Upcycling

All posts tagged Upcycling

My Handmade Travel Themed Wedding

Posted by chrissyjbrown on July 12, 2017
Posted in: Wedding. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

myhandmadewedding

Well it’s been a while since I last posted and there’s a reason!

In September 2016, my then boyfriend proposed to me while travelling around Myanmar.  Not wanting a long engagement we got married in June 2017. You could say I’ve been rather pre-occupied planning the wedding and of course upcycling and making as much as I could for it.  I was wanting to post as I went along but decided to keep the plans under wraps until after the wedding as wanted everything to be a surprise for the guests! I now wish I had at least written them at the time…!

So the theme of the wedding was Travel, simply because I’m a bit of a traveller and since my newly acquired hubby, Danny, met me he’s become a bit partial to it too!  The theme was also perfect because we’ve quite a lot of friends of different nationalities and origins so it was a great way of celebrating that.  Plus, the other theme option was cars (Danny’s passion) and I wasn’t going to have that!

I’m just going to keep this blog post short and should be back very soon with more but in the meantime if you look at the title picture you can see pictures of some of the things I made.  If you want a nose at some pics from my wedding then my cousin who is a wedding photographer and was there as a guest couldn’t resist snapping a few pics which you can view on her website: https://lesleythomasphotography.pixieset.com with the password: Bennett. Simply search for Chrissy & Danny’s Wedding on 17th June 2017.

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PechaKucha and the Art of Upcycling

Posted by chrissyjbrown on July 3, 2016
Posted in: Upcycling. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

PechaKucha – The Art of Concise Presentation

So I was recently asked if I’d like to do a talk at the St. Neots PechaKucha night, Vol6. I had heard of PechaKucha but hadn’t yet been to one. I really liked the concept so was up for the challenge.pechakucha st neots.jpg

For those that have never heard of PechaKucha it’s coined as ‘The art of concise presentation’ that originated from Tokyo in 2003.  The idea seems to have taken off worldwide as PechaKucha nights now occur in over 900 cities. For those that know me, being concise is really not one of my strong points, in fact I’m the complete opposite.

pecha kucha

I liked the idea that you show 20 images and each image is shown for 20 seconds before switching to the next one.  As the saying goes ‘pictures can say a thousand words’. Also your talk can be about anything so because I’ve been currently beavering away upcycling stuff I thought that could be the focus as I had plenty of material plus it’s pretty on trend at the moment so may be of interest to some of the audience.

There are also other speakers on the night which I liked as it would mean I wouldn’t be the whole focus of the night (don’t want people to have a wasted journey!) which I liked but also I was interested in listening to others.

Preparing it was pretty easy but timing my talk to the images was a lot harder than I envisaged, it took a lot of fine tuning and also meant I couldn’t ad-lib as I went along and go off at tangents which is something I am really good at!

Anyway to keep this blog post concise, here is the fruit of my labour and is posted up on the PechaKucha website for the whole world to watch – eek!  I just about survived it and should now run a competition to see how many times I said ‘Erm…’!  Several hundred times too many!…

at pechakucha.jpg

Enjoy and if you have a subject you’re passionate about then why not talk at the next PechaKucha night near you?

 

 

How to transform an old piece of furniture using crackle paint.

Posted by chrissyjbrown on June 12, 2016
Posted in: Upcycling. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 3 Comments

Gumtree recently asked if I would do a guest blog on an upcycling project and I gladly accepted. It gave me just the motivation I needed to get around to upcycling an old set of drawers I had on my ‘To do’ list.

The concise blog is on the Gumtree website and below is the full version which includes all the waffle!

