Sunday, July 26, 2009

repurposing: junk = candleholder

much of what i post will be ideas for turning trash into treasure... so to speak. honestly, i hate to throw away anything. my greatest hope is that doc brown will finally perfect the mr. fusion used to fuel the flux capacitor. (if you aren't a big nerd like me, this is a reference to back to the future 2. basically, trash was used to power a time machine. rent the movie, weirdo!)

anyway, paper products and food containers aside, trash takes up space and usually doesn't biodegrade quickly. in most cases, trash goes to a landfill where it is covered with layer of dirt, never to see the light of day again. there in lies the problem. light is one of the ingredients necessary for material to break down efficiently. air is another. obviously, these two resources aren't prevalent under even a foot of dirt. you can take a core sample of any existing land fill and will likely find garbage from when it first opened. (maybe this would be the best way to find vintage clothing from the 60s.)

so, what to do with junk: that is the question. i define junk as random and often large items that have either broken, worn out, or existed past their intended function. furniture, clothing, kitchen appliances, old toys, etc. are good examples of what i mean. if something breaks, it's often less expensive to just replace it than fix it. if it's outdated (like vhs tapes or last years wardrobe), we get rid of it. this is why God invented yard sales and gave us the salvation army and goodwill. however, some things aren't even fit for donation and therefor finds its way to the trash bin. what other choice do we have, right?

wrong. get creative! people have found new uses for old junk for years. i recently bought a book titled "re-creative" by steve dodds. it provides ideas and inspiration for making something out of nothing. clocks made out of hub caps, pillows made out of neck ties, and fruit bowls made out of electric fan covers are just a few of the ideas showcased in this book. let's start off simple, though. do you have a chunk of wood or stone laying around that you need to get rid of? how about making that into a candle holder!

let's be honest, though. most people don't have large blocks of wood or rocks laying aroud their yard that they are just dieing to throw away. the book mentions scrap stone blocks from a construction site. this could be bricks or masonry blocks that have been broken and are no longer useful in the construction process. a person could also use cinder blocks, wood scraps, drift wood, or a small tree stump.

so how do we turn this otherwise undesirable waste of space into an eye-catching candle holder? i'm glad you asked, martha stewart! first, you will need to gather your materials and tools. obviously, you will need the "junk" and candles (standard 3/4" long stem candles work best). you may also need stick-on felt, but this is optional. the required tools consist of a pencil, an electric drill with a 3/4" masonry bit (or regular 3/4" drill bit if you piece is made of wood), and a brush.

second, decide where you want your candles to go. use the pencil to mark the location of each candle so you know where to drill the holes. keep in mind, you don't want your candleholder to tip over when the candles are installed, so don't go crazy with the number of candles and try to keep them away from the edges. it looks better when they are centrally located, anyway.

next, drill holes in the stone or wood approximately 1" deep. blow the dust out and scrub with the brush and water to clean out any excess that you may have missed. this would be a great time to clean the rest of the candle holder as well.

once it has dried thoroughly, apply the adhesive felt to the bottom to prevent damage to any surface it sits on. of coarse, if there is not a flat bottom to the candle holder (like if you used a regular rock or tree stump) this may not be possible. if wood is used instead of stone, you may also want to use some sort of wood sealer to give it a shine and protect it from further degradation.

finally, make sure the candles fit snug. if the hole is too small, you can use a knife to trim down the candle. if it's too big, wrap electrical tape around the base of the candle until it fits.

the great thing about repurposing "junk" is that you save space in the land fill and you also save yourself some money. keep an eye out for any interesting "junk" that you may see sitting out by the curb on trash day. you won't always have an idea for what to make at the time you pick something up, but when inspiration strikes you'll be glad you grabbed it. you may save yourself a trip to ikea.

My new blog... sort of.

so i used to have a blog on xanga.com a few years back, as did many of you before the rise of myspace and facebook. honestly, i'm glad i don't partake in the xanga blog anymore for three reasons: 1. there was no set purpose for the blog. it was just random thoughts, musings, and web-junk i posted to get attention. b. most people stopped using xanga, so i wasn't getting any attention. and 5... well, i don't really have another reason.

anyway, i've recently been finding some very awesome information online in regards to eco-friendly ideas, merchandise, recycling techniques, etc. sadly, there is 20x the amount of useful stuff i see that is just rubbish. it is very unmotivating to have to sift through website after website that promise what you typed into google, only to discover that their website actually sucks or it's some punk 12 year old eco-terrorist on myspace trying to sound all political to impress a girl in homeroom. well, what makes me so much different from that twelve year old, you ask? good question, my inquisitive friend. the answer is that i'm almost 30 and the ladies are already impressed. (i also have an inflated ego to hide my shame behind.)

...but i digress. you'll realize that i do that from time to time. :-) i make it my promise to you, humble reader, to post something to facebook once a week (hopefully) that i feel would be of great use to you in your endeavors to save the planet. (i will not, however assist you in assembling your captain planet halloween costume. those nylon tights make your butt look fat.) i have been inspired by different ideas and products that even in the smallest way cut down on or prevent waste. i won't be going on about government issues and renewable energy. we hear enough about that on the news and frankly, these are not personal issues. (if you drive a diesel vehicle, that's a different story. look into bio-diesel!) i will take questions i receive, research them, and blog about what i've found. i'll post links to really cool websites. i'll tell you about ways to save (or make) money while giving mother nature a hand.

i'm really excited about this journey i'm beginning. i'd love for you to join me. (that sounded so lame.) this blog is a simple idea and it had a simple beginning: a t-shirt. i'll share it as my first post.

Hyperlink to Facebook

whether or not you like relient k is irrelevant. this shirt is 50% organic cotton and 50% recycled plastic bottles. get that? 100% certified recycled plastic bottles! how crazy is that? printed inside the shirt, it says "This garment is made from 100% certified recycled plastic PET bottles. The bottles are stripped of their labels and caps, washed, and crushed, then chopped into flake. These tiny pieces are melted and extruded to create fibre. The fibre produced is crimped, cut, drawn and stretched into desired length for strength, then baled. The baled fibre can be processed into fabric for a variety of textile product end uses. Recycled polyester reduces air, water and soil contamination, reduces use of energy and oil, reduces non-biodegradable landfill matter, reduces toxic emissions from incinerators, reduces pollution and land degradation." it goes on to describe the process for making polyester and compares it to the process for making recycled polyester.

it's actually a really comfy shirt as well!

i'll expand on organic cotton and the garment industry in a later posts. i just wanted you to see how cool this movement can be. call it being green, tree hugging, conservationism, whatever; it's starting to get exciting!