Thursday 11 May 2017

Kid's Activity Mat: Upcycled Bed Sheet

Usually my old towels and stained clothing get broken down into cleaning rags, but bed sheets present a dilemma in terms of absorbency. They’re simply not great at cleaning. So when I encountered a tenacious bright blue paint stain on a fitted, king-sized sheet, I was forced to get creative on how to repurpose this item.

Meanwhile, I was preparing for a family road trip wherein two children under the age of four would spend 25+ hours in a car making picnic-type pit stops only to end up at the final destination to spend each day hanging about in the outdoors, picnic-style. Are you following me?

Enter the homemade picnic play mat!!

This craft requires: 

  • Fabric paint/markers 
  • Sewing machine and the ability to sew in a straight line 
  • Thread 

Optional: 

  • scrap fabric for trim 
  • scrap fabric for corners if using a fitted sheet 

I began by cutting out the elastic on each corner to allow the sheet to lie flat. Given I was working with a king-sized sheet, I should have cut the remaining flat piece into a rectangle but I didn’t want to lose the extra space so I kept it as is.

Next, I traced my design using a marker or pencil. Since we were embarking on a road trip, I drew a series of streets with landmarks around them before inviting my three year old son to help colour them in and add detail.

The transformation. Image Source: Ellen
We included a volcano, fire station, construction site, mountains, mine, boulders, lake, forest, and hospital. All the most important things, in my son’s opinion. I packed the fabric markers along with the blanket and we kept the artwork incomplete so we could invite our friends to continue the process while on vacation.

Highlights. Image Source: Ellen
If you’ve been working with a rectangle, you can simply fold the edges and sew a seam to prevent the fabric from fraying. Since I had four gaping corners, I filled them with some Canadian road trip fabric (how perfect!) and finished the entire thing with a bright binding along the edges.


Image Source: Ellen 
The final result is far from complete but will evolve as we spend time on it. It was dragged through seven states and two provinces and will now be used for picnics and play in our backyard and local parks.

How do you use old bedding? Share your thoughts in the comments section.

- Ellen (Volunteer)

Friday 5 May 2017

Edmontonians Breathe New Life into Pre-Loved Clothes

This past weekend, Change of Clothes hosted their third annual Clothing Swap, Repairathon, Upcycling, and Panelists event, the culmination of a week of Fashion Revolution events. Change of Clothes shares in the Fashion Revolution goals of awareness, positivity, and participation by providing a space for Edmontonians to extend the lives of their wardrobes through mending, swapping, upcycling, and donating. Change of Clothes also shares in the Reuse Centre's goals of diverting waste from landfills; in only two years, Change of Clothes has processed over 700 pounds of clothing through repair, swapping, upcycling, and donation!

When Claire Theaker-Brown returned to Edmonton after living in China, she felt that there was a lack of community focus around sustainable fashion. Edmonton already had the repairathon, random clothing swaps, craftspeople focusing on upcycling, and recipients of clothing donations; however, there lacked a hub to bring all of these people together. This sparked Change of Clothes, a space for makers to share knowledge and resources while fostering a community where shoppers and brands are brought together in one physical space.

This year's event kicked off with a panel discussion featuring: Brittany Nugent of the Publicity Room, representing the consumer; Crystal Tracy, the creator of beautiful children's clothing at Sweet Jane Studio; Janna Stewart, owner and operator of Cinder & Smoke women's fashion and the newly created Arturo Denim; and Change of Clothes co-founder Claire Theaker-Brown, also founder of Flatter:Me Belts. The panel provided an opportunity to hear about the struggles and successes of makers within this community of sustainable fashion and allowed members of the public to engage in honest discussion.

Wading into the waters of sustainable fashion can be intimidating. As Claire aptly points out, there are two words that really freak people out: "sustainable" and "fashion." But it doesn't need to be so complex. Fashion doesn't need to be fancy, expensive, or exclusive. And sustainability is about "progress, not perfection", as Claire often repeats throughout the panel discussion. One sure way to know you're making a difference is simply by extending the life of any consumable, offers Claire.

