Don't Cross Me

"Don't mess with me fellas. This ain't my first time at the rodeo!"

— Joan Crawford

Inspired by a combination for the penchant I have for all things Rock Chick that still need to work with the rest of my wardrobe (ok, so maybe my slightly more feminine take on Rock Chick), the eternally upcycled Sacred Heart leather pants and these Jet and Crystal Swarovski pendants I saw on a lava stone hunt, Don't Cross Me was born.

Simple yet edgy, this 48 cm necklace is so versatile. Wear with denim, woolens, plains and stripes depending on the look you want to create.

Strung on chain, lava stone and upcycled leather (from the fames Sacred Heart leather pants), the 38 mm Swarovski crystal cross, contrasted with jet, catches light in the most amazing way without being too overwhelming.

Hand created, this unique piece is a great addition to any outfit.

Available at Etsy and MadeIt (for those wanting $AUD)

One Person's Trash is Another Person's Bling

Introduction

This is my main thing right now: creating pieces from materials found in the strangest of places. As I stated in the last post, this is fairly evident in any of the things I create, but it's a new exploration in the realm of jewellery.

I use old dynabolt casings for tubes, evening dresses that I'd normally bin for fabric, even curtain rings.


My current fetish is the old leather pants purchased from the op shop in my area run by the Sacred Heart Mission who every day assist hundreds of people who are homeless or living in poverty to find shelter, food, care and support. Anything I would normally send to landfill or, in the case of Sacred Heart, has a positive social connotation, is fair game.

There's an element of upcycling in each piece that I create.

And I am not alone! A recent call out on the DUST (Down Under Street Team) forum, a group of Australian creative geniuses who sell on Etsy resulted in some very interesting replies!

Lekker

Pendant by Lekker

Three guesses what Rachel at Lekker makes these fun and fabulous pendants out of..... Smarties?..... Skittles?... No... a stash of old knitting needles!

The item description for this piece makes everything clear:

Ever wondered what happened to Nanna's old coloured Knitting needles? I did.

This pendant has been made from my ever so secret stash of knitting needles that I have been left by the many Nanna's of the world.

While the art of knitting may be lost to the younger generation, encased in an aluminium frame made from pipe offcuts and embedded in resin, this pendant may be a sign of things to come for the fate of the knitting needle!

Having studied printmaking for years, Lekker is run out of Melbourne, Australia.

Incalesco

Recycled Copper Fringe Earrings

Incalesco means glow in Latin. And I have nothing but glowing reviews for this metalsmith! Another Melbourne based artist, Erika works mainly in silver but often uses other metals & stones to giver her pieces that extra bit of colour. Her pieces are delicate yet contemporary, intricate yet versatile.

Not long before I started hunting for fellow upcyclers, Erika of Incalesco was given a pile of scrap metal by her father.


And I think you would agree that there's a big difference between the pile above and what has emerged so far:



Spoonerz



Now, I'm just going to put it out there... I'm not a huge fan of spoon & fork upcycling. There's a guy at the local market who started a trend around here and then everyone was doing it... but they were all a bit... plain for my taste.

This morning I logged on to Etsy however, and saw this utensil upcycler on the front page...

A Mum of 4, SpoonerZ takes the bits and pieces of utensils and remakes them, rejuvenates them and redefines them.



Other bits and pieces

This article could go on forever. There are a bunch of people out there doing great stuff! Here's a few more...

Sea glass pendant by Epheriell

Steam Punk Cuff Links from Nouveaumotley
Cufflinks from mobile phone copper & photographic silver by Ben at Biome

Circuit board earrings from Upcycled Jewellery



Next: Trash bag to Handbag

What the bleep is Upcycling? - An Introduction

Introduction

I've always been fascinated with using found objects to fulfill both my creative & practical needs. Instead of buying paper to make my latest journal, I'll hunt for paper that I can reuse in some way. When it came time to find a bookshelf for my new place, it was a trip down to the brickyard for a bootload of old half bricks and the neighbour's nature strip for old fence pailings. The second booksehlf came from someones old deck.

There is an intense satisfaction for me in taking something that most wouldn't look twice at and creating something beautiful, unique and sometimes a little quirky, that fits my need.

Given the rise in environmental awareness and current economic times, I figured I wasn't the only one doing this and nor should I be. Along with organics, this is a bit of a passion of mine.

So whilst this started off as being a notion for one article, given the broad scope of products I've found during the research phase, I'm going to run separate posts on areas such as upcycling in art, interiors, at home, jewellery, clothing and toys.

What the Bleep is Upcycling?

It's the new buzz word in fashion: upcycling. And until I started investigating, I actually had no idea how many prolific producers were actually doing this. Until I started investigating, I figured this was a realm left to small time producers, home craftspeople and those who produced for the love of the art form as opposed to the dollar producing capability. As it turns out, I was wrong. My notion of what classed as, and what could be, upcycled was narrow. Although, I still debate whether using a bolt end is as valid in terms of upcycling as using a 20 year old garment to recreate something new.

So what makes upcycling different to recycling?

According to Word of the Week at Away with Words upcycling is:

...the practice of converting waste materials into products of greater value--beer bottles into building materials, for example. Coined by William McDonough and Michael Braungart in their 2003 book "Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things" (North Point Press). Different from "recycling," which turns waste back into the same thing over and over.

So essentially, used paper made into more paper is recycling. However, if one was to take used paper and make it into say a journal or an album, this is upcycling.

Next: Upcycling in the realm of Jewellery.