Enjoy!

title upcycled chest of drawers

Ooooh, I do love a bit of upcycling, in fact I’m sure it’s in my blood.  I’m the one that goes to the tip with an empty car and returns home with it full of other people’s junk yet after a bit of titivating and a bit of TLC, it becomes my treasure!  ­­­

When I moved into my house, the previous owners left a chest of drawers in one of the bedrooms. Being varnished pine it wasn’t to my taste. It was dated and had quite a few scratches and marks but it fitted perfectly on the landing and what’s more it was full of useful drawers to store all the stuff I accumulate from not being able to throw things out (I think the official term is ‘hoarder’!).  I knew I could let my creative streak loose on it to breathe new life into it and bring it up to date!

before.jpg

Most the time when I upcycle I can visualise how I want something to look but this time I had an array of changing ideas of what I could do with it.  A big factor for me is doing it low cost. It’s all very well thinking you are saving money by picking up something cheap or even free (have you checked out Gumtrees freebie section?) to makeover but with the trend of ‘upcycling’, the DIY stores have jumped on it and market high priced products to convince you with their clever marketing that you need that product and before you know it you’re spending a fortune on doing it up. I however generally find cheap alternatives.

I had intended to use my homemade chalk paint (old emulsion or tester pots are good mixed with some plaster of Paris and water) that is a fraction of the cost of chalk paint and in my eyes just as effective, however after seeing the Alfreshco stand at the Grand Designs Show I was so impressed I had to experiment with their spray paint intended for graffiti artists! And what’s more, their prices are brilliant with a 300ml spray can starting at £3 and a range of over 180 colours – a lot of which are currently on trend and not the garish colours you would expect from graffiti spray paint…AND…they have some special effect one’s such as crackle, marble and texture.

Now I don’t know about you but I am a bit partial to the old crackle look, it’s a great way of making something look vintage and distressed, another look I love and on trend at the moment, so I decide crackle is the way forward. I’ve also recently got into grey and it’s many tones! It seems grey is the ‘in’ colour. Who would have thought that grey, the colour associated with being boring would be so popular – I wonder if EL James is to blame with her 50 Shades trilogy!

Anyway I have a bit of a plan, crackle paint, grey and I also have some Martha Stewart screen silks that I recently purchased for Crafty Monkey, my pottery painting studio, so thought I’d give them a swirl on furniture!

So a long story short, this project, like a lot of my projects, was a bit of experimentation, and here’s what I created:

finished

Below are the steps I took:

1) Due to using spray paint I decided to complete this project outside so pick a good day where no rain is forecast and little to no breeze! Cover the area in decorating sheets or tarpaulin. Spray paint travels – the bigger the breeze the further it travels.

2) Remove drawers and handles, my friend Bosch helped me! And who knows you may find something you didn’t expect – I did – someone’s lingerie! Don’t worry I’ll find a use for that!

step 2

3) Preparation is key and a good sand down will always create a better result. I got to try out my new sander which really is a great investment and will save you so much time and energy! A grit of 80 is probably optimum but I used a 60 then a 120. After sanding I wiped the dust left with the lingerie then used a jay cloth and white spirit and gave it a good wipe all over. Don’t forget your protection mask too!prep 2

4) The plan was to use the graffiti paint to spray a base layer of white but I was so excited by the visit to Alfreshco that I forgot the white! Being impatient I wanted to get started NOW so I used a bit of old quick drying paint for wood that I took from the tip on my last visit! It was quite thick and a bit lumpy but because it’s a base coat and I want to create a distressed look I wasn’t too concerned. I paint two coats on and wait 45 mins or so for it to dry.

painting unit

montana grey crackle5) Next, I spray Montanta Crackle, Grey Squirrel colour in a sweeping motion over the piece and wait for the magic to take place… and wait….ummm…while a bit of cracking did occur it seems you need an oil based undercoat for optimum results. Instead, after drying a couple of hours, I decided to give it a light sand, dusted it down then used white spirit on a cloth and wiped it in the direction of the grain and hey presto got a great distressed effect.

6) For the drawers however I went out and got some white spray paint intended for wood and the crackle worked a treat! I must say though that the Montana spray seems much better quality than the more expensive one I got from my local DIY chain. The fun part is next…watch your furniture crackle!  The more paint you spray on the bigger the crackle!

step 5

7) I decided to use one of my Martha Stewart screen silks for the top of the piece to give it a bit of character – stencilling takes me back to the 80’s but it seems to be having a bit of a resurgence. I use some white acrylic paint I had knocking around and an old ruler to push the paint into the stencil.

step 6

metallic spray paint8) Houston, we have a problem! The handles are a gold antique colour which is not the best match for grey but don’t despair as I found this great spray in my local B&Q and one blast instantly transforms them into chrome coloured handles, I even screw all the screws into an old bit of wood and give them a spray up to! (Notice the use of the lingerie again!).

