Quick and Easy Quilted Potholder

I recently took a trip to Pennsylvania for a friend's wedding. She lives smack-dab in Amish country, so every gift shop and market I visited was chock full of quilted crafts. Pot holders, pillows, reusable shopping bags, wall hangings and of course, some beautiful and amazing quilted blankets.

I decided I wanted to try a little bit of quilt-crafting myself, and since winter is upon us, I grabbed some holiday fabric from the Reuse Centre and got to work.

I started out trying to make a fancy star like I'd seen in so many Pennsylvania gift shops, but quickly realized I was in over my head! I started over with a simpler design of diagonal strips of patterned fabric, surrounded by a border of plain red.

This quick, easy project took so little fabric that I probably could have made at least five pot holders from the small rolls I picked up! I used my machine for most of the sewing, but this could easily be done by hand with a little patience.

Instead of purchasing quilt batting for the inside, I used two layers of leftover fleecy fabric that I already had in my fabric stash. The hanging loop is a scrap of ribbon cut out of the shoulder of a shirt, making this project 100% reused.

It doesn't quite rival the meticulously stitched works of art I saw stateside, but I'm pretty pleased with how my little potholder turned out. Maybe I'll even work my way up to fancy stars one of these days, too!

-Sarah (Volunteer)

All photographs provided by Sarah

Anything but Christmas Trees

Reuse-friendly Alternatives for a Different Kind of Christmas Tree

'Tis the season for retail marketing to challenge the concept of the traditional evergreen conifer tree. Why must they have all the fun?  Let's do our own mind exercise, and let's rethink and tinker.

In all its essence, the Christmas Tree is roughly triangular, conical, or pyramid shaped and it is meant to bring joy and cheer.  Simple!  This leaves so much opportunity to stretch our creative muscles and make our own beautiful, personal 'tree'.  Not everyone has the space or budget for a large tree, so this is also a nice reminder that there will always be a way to celebrate.

Before we run too wild, there are some key things to note. SAFETY FIRST!  Please make sure bulbs, lights and wires are not frayed and are rated for indoor use.  When designing your new festive tree, please consider fire hazards, weight distribution, load considerations, and the unpredictability/predictability of pets and kids.

You don't necessarily need to buy brand new supplies, but instead you can pull things from around the house to create a festive look and then return them back to their shelves after the holidays.  Consider giving some home staples a second purpose, rather than hiding your decorations away in a box for the rest of the year.  The Reuse Centre also has lots great supplies you could use.

Here are a few ideas I've come across:

- ladder tree

- old books

- 2D wall tree

- cardboard cutout

- wine cork glued into a cone shape

- paper cones

- post its wall tree

- hanging ornaments

- chalkboard drawn wall tree

- yarn and pins wall tree

- decorated tripod

- large green felt cutout tree

- cardboard cone, decorated with pom poms

- triangular stacked shelves/boxes
- CD trees

- Siao (Volunteer)

It's a WRAP!

My supply box

Instead of spending a load of money on gift wrap, how about use common items around your home?  Here I will show you a few new ways to wrap presents for your family and friends this Christmas, using items you can find at the Reuse Centre or around your home.

Here is the list of the supplies I used:

• Foam/decorative tape
• Decorative paper
• Scissors
• Old shopping bags
• Tissue paper
• Brown/white paper
• Used boxes
• Old magazines

Double sided tape

Idea #1
Paint swatches make great gift tags.  You can also visit Rona, Home Depot or even Walmart to find them. I used paint swatches in shades of green and brown. I cut them up like Christmas trees. You can hole punch one end and add a ribbon or use a safety pin.  My friends were not surprised with my choice to use paint swatches as an element in gift wrapping since I have a thing for interior design!

My Christmas tree gift tags

Idea #2

I keep all of my shopping bags, especially the recyclable and paper ones to reuse. I like to add  a cute bow or gift tag to reuse them as gift bags. Here is what I have created:

To create the bow, I used five layers of tissue paper and a rubber band.  I folded the sheets back and fourth to create a strip and then tied it with the rubber band in the middle. I cut both ends kind of like petals. Put it on its side and start puffing the edges and pulling the layers of paper towards the middle. I then used double sided tape to attach it to the bag.

A pretty, bright bow!

The final product! 

Idea #3
A neat way to get kids to help out is if you ask them to paint onto plain paper, and then use that as wrapping paper. It is also a way to personalize a gift. Using my finger, I dotted different colours onto a large white piece of paper I found at the Reuse Centre. I doodled the wires on with a sharpie to create a Christmas light design.

Painted dots

Sharpie lines between dots

You almost don't want to open it!

I enjoy doodling so much that I created some other designs. It's a great way to personalize a gift for any season.

Idea #4
I use the pages from old books, maps and magazines like scrapbook paper. Another idea for using old magazines is that you can try a weaving design.  I did this by cutting out pages from magazines and then cutting them into strips. Begin to wrap more than one strips around the gift in one orientation. Next, take one strip and weave it over and under perpendicular to the strip that are already wrapped around the gift. It looks quite neat with more layers. As I was doing this I think I was purposely trying to make this gift difficult for my sister to open. Oops!

Supplies needed

Weaved gift wrap

Here are some other ideas that I found on the web that I did not get to try out.

1. Newsprint flowers from Brit + co..
2. How to make a gift bag from Craft and Creativity.
3. Wrap Party from Design Love Fest.
4. Cute DIY Gift Wrapping video from Michelle Phan.

These ideas and gift-wrapping techniques are great for any gift-giving occasion, not just Christmas.  Have you tried any? Comment or leave a picture on our Facebook page. I would love to see your creation!