A great example of this was included in the day's activities. The House of Sew, Jillijade Jewellery, and Makers & Mentors were on hand to help participants upcycle jewelry and turn old t-shirts into fashionable headbands, as modeled here by participant Adam.

Kristen, an Edmontonian attending the event, believes we already have so much and don't need to consume more. "Sharing is caring," she jokes, explaining a sense of joy in the swap when you release, reminding yourself to let it go. She is no stranger to swapping. In university, she and her friends created what they called "The Sisterhood of the Travelling Dress", by time-sharing one versatile dress among the group. This spin on renting is a tenet of the Fashion Revolution's 7 Rs: reduce, reuse, recycle, rent, research, repurpose, repair.

A die-hard vintage hunter and self-professed denim enthusiast, Piyush frequently circulates through Edmonton's second-hand clothing venues. He sees the value in pre-loved clothes and has a keen eye for particular textiles, patterns, and brands. Piyush has fostered a close relationship with his tailor who helps him see his creative ideas to fruition, whether they be simple hemming or outlandish DIY concepts. At this year's event, he made use of the repairathon to add a patch, created by a Toronto designer that he recently acquired on Etsy, to a denim jacket. If you don't have the skill, resources, or interest in sewing yourself, take a page from Piyush's book and utilize the community around you!

Kassia, a veggie lifestyle blogger, gushes about the Change of Clothes yearly event, claiming it's the best swap in the city! She not only feels better giving her pre-loved clothes a second life, but maintains that some of her most valued pieces have come from this particular swap. Kassia explains that as a poor student, she sought to fulfill her glam style with the cheapest, most accessible stuff. What she noticed was instead a closet full of junk. As she "grew up" (her words!) she began leading a plant-based diet and began researching every aspect of her life, realizing that cheap clothes were not necessarily more economical.

This is the second time I've heard this idea, as panelist Brittany Nugent affirmed, "I don't make enough money to buy cheap clothes." She was speaking of her own journey into sustainable fashion and I admit, the concept took my brain a few beats to understand. The idea is pretty simple: buying cheap clothes is not only unsustainable, but it's throwing your own money away. Cost-wise, it makes more sense to buy fewer items, being more intentional and less impulsive with our purchases. Each piece may cost more but by buying quality items, we ensure a longer lifespan. Worried about the shelf-life of fashion trends? That's where repurposing (upcycling) and swapping come in handy. Other options include renting current fashions or vintage shopping.

What's more, intentional shopping, by design, eliminates impulsivity. It requires research and thought. It requires asking the difficult questions and possibly writing a letter to your favourite brands asking who made the clothes. As Claire explained during the panel discussion, for her, it's less about where the clothes are made and more about who made them. Whatever your main goals, as a consumer, the power is yours. "I'm voting with my dollars," says Brittany who makes the decision to spend with retailers when she knows the story behind the clothes. "We've lost the value of our clothes," says Janna. It's time we rethink this.

These are the exact reasons Chelsey mends her damaged clothing. She believes repairing a favourite piece not only prolongs its life and allows her to continue enjoying it, but she also finds it much cheaper than buying a new item. She focuses on selecting clothes that will last year after year to get their full wear and mends items when necessary.

Claire asserts, "building a sustainable fashion community is not going to happen out of guilt." Happily, Change of Clothes has provided a space to meet the motivations of anyone, from a sense of duty to simple economics. And with numbers growing steadily each year, Claire believes there could be a need for the event to run twice a year. They've got a great space at the Ritchie Community Hall and a great base of volunteers. So if you're interested in learning more or engaging with the community, reach out by tweet or instagram!