Step 7

9) Now the piece just needs a couple of coats of varnish or furniture wax to protect it. I opt for wax as I prefer the finish. The wax will darken the colour – see the top far left drawer.

step 8

10) and…voila!

finished

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Give your furniture the rustic weathered look

Posted by chrissyjbrown on June 7, 2016
Posted in: DIY, Upcycling. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

title revamp

So the sun is finally here, well for today anyway, and it’s that time of year when you want to be spending as much time outdoors as you possibly can. I’m a big fan of BBQ’s for dinner and sitting outside in the evenings.  So how has your outdoor space and garden furniture fared over the winter months and is it all ready for the summer months? If not then what are you waiting for?

My garden furniture consists of upcycled pallet benches and a side table and a bigger table that I made out of old fruit crates. Upcycling is all the rage at the moment and I’m a big fan of making furniture out of pallets. In fact I’m surprised there’s not a shortage of pallets in the UK with the amount of things you can make out of them! If you’re a bit handy then there’s heaps of youtube videos and blogs where you can see how to make some fab furniture out of pallets for no cost at all. Pinterest is also a good place to get ideas.

So once you have made your pallet furniture how are you going to protect it? If you want to go for the natural look then a good two coats of clear varnish for exterior wood is the way to go – this is what I had intended for mine but was in a rush when buying the varnish and it had a tint to it. We carried on and covered the furniture in it as we had already opened the tin and I didn’t want it to go to waste but I had never been happy with the look as the colour looked like that old yellow/orangey pine so this year I decided to give them an overhaul.

before bench.jpg

Being a big fan of the rustic weathered beach look and because I have a beach themed garden to go with my award winning beach themed garden office, I thought I’d have a play around with some pastel beachy coloured chalk paints I had laying around but before I did this I did a bit of prep work.

Because the bench had been painted with coloured varnish previously I thought I’d give it a bit of a rub down.  But first I pressure washed them – Oooh I do love a pressure washer and it’s great at making a start at stripping off the varnish (see the right hand side of the bench in the picture above so see how the pressure washer had stripped the wood of the varnish!).  I then put my electric sander to work on it but I wasn’t overly concerned about getting every last bit of varnish off as the beauty of the look I was going for meant it wouldn’t matter if some bits were still varnished. Also chalk paint is great at covering varnished wood.

Once the prep work was complete and I gave the benches and side table a good dust off (white spirit on a lint free cloth is good for this), I then started applying different colours of chalk paint, using one colour at a time and when I switched colours I just blended them in together.  The colours I used were white, turquoise, pale blue, pale green and a straw yellow and the paints were more crafting chalk paints but you don’t need to buy fancy chalk paint as it would work just as well with emulsion or even acrylic paints and with some of the colours I watered them down to get a more whitewashed look.

garden furniture.jpg

To finish and to add good protection for the summer and winter months I added two coats of clear varnish – in fact being the cheapskate that I am I had some decking stain left over that was a white wash colour so I actually used this.  Yes, it will work just as well and is actually designed to be hard wearing.  Don’t be fooled by all the clever marketing by all the makers of the different products you can buy.  DIY stores will have you believe that you need a special paint for certain jobs – usually high priced ones.  Save yourself money and use cheap alternatives that will also work!  A lot of time it’s a big marketing ploy to get you to part with your cash!

So the final result is here…ta dah!

finished bench.jpg

What do you think?

 

Gumtree and Max McMurdo bring us #Beetlemania

Posted by chrissyjbrown on April 17, 2016
Posted in: Upcycling. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

beetlemania2

What a fab afternoon I had yesterday at #Beetlemania and no, before you ask it’s not some meeting for people with a mad obsession with hard shelled insects or a band from the 60’s but it’s part of Gumtree’s #UpcycleRevolution.