-Michelle (Volunteer)

A Reuse Filled Christmas!

I love Christmas. Spending time with my family and friends means a lot to me. But as most of us know, the Christmas season is also a time of increased spending and waste production. But how much extra waste can actually come from one single day? I decided to do a bit of research, and found that in the two weeks after Christmas in 2012, the city of Edmonton collected 12 793 tonnes of waste and recyclables, compared to 5 666 the two weeks before. That’s over double the amount of waste! So I decided that this year I would try to reduce my impact on the environment, while also making creative and thoughtful presents and maybe even saving a buck or two.

I began my shopping (of course) at the Reuse Centre! What better way to reduce your impact than buying items that are in need of a second home? There I found all sorts of useful things, such as wine corks, frozen juice lids, Christmas cards, ribbon, puzzle pieces, paint and everything else I needed to make a list of meaningful Christmas gifts.

From here, I got to go nuts! Making your own Christmas presents means that the sky is the limit. You can go as far as your creativity is willing to take you! Here are a few ideas that I came up with:

This is a Christmas ornament is made from a frozen juice lid, a Christmas card, lace and sequins, all found at the Reuse Centre. I made a few different ones with different images, this one of a cardinal as well as Santa and a snowman. The craft was adapted from one I found on the Mrs.T's Christmas Kitchen blog.

This is a Christmas wreath made of a straw wreath frame, wine corks, ribbon and a bow. It was incredibly easy and great for the wine lover of the family! There's a step by step how-to instruction guide on the Save on Crafts blog.

This Christmas ornament is made from the other half of the card I used for the juice lid ornaments, puzzle pieces and paint. I made a craft like this as a kid, and I thought it would be nice to relive the memory! If you would like some direction, there is a nice tutorial on Lisa's Craft Blog.

These are just a few ideas of what you can do with the items found at the Reuse Centre, or any that you have saved for crafts. Next up are star shaped wall decorations made of magazines!
Not only did these gifts reduce my impact on the environment, but I have also spent a fraction of what I normally would on Christmas gifts (under $20 for all of these items and more!), and I have made presents that are unique and special to each one of my friends and family members. I am by no means an overly crafty or creative person, so if I can do this, anyone can! Where will your reuse filled Christmas take you?

- Leigh-Anna (Staff) is a program specialist for the City of Edmonton Waste Management Services and a Reuse Centre aficionado.

A Reuse Centre Christmas

(Advent Calendar from Cereal boxes, Clothes pegs and Fabric)

Let me get this off my chest, I love the Reuse centre, I love it so much that I have to limit my 'shopping' trips. I always find so many different crafty projects just waiting to happen that I can't stop myself from piling a box high. So this year I found a way to incorporate my favourite Reuse centre finds into my Christmas crafting.

Some generously donated Cream Cordruoy became...

A Tree skirt

A few sheets of old Music paper became some gift boxes

The front of a Christmas card gave me just enough information to replicate it in Cross Stitch form.

I never fail to be inspired every time I visit, I hope you do too.

Thank you for your generously donated crafty goodies in 2012 Edmonton, together we can divert even more from the landfill in 2013.

- Emma (Volunteer) 

6 Tips for a Reusable Christmas

It doesn't quite feel like Christmas until you're packed into a room with your family and friends, wading through a sea of wrapping paper, boxes, cards, and all the other trimmings. Instead of throwing out all those great items, why not turn them into something beautiful or useful for your next holiday party? We've compiled six ways for you to reuse during the holiday season to cut down on waste.

1. Christmas trees made out of wrapping paper - All you need is leftover gift wrap and glue or tape to make some ornaments or decorations to put on your gifts. Just cut several lengths of gift wrap, each 1/2 inch shorter than the last and each about 1 inch wide. Roll the long edges toward each other and tape them together, letting them overlap slightly. Once all the pieces have been rolled, glue them together, with the shortest piece at the top and the longest at the bottom. You can trim the edges to form the tree into a triangle or leave them as-is. A little bit of crafting and you have a cute gift topper or ornament for your tree! Check out Her Tool Belt for more detailed instructions

2. Reuse gift boxes - This Christmas when you get clothes or other gifts wrapped in gift boxes, reuse them. The possibilities are endless: store ornaments, wrap gifts, keep pictures, use for crafting, and much more! If the boxes aren't Christmas-themed, you can use them throughout the year.

3. New gift tags from old cards - This reuse craft couldn't be any simpler! If you have old, used Christmas cards from years past sitting around, all you need is a pair of scissors, a hole punch, and some ribbon or string to make cute gift bag tags. Simply cut a cute image out of your old card, punch a hole in the top, string ribbon through the hole, and tie the ends together around a gift bag handle. Write your "To" and "From" on the back and put the gift under the tree!

4. Make cards from old materials - There is always a ton of tissue paper and ribbons leftover once everyone has opened their presents, so why not turn them into something new? Grab some construction paper or card stock, tissue paper, ribbon, and glue and get creative! You and your kids will have fun making beautiful new Christmas cards out of reused materials. 

5. Use old decorations to make new ones - Do you have any plastic floral arrangements that could be given a new life? Take one of those plastic holly branches, put it inside an old clear glass ornament, and glue some bits of ribbon around the outside. Get creative as you take apart your old decorations and turn them into something new and beautiful.

6. Wrapping paper wreath - Need another way to reuse that mountain of wrapping paper? Check out this great tutorial from Instructables on how to make a wreath out of used Christmas wrap. Here are even more reusable Christmas wreath ideas using old Christmas cards and glass balls from Good Housekeeping.

We hope you enjoy these tips about how to have a reusable Christmas! How do you reuse during the holiday season?

- Marissa (Volunteer)