- Ellen (Volunteer)

Monday 1 May 2017

Puzzles from the Past: An Upcycle Tutorial


This past holiday break, I reinvigorated my love of puzzles, and to my delight, my three year old son caught the bug too. We’re now ploughing our way through puzzles of all shapes and sizes and I’ll certainly go broke feeding this hobby. Did you know The Reuse Centre has puzzles for every ability level? Not only that, but the Centre offers many materials to get crafty and personalize some puzzles for a special event or person!
The Reuse Centre's typical stock of calendars. Availability may change but it's a safe bet that you'll have lots of calendars and old puzzles to take home after a visit to the Reuse Centre. Image Source: Ellen
With this in mind, I’ll show you how to transform an outdated calendar into several puzzles. I’ll be using a Cricut cutting machine (similar to a Silhouette) but will give you steps to complete the puzzle with scissors and some determination (See Scissors Approach section at the end). Let’s begin.

Puzzles from the Past: An Upcycle Tutorial


Materials:

  • Cricut and accessories
  • .svg file of puzzle outlines (try this free option from Bird’s Cards
  • Old calendar images 
  • Large, thin cardboard similar to cereal box (not too thick!)
  • Craft glue or glue stick 
  • Mod Podge (optional) 

Approach:
  1. Download an .svg file of the puzzle cuts, upload it into your Cricut Design Space, and prepare the image to be cut. 
    I chose 8" x 8" as dictated by my largest piece of cardboard. If you need help with your Cricut or Silhouette, visit the many online resources available. Image Source: Ellen
  2. Separate the calendar pages and select an image you’d like to use. Don't neglect the back cover of your calendar where you'll often find thumbnail sized photos of all 12 images. These tiny versions of your photos are helpful while assembling your puzzle. 
    These tiny photos of each month provide a nice sneak peak of the final puzzle once completed! Image Source: Ellen
  3. Place the desired puzzle image on the cutting mat and let your machine do the work. 
    Cricut Machine cutting the calendar image. Image Source: Ellen
  4. Cut a thin piece of cardboard to your puzzle’s size. A regular cereal box worked well for this puzzle. Anything thicker might not cut properly by your machine.  
  5. Place the cardboard on the mat and cut the same puzzle pieces using your cutting machine.  
  6. Match the cardboard puzzle pieces to the image pieces and glue together. 
    I simply used a homemade Mod Podge mixture to glue the calendar image to the cardboard, then coated the final piece with the mixture. If you're skipping step #7, you can use craft glue with a paint brush, or your finger or a glue stick to fix the pieces together.
  7. (Optional) Use Mod Podge to cover each piece for rigidity and longevity. I used a homemade mix of white craft glue and water (1/3 cup water to 1 cup glue). Cover the pieces with the mixture on both sides then set to dry. I used a wire basket placed upside down and let my space heater help the process! 
    Glued and Mod Podged puzzle pieces drying on a wire rack. Image Source: Ellen
  8. After the drying process, the pieces may bow slightly. I put my puzzle together loosely, covered with a large book, then weighted the book with soup cans. Make sure your pieces are completely dry before this flattening process! 


Scissors Approach without Cricut Cutting Machine:

If you do not have a cutting machine, first glue your cardboard and calendar image together, then simply print your blank puzzle outline at your desired size and loosely tape it to your glued calendar image. It’s best to use large puzzle pieces when cutting by hand as the curves and edges are tedious to manage. Use your sharpest scissors or X-acto knife to cut along the lines of the blank puzzle image. As you cut, the blank puzzle sheet should fall away. Optional: Mod Podge for strength and durability.

I accidentally cut my cardboard piece backwards so that the cereal box image was facing outward and the blank, brown side was glued to my calendar image. This turned out to be a very happy accident since the cereal box was coincidentally cut to display a race car making my puzzle reversible—not to mention highly desirable to a car-loving three year old! Two-for-one! 
Backside of my puzzle: Accidentally awesome! Image Source: Ellen
The puzzle doesn't click into place the way a commercially-built puzzle does, but the customization possibilities make this upcycle craft well worth the effort! When you're done making all 12 of your calendar images, look around your house for other puzzle upcycle possibilities!

- Ellen (Volunteer)