For those that don’t keep up with the times, in recent years there’s been a surge in repurposing, upcycling, or whatever you want to call it.  For the layperson, it’s basically taking old, unused and perhaps considered useless items – so Junk, and breathing new life into it by giving it a new purpose in life.  So basically what our older generation used to do but now it’s all cool and trendy and items can fetch a merry sum! How does that saying go…

trash-is-treasure.jpg

Now who better to head up Gumtree’s #Upcyclerevolution campaign than the very lovely Max McMurdo who has basically made a living out of upcycling since before it became in vogue and on trend.  You really do need to check out some of his amazing works of art/beauty/design or whatever you want to call them at his Reestore website.

You may have seen Max on your teleboxes as he’s been on or in a few shows including being one of the judges on George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces: Shed of the Year.  This is where I met Max last year (did you know I won Garden Office Category on Shed of the Year?!?! Yes I know, you’re sick to the back teeth of hearing about my blooming shed obsession!) and we bonded over our ownership of Sinclair C5’s!

Anyway enough of tangents, back to the point!

Max has become a bit of an ambassador or even the ambassador for Gumtree’s #upcyclerevolution campaign and I think…I may be wrong and should really look it up first…this is the 2nd year he has run workshops for them.

So what is #Beetlemania?

Now I think most people would share my opinion that the iconic VW Beetle is a pretty awesome looking vehicle, love them or hate them there is no getting away with the fact they are iconic! Images of Herbie fill my head!  Also my mum had one when I was a nipper, I remember it well as I had to sit in the tiny space behind the back seat which at the time did not impress me much! (Now I have Shania Twain playing in my head!)

So when I tell you that Gumtree provided Max and his merry team with a retro VW Beetle and the challenge of upcycling parts into useful household objects I can see some of you cry out: ‘that’s sacrilege’ but don’t despair as there is going to be a very happy ending as the Beetle was pretty rotten and was saved from the crusher and not only saved but most of the parts are being repurposed into lots and lots of household items that will bring joy to all those who are lucky enough to purchase them (This is where you guys can come in as you could be the very proud owner of some of these weird and totally wonderful pieces of art!) and this Beetle will be spreading it’s love into many a home!

But I haven’t got to the really cool and perhaps the most important aspect of #beetlemania.  While it is heaps of fun for those involved and some people are going to end up with some pretty unique pieces in their home that can be a talking point at dinner parties, there are two great things that will come out of this project:

Firstly, it is raising awareness.  We live in such a throw away culture and as a nation we are losing the ability of craftsmanship – I don’t know about you but my parents taught me from a very young age to cook, to sew, to knit, basic woodwork skills and much more.  The important underlying message was ‘if it’s broke then mend it’ and I was equipped with the skills to do this (read I was raised to upcycle).  It seems the lesson these days is ‘If it’s broke just toss it aside in the landfill and buy yourself a new one’. In fact it’s worryingly moved on from that to ‘It doesn’t need to be broke but the next shinier model is now out so let’s chuck out the model you got 2 minutes ago and get the new one’!  So to me #upcyclerevolution is a great campaign to encourage people to see ‘junk’ with new eyes and to encourage them to roll their sleeves up and have some fun! The rise in the popularity of chalk paint is a great indicator that ‘upcycling’ of old furniture has become fashionable, a few years ago it was called ‘shabby chic’ but with time there’s been a move away from that term and it’s we evolve to what it is today!

Now I really hope I haven’t bored you all with my ramble and you are still with me, that’s the other problem with today’s society, everyone has now got used to everything being said in 140 characters, so I’ve probably lost the vast majority of you in the first paragraph but for the die hard, old school peeps that still possess the ability to read an article, I am now getting to perhaps one of the most important aspects of the #Beetlemania project.

So for me, what makes it so worthwhile is that all the money raised from selling the upcycled items will be going to charity mate! BUT not only that but whatever is raised the lovely people from Gumtree will be matching this amount.

