upcycling

Easy, Beautiful, Inexpensive Teacher Gift

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In the words of a dear teacher friend, “please no more coffee mugs…they are great….I love coffee…not that much”. So I asked her what she would really want from her  students as a thank you.

Gift cards to places like Barnes and Noble, this way she can buy books that she can add to her classroom. Also teachers like to read adult non-curriculum books during their break.

Gift cards, to places like Panera or other little shops so she can pick out a fun treat during the summer. Pick one out to a fun boutique in your town, does not have to be much even $10.00 is a treat.

Movie passes so she can see a movie during the summer.

A bottle of wine, or other spirit, perhaps a parent should bring this in, yes teachers like to relax a bit too.

A hanging plant or potted plant that she can put outside to bloom all summer, or get really crafty and put together a small container herb garden.

So here is what we did, we went to Savers’….of course, to buy a vase. There is almost a whole aisle full of flower vases that are donated, the budget 99cents. Whatever one they wanted.

Next stop, Trader Joes’, LOVE this place and their flowers are amazing. $7.99 for each bouquet.

We cleaned the sticker off the bottom of the vase, the kids all trimmed the flowers to fit their vases:

I helped Tanna with her cards…she hepled cut them out;

Solomon went out to the yard and got some Hosta flowers to fill his vase in a bit:

Then they made their own cards, this is truly the sweetest part. I think flowers brighten everyone’s day, I know they will be enjoyed for a bit, and not left on a shelf, and totally not included the paper we had here for the cards, 99 cents for the vase $7.99 for flowers plus a little for the taxman = $9.70….handmade card = priceless…of course.

Flower Power Ottoman

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I zoned in on this ottoman and my pulse starting racing with excitement, as I got closer I just  prayed that no one else had eyes for my prize.  I was even more in love when I saw the flower pattern on the top of this Daisy’s are my favorite flower.  So I hefted this bad boy/girl? into my cart at Savers and it was mine…victory.  Price: $24.99 but I redeemed a 20% coupon I earned form one of our many donations so $20.00 and I was a happy girl!

I think this is one of those pieces that is old and kind of a vintage cool, but can be incorporated in a mod way as well.   I have had a bit of an issue deciding exactly where to put it, since we do not have an club chairs.  Since it is on wheels it just moves around to whever people want to put their feet up.

And then I went to IKEA………

Before:

Wheels:

I went into the seconds/bargain area and I found these for $5.00 50% the regular price and all the parts were there, I thought they were like a wall hook.   I could have mounted these onto the inside of some garage lockers we are working on, but then I got the brilliant idea to update the ottoman.

Helpers:

TA-DA!

Not sure why that last photo seems blurry..

Total cost for this was $25.00!!!  Not a bad price for a sweet upcycled flower power ottoman man (in my best chong voice), I will add more photos when I decide on the perfect at the moment home for it.

My son can sew….so?

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 Anyone who has the privilege of playing the role of parent has at some time, I am sure of this, wondered what the impact of a hobby,  friendship, activity, preference..insert any other I may have missed, will have on their child.  I think often this is related more to boys than girls.  A girl who likes to play rough with the boys is assertive, who like to use tools in the garage a future independent woman.  But, what about the boy who chooses books instead of football?  Or,  will play baby dolls and house with his sisters.  Is he gay? Soft? Weak?  There are seemingly such positive connotations to the “tomboy” and not so positive connotations tagged to the opposite.

I have known moms who state that their husbands would never allow their boys to play with dolls, or dress up.  I am thankful that  I have a husband who has always encouraged the excitement of youth and creativity alongside me,  and never let the opinions of what might be deemed a “norm” break the spirit of any of our children. He is also very eager to show the girls how to use any tool in the garage.  I know that to some it may seem silly that this topic even has to be discussed, I agree, but we cannot pretend that norms are not still ever present, especially as parents.  

