ready for Rescue, an organization that helps pets in kill shelters.
Foodies!
Yeah, don’t worry. They’ve got you covered. How does lunch by Hermelinda of Puebla sound? Followed by chocolate truffles from The Chocolate Swirl? Mmm, chawcolate!
Music Lovers!
Bands will be holding acoustic performances throughout the day to help promote the upcoming Brooklyn Indie Music Fest in September.
Kids!
A crafting table will be set up for the little ones to enjoy their day while you’re eating your food, bopping to your music and buying yourself little gifts. Kiddie crafts brought to you by the fine folks at Poloppo.
All this fabulousness takes place on May 21st from 11-6, rain or shine.
So. Tomorrow. Dumbo. Arch. Be there.
Did you know there is an Upcycle Magazine? I do now. The site goes over how-to’s, products and ideas. It is a tad heavy on the Etsy crafty stuff, but there are some great ideas for the home and garden. “Bigger projects” as I like to call them.
Looks as if the site launched in 2009 but the content in the archives isn’t too overwhelming. In fact, I wish there was more.
Well, since a picture is worth a thousand words, I’ll shut up now and show you. As always, click on the image link to learn more.
Via Best Green Blogs.
Between the house renovations and the sprained ankle, I did manage to bang out a few new pieces for the online shop and upcoming craft shows.
Booby Hooks is my favorite. The hooks are strong enough for hats, leashes and light jackets. Or bras. They’re real wood and they’re spectacular. $45
Ok, I kind of like this sweet boy too. He’s seen better days, but who needs arms when you can have scissor wings? That’s a note clip on the bottom there, in case ya didn’t realize. $35
When I told my mom I was working with dolls, she said “You hated dolls when you were a kid!” Well, there’s something to that. I used to pull them apart and abuse them. I must say, I took great pleasure out of ripping off Barbie’s head for this piece. Hang earrings or rings from her “arms”. $30
A little cherub love. This antique sewing machine drawer can be hung as art or can be used as an earring holder. Just hook the earrings through the chicken wire. The kissy blower sitting on the edge can hold some necklaces too. $60
You know I loves me some upcycled robots! Here’s my latest find. Ottawa based Dan Ausin is the guy behind Rivethead Robotics. He started tinkering a couple of years ago with all the junk he was bringing home from thrift stores and dumpsters and the robots started to take shape.
They’re usually made from completely recycled/salvaged parts. He’s been in a couple art shows and a local (to him) boutique, but no online store just yet. If you’re interested in purchasing one , you can contact Dan through his Flickr site.
Via Neatorama.
Gifted starts today at 11am and runs through December 23rd. Why shop Brooklyn Flea’s Gifted? LIST!!!
1. It’s indoors and heated.
2. A million subway lines plus the LIRR will get you there.
3. Support small businesses.
4. Nothing made in China. Unless it’s an antique.
5. Most vendors accept credit cards and if not, there’s an ATM in the building.
6. Who doesn’t like hand made??
7. Plenty o’ food for the foodies.
8. Have ya seen The Williamsburgh Savings Bank? It’s friggin gorgeous!
9. Maybe the Christmas music won’t be so bad (no promises).
10. I’ll be there. Space G-69 in the back room. Blog posts may be sporadic this week, so you’ll have to come for in-person updates.
No small feet! Antique shoemaker’s wooden child foot model. It’s mounted to a base and has a hole in the top. What is it? A pen holder!
Smiles, everyone, smiles! Vintage doll face mounted to a fan blade. Kind of cute for a kid’s room, no?
That’s so hot! Yeah, it’s a scarf, leash or hat hook.
I’m turning Japanese, I really think so! This was a fugly 1970’s cedar jewelry box with decoupage flowers. Trust me, it was dated and tacky.
These pieces will be uploaded to the store only if they don’t sell this weekend at the craft show. Tha’s why no prices.
Trying to get back to work after the whole moving meshugas. I won’t lie. It’s been tough getting motivated. It took me all week to make a few pieces for Crafts in Chelsea on Saturday. In November, it’s holiday season at the Brooklyn Flea.
The {NewNew} partners with PS 11 this Saturday to bring us Crafts in Chelsea. Over 100 crafts people (including me) will be outside on 21st Street between 9th and 10th while indoors is PS 11’s Fall Festival.
Westchester Etsyan Alexandra Ferguson was in the fashion biz in her past life. Now she’s sewing recycled felt together to make these “statement” pillows. She had me at “Let’s Make Out”, but oh, there’s so much more!
Prices range from $49-$199. Need to give someone the message? This is one way to do it.
The Maker Faire at NY Hall of Science was the big weekend to-do for tech geeks and crafters alike. Was it excellent? Well, it was really good, but this cheap beeatch can’t get around the fact that I had to pay a $25 entry fee. I happen to know this turned some people away. I mean, 25 bucks? So I can go in only to spend more money?
Apart from the vendors, there were free rides and demonstrations brought to us mostly(?) by The Madagascar Institute. Although they were extremely cool, these folks could have used some organizational skills. It was unclear who could actually partake. There were people hanging around and watching, but we weren’t sure if everyone actually got on the rides. My husband wanted to have a go at the Jet Ponies (video link)which took a good 20 minutes between rides, but it seems like it was an elite ride for friends and family only. That theory proved correct when it turns out that the guy I photographed was none other than publishing mogul Tim O’Reilly.
The tech geek buddy who was with us LOVED the faire! He was running around like a little boy. I’ll admit that most of the tech stuff was either was over my head or didn’t make sense for the real world. When I asked Tech Geek Buddy what the LED’s do, he told me that some make noise, some light up and I was like “Yeah, but WHY? Then what?” His wife (a.k.a. my bitching companion for the day) remarked that it seemed like vanity projects with no real use.
Well, the crafts were great! At least it’s something I can understand!
I bought myself a lovely recycled purse/bike messenger bag. $135 from Vaya Bags (not the one in the photo, but close). Hopefully it will last me longer than those $2 bags I’ve been buying. The strap is a seat belt, so if I break this, there is no hope for me.
The yarn crafts were amazing! Check out the Coney Island and NY scenes from Lion Brand Yarn.
I also loved the Princess Leia hat I saw. When I asked if it was for sale I was told that the pattern is online because “We’re all crafters here.” #1: No, we’re not ALL crafters. #2: I don’t knit. The pattern is sold on Etsy, but I found someone who makes similar hats on eBay.
Finally, we all learned to solder for $1. Now I’m the Solder Queen.
Computer Monitor by AlpineButterfly. $200
Suitcase by LoveNostalgicWhimsy. $65
Soda Crate by Sleepurrz. $55