Now I know we all are drawn to different charities to support but the one chosen by Gumtree is ‘The Butterly Tree‘:

THE BUTTERFLY TREE CHARITY SUPPORTS RURAL COMMUNITIES IN ZAMBIA DECIMATED BY THE HIV AND AIDS PANDEMIC – PROVIDING SAFE WATER, FEEDING PROGRAMS, IMPROVED HEALTH AND EDUCATION FACILITIES, MALARIA PREVENTION, SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITY PROJECTS AND AN ORPHAN SUPPORT PROGRAM – ALL FUNDS GO DIRECTLY TO THE CAUSE – NO ADMINISTRATION FEES ARE DEDUCTED  – ALL MEMBERS ARE VOLUNTEERS.

Those that know me well will know I’ve always had a passion for Africa that started at the age of 13 when I joined the Anti Apartaid movement and subscribed to the New Internationalist. After University I spent the summer in Kenya on a project and later became a trustee for a charity that supported an orphanage and school in Uganda and when working as a Legal Advisor for Asylum Seekers I dealt with many clients who had fled African countries for refuge. I also currently give to a charity called Spring of Hope that is a community-based rehabilitation non- profit organisation for children with disabilities in rural areas of Uganda.

What I love about this The Butterfly Tree is that it’s a grassroots charity that works with communities to enable them rather than encourage dependency on aid which has happened with aid in the past.  Please, you really don’t want to get me started on this subject and at Uni I wrote many a paper on inappropriate aid and once you break open the seal I really won’t be able to stop, I really am passionate about World development issues and did at one point want to save the world – I have settled now with just making small changes where I can in the hope that this is more achievable and if we all changed little things then the big changes would then proceed . See, tangent again!

The other great thing about The Butterly Tree is it works with children – without wanting to sound cheesy, children are the future, treat them well and let them save the world!…sorry I’m not being flippant, it’s true!

the butterfly tree

Not only that but the money given to this charity goes directly on the projects and not on paying for personnel to compose expensive glossy paraphernalia and the odd pen which is rarely used to fill in the form to say you will increase your donation, to the people donating telling them what their money is going on.  Sorry it’s just a personal bug bear of mine and I’ve actually stopped giving to charities that spend so much of their money on marketing activities like this out of principle. Saying that though I guess these activities do generate more funds over and above what they spend on it and don’t get me wrong a lot of these big charities are very efficient in raising awareness about certain issues and are great advocates for a cause It’s just a personal thing and that’s why I try and just donate to smaller charities where the money goes right to the root and you can actually see how your money is making a difference in lives.  But we are all different and we all hold different causes close to our hearts which is a good thing as the world would be very dull if we all thought the same plus it means all causes are supported.

Anyway this blog post was originally going to be a blog post about what I got up to in the afternoon and how much fun I had and about all the great people I met yesterday and it was going to be interspersed with photos of a sneak preview of some of the projects but I really think I’ve gone on long enough so in brief I want to give a big shout out to all the below people who are involved and apologise to all the other people I met yesterday and due to my terrible memory cannot remember your names or handles (sorry showing my age again!).

Firstly, Max – one in a million – McMurdo (see what I tried to do there, Maxamilian get it? OK, I’ll shut up). Thanks for being you and for being so welcoming and injecting the fun factor. Oh and thanks for the pizza, cakes, sweets and all things bad for you! 🙂

But perhaps firstly I should have thanked the very lovely Marie Dalia from Gumtree who somehow stumbled across humble little me on the interweb and invited me to be a part of such an awesome and inspiring project! Without you… Also a big thanks for the Gumtree bag, the t-shirt, pen and the apron – love them all and will wear with pride and they will remind me of my afternoon!

2016-04-17 11.43.21

Thanks for everyone involved in the project who were so welcoming and have been working their socks off all week for charity, I’ll name who I can remember by giving you their twitter names:   @TheUrbanMole   (good to see you again!)  and  who is actually making a corset out of the car bonnet!

But last and really not least is my new BFF (well I don’t think he see’s it like that) Jez from Trong Upcycling () who was really helpful and provided me with some great little woodwork tips – I could have spent all day with him – doubt he could have spent the whole day with me as I was a bit over excited and didn’t shut my trap!