There is no gender balance in our house, the girls outnumber 4 to 2, however  that is where is ends.  Our oldest daughter Raiven just last week had her first sleep over away from our house, her friend was a boy, I never thought twice about saying yes,  I will reassess when she hits double digits! After my initial answer, I then felt the norms of society creep into the peripherals of my thoughts and wondered if this was “okay”.  Luckily the mom of this boy was equally fantastic, she of course had invited R and we talked about what this means and if there was any harm in this sleepover.  Now as a grown tomboy I have never thought that friends should be of same gender and that some friendships can be truly platonic .  So R had a sleepover and had a fantastic time and has found a great friend, who can match her speed and enthusiasm. Who cares if he is a boy.

On the flipside,  last weekend I sat down with a pile of felted wool sweaters from Savers, and was planning what fantastic homemade projects I could make from them, when Solomon asked if he could make something. Included in the task was sewing. By hand.  With a needle and thread.  Solomon spent most of his Saturday between reading  the book of the day cutting, sewing and embroidering his very own felted wool glasses case.  I have no worry that this will make him anything more than a well rounded young man. 

Today is Sunday there are football play offs, Raiven has her Steelers shirt on and will be actively routing.  Solomon will be reading, he has no interest.

I could not be more proud!! 

Solomon's glasses case.

 

Unintentional Rule Breaker?

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I lieu of my resolution to upcycle/recycle clothing and ditch the consumption of new clothes from  retail stores, my shopping and treasure hunting need in full swing, I headed to Savers with my brother before he left for California and found some great items.  On the rack of treasures I found this dress:

I thought” how cute will this be for Miss A?”…check the tag and there it is, the Savers tag and the retail tag.  Oh the irony!  (But check out the sweet price!)

Well I snatched it up and than wondered, am I breaking my own rules?  Sure it was donated and technically I am reconsuming this dress , but it IS new.  So I let A try it on……done, it’s a keeper.  First addendum to the rules, no first hand new clothing;)

Reclothed Resolution..

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It has been awhile since I added to my blog. We had a full and happy couple of holiday weeks. I wanted to quickly get in a short post about my resolution this year.
My plan is to buy no new clothes for our family of 6!!! We will be buying and recomsuming clothing from second-hand stores, consignment stores, Ebay, and donation stores like Goodwill, Savers, and the Salvation Army. 
Disclaimer: this excludes underwear, socks (for obvious reasons, although I have seen them at SAvers….I just can’t!!), and possibly shoes especially for the kids.  I think little feet need to have the full support of new shoes while growing and developing walking, running and balance skills, not shoes that already have a wear path from someone else.  Also I am sure some of you shudder at the thought of used shoes, which lets my mind wander into thoughts of what my have been in a previous shoe.  Typically we also take the kids to a local shoe store that sizes them and checks the fit of the shoe on their feet, the way kids grow and as active as they, it gives us   parents peace of mind.  

This resolution is really exciting for me, I grew up going to auctions and basically treasure hunting with m y dad, I love finding what I consider a “treasure”!  My mom grew up in Santa Barbara and was/is a huge fan of second-hand stores and customizing clothing to make clothes, and accessories  personal.

For years I have sold our kids gently worn and sometimes worn to play condition clothes on Ebay for a small or surprisingly large return on investment, this has been a very fun and often lucrative hobby.  I have seen some of the wonderful items that other sellers have, and am sure I can find clothing for our kids here also.  However, my primary outlets will be the donations stores and local stores. 

What I hope to teach the kids, my husband and I gain from this is  that we can help the Earth by recomsuming great clothes that have been used and tossed aside, save money in the process and even great creative by making a pair of jeans with holes in the knees some great patched jeans. Or find an old wool sweater and make mitten or anew soccer bag.  Additionally, stores such as Saver, Goodwill and Salvation Armay all give to help others, for example, our local savers support the epilepsty foundation.

I originally thought that I would do a 365 of  our finds, but I think I might just do one post a week on how we are succeeding, struggling, and overcoming our reclothed resolution.  I will also include the total cost, and at some point perhaps continue the cycle and sell them on ebay when we are done with them if I deem them sellable, kids can really wear clothin out!

Happy 2011!!!