And then the other bloggers who were invited there, weird saying ‘other’ bloggers as it infers i’m a blogger! I’ve only been doing it 5 minutes so I feel it’s perhaps a bit premature to label me as one, whereas they were ‘proper’ bloggers and they were in no particular order, and again their twitter names:    and  who travelled from Liverpool, Bournemouth and Birmingham respectively and me, well I was lucky enough to be just 10 mins down the road.

thecrew

But above all, and not sure why this has come last in the list, but maybe mentioning her last will lead you to clicking on the link and finding out more about the The Butterfly Tree charity or perhaps keep an eye out for the #Beetlemania products you could buy to support the charity. So the last person to thank is the founder of the charity Jane Koye-Bailey. It was great you made the long journey to come and talk to us with such passion and with first hand knowledge of how the money donated has made a massive impact on some Zambian communities and how they are empowering the next generation.

Right folks, I think that’s probably all you can probably take from me in one sitting so I’ll leave you be.

If interested please please please keep up to date with the project then pop #Beetlemania into twitter or check out Gumtrees Blog and have a nosey at what items are up for sale.

If you’ve enjoyed reading this post then it would be great if you could hit the like button so I know I’m not just talking to myself and people do actually read my posts but even better if you think #Beetlemania and #Upcyclerevolution are great initiatives and deserves publicity and support then please do help spread the word by sharing my post!

Over and out…oh and if you enjoy the ramblings of a mad woman – that’s me – then please do feel free to follow my blog by popping your email address in the box in the top right of this page and you’ll get informed when I’m waffling again!

Until next time…adios amigos!

 

Spring Brings New Creations: Ceramic Jewellery and Hangers

Posted by chrissyjbrown on April 5, 2016
Posted in: Arts n Crafts. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a comment

I don’t know about you but I love it when spring is in the air and I particularly love it when the clocks go back and at last we get reminded what it is like to come home after work in the light! I haven’t been too keen on the recent winds and showers but I guess we need the water for the beautiful flowers to burst into bloom!

Anyway, it’s the time of year when I feel like I can crawl out of hibernation and wake up and be a bit more alive than perhaps I feel in the Winter!  My mind and creative streak also seems to be more alert with new ideas popping into my head. It’s also a great time for new beginnings and to have a jolly good spring clean – steady on girl…that may be pushing it a bit too far!

So last year with the approaching of Spring came my desire to have a garden office and we (well, those that have read my previous blogs) all know how that turned out! It took over my life for a while as not only was it a garden office build but a whole transformation of the garden into a beach theme (that blog post is on my ‘To Do’ list) and the addition of Danny’s Bar!  So this year I am not looking for a major project, but if you know me I always have to be trying something new out so now I have a good team working at Crafty Monkey, I have been able to work on opening up new avenues!  I’ve also been able to set up things that have been on my ‘To Do’ list for several years!

One such thing is the making of ceramic jewellery and hangers, an idea I had several moons ago when we introduced Clay Imprints. If you’ve read my blogs on upcycling, you’ll know it pains me to throw things away and I like to make use of everything I can (a trait kindly passed down from my ‘on the hoarders spectrum’ parents) and that includes the left over clay we get when doing imprints.  To be fair it really isn’t a great deal of clay and it’s not about the cost, there’s just something inside me that knows I could make use of it. I also recently inherited a whole plethora of craft stuff (more an Aladdin’s cave) – it was like all my Christmas’ had come at once and I am eternally grateful to the lovely lady who gave me it all as it has completely reignited my fire and has already brought me and others so much joy!

Anyway finally, I found the time to sit down and have a play with all my new and old stamps and cookie cutters and of course clay.  Remember making cookies and gingerbread men as a pre-schooler with mum?  Well I relived that moment, minus my mum being there to supervise as I’m supposedly a big girl now (yeah right!).  You can look and see what happened below (blog post to come on how to make them! When/IF I find the time!)

diy clay project.jpg

Another thing I have also finally actioned and crossed off on the ‘To Do’ list, along with finally setting up an Etsy shop called ‘Crafty Monkey Crafts’ so please do pop over and have a look, the shelves are still being stocked so bear with but it will give you an idea of the kind of thing I’ve been making.

If local to St. Neots then feel free to pop into Crafty Monkey to have a look at some of them on display!

Likes of this post or comments below are always gratefully received as I won’t then feel like I’m talking to myself, although I do find I talk to myself on a regular basis!

Turn your hand to upcycling – I did!

Posted by chrissyjbrown on March 2, 2016
Posted in: DIY, Uncategorized, Upcycling. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 1 Comment

pallet

The words vintage, retro, upcycled, reclaimed are all very on trend these days and it seems if you add any one of these words before anything, it can instantly increase the price of the item drastically and also increase the desire for that item!

While everyone was going mad for shabby chic a few years ago and chalk paint was the best thing since slice bread – and still is!, in more recent times the trend has moved a step further and there seems no restrictions on what ‘junk’ can be ‘upcycled’.  How does that well known saying go? – ‘one persons junk is another persons treasure’. This has become so true! Objects such as pallets, scaffolding and old apple crates are now all the rage and can be turned into some amazing pieces of furniture with some crazy price tags.  Pop into google images or pinterest the search term ‘pallet furniture’ and have a look for yourself!

The high price is not due to the high cost of the materials or even to the time it’s taken to make it but is down to the labels such as vintage, reclaimed or upcycled attached to it. I’m personally far too tight to be paying those sorts of prices, especially when I get the stock for Crafty Monkey delivered on pallets and have a friend who’s a scaffolder!  Plus I can hardly say I’m a crafty sort and then not be prepared to make it myself!

This last year I’ve made an array of things which as I blog about them I will put links on the list below so you can click through and have a look at my handy work.  The list includes:

From pallets:

  • Danny’s Beach Bar
  • BBQ Table
  • Garden Seating (I actually bought this from someone local who had made it)

From apple crates:

From scaffolding:

  • Bench for my dining table

I would encourage anyone to get out there and give it a go, I’m your average person whose wood work skills consist of what I learnt at school 30 odd years ago and haven’t really been utilised since so I’d say if I can do it then most people can unless you are hopeless at DIY.

It’s also great for the soul making something usable and completing a task from start to finish!

Go on I dare you…

As for sourcing pallets, apple crates and scaffolding then pallets are pretty easy to get hold of. You can try driving around your nearest industrial estate – you will be sure to find some piled up or perhaps the backs of shops in your local high street – obviously always politely ask the business and never just take them.  Most businesses will be only too happy to be relieved of them, however be aware that there’s certain pallets, I believe the red or blue one’s that always get returned and if they don’t then companies have to fork out and pay for them.  Alternatively, you could always put a post on a facebook selling site pages or gumtree etc asking for them – I’ve seen people request them here and am always very happy to offer my one’s as it saves me having to dispose of them. Some people may charge a couple of quid for them but if you ask nicely enough I’m sure most will be happy for you to have them for free.

As for scaffolding well your best bet is making friends with your local scaffolder or there’s a good website that was recommended to me by my scaffolder friend where I picked up a few pieces at Scaffolding Direct, that advertises high quality products at low cost prices!  That’s what we like!  I was really impressed with the service  and you can have your poles custom cut at, if my memory serves me correctly, no extra cost.  I remember they arrived very quickly and well wrapped – some bits a bit too well wrapped!  There was also no minimum order value and no need to have a trade account!

Apple crates or wine crates – now these are a bit more tricky to get your hands on as it’s a thing of past and not something that is commonplace these days, well not authentic one’s.  You see a lot of newly made one’s but if you want a truly vintage one that doesn’t cost the earth then you’re going to have to mix a bit of hunting around with a bit of luck!  I saved a search on ebay so it would notify me of any new listings for fruit crates and I was really lucky that someone local to me was having a house clearance after the death of her elderly father.  Before retiring he had worked on the markets, owning a fruit stall and he had near on 100 proper vintage fruit crates! They were happy for me to just get rid of them for them so they only cost me a few quid each and they threw a few in that were not in the best of condition.

Now to leave you with a bit of inspiration, take a look at this article where a couple has done out most of their house with reclaimed items!  Fabulous!

I was raised to upcycle!

Posted by chrissyjbrown on February 25, 2016
Posted in: Upcycling. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 2 Comments
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The fab guys at The Old Cinema have allowed me to use their awesome logo. Check out their website and follow them on Facebook – some great upcycled stuff!

Good old Wikipedia tells us that the term Upcycling is a relatively modern term that was first coined at the close of the Century in 1994:

The first recorded use of the term upcycling was by Reiner Pilz of Pilz GmbH in an article by Thornton Kay of Salvo in 1994.

And Wikipedia defines it as:

Upcycling, also known as creative reuse, is the process of transforming by-products, waste materials, useless and/or unwanted products into new materials or products of better quality or for better environmental value.

While the term may be relatively modern, I am no newbie to the act, I was either born with the ‘upcycle’ gene in my body or it was implanted by socialisation.

While upcycling is currently ‘on trend’ and the hip thing to do, I remember the days where upcycling, well at least to me, was far from cool!  You see, my parents, particularly my father, were masters of upcycling.  Not because they wanted to be inventors but more because they came from the generation where things lasted and if they broke they got fixed and if it couldn’t be fixed in the normal manner my father would make some contraption using whatever junk he could lay his hands on to get it to work.

My father has always been a white collar man so has never had to do a job where he gets his hands dirty so his motivation for getting practical and making things was maybe partly born from a desire to be practical, however my gut tells me his motivation was more to do with the fact he doesn’t like to spend money on anything.  Why does he need to when he can make it or he buys things that last? Hence they still have the carpet and many furnishings they had when I was born in the early 70’s! Luckily retro is back in so it’s probably seen as cool now but that has not always been the case – believe me!  Yes my father certainly would not be accused of being a follower of fashion and if the jumper he has had for 40 years still fits and hasn’t got too many holes in then there’s nothing wrong with it.  He’s a nightmare when it comes to buying him a gift as he has all he needs and hates us spending money on unnecessary things!

My parents are the furthest you could get from the throw away culture of today.  But my parents seemed to take things a step further and verge on the hoarder spectrum! ‘We can’t throw out that yoghurt pot as it will come in useful’, now this is where they differ, while your average hoarder would then just carry on collecting yoghurt pots and just let them build up, my parents would actually use them for a whole array of purposes from pen holders to plant pots for seedlings!  I particularly remember one invention that brought great fun to our family and visiting friends and was made almost entirely out of yoghurt pots – yes a 9 hole golf course in our back garden! I will have to try and find a photo to post here!

The golf course was one (there were very few) of dad’s upcycle projects that didn’t make me curl up in embarrassment and was actually quite cool!  All it took to make was a trowel to dig out yoghurt pot sized holes which the yoghurt pots fit into and then dad had some thin metal rods that he inserted into the ground and we cut triangles with a sheet of bright orange (fluorescent) sticker paper for want of a better word and once complete with a number they made the flags.  The flags would be removed after play to keep out of the rain and to allow for easy mowing of the lawn.  We had hours of fun playing the course.

It’s funny how with time comes maturity and with hindsight how things from your past can be viewed so differently.  When a child, this upcycling lark was just a total embarrassment but now on reflection I actually think my dad was pretty cool for some of the things he made and for his values on waste not, want not – he’s a great pioneer for recycling! Some of his upcycle projects included:

  • A flower bed made out of a washing machine drum
  • Our conservatory he made for £5 that was still standing 20 years on!
  • Car seats he got from the auction for £2 that became chairs in our study.
  • Arm rest and various other contraptions for the car – I remember wood and old carpet being the main materials and always being so embarrassed when friends would come in the car as he would get a nice new car then ruin it with lumps of old wood and carpet!
  • A shed made out of fibreglass from an old fiberglass hut (I can’t think of what it was so must find out or take a photo and post it here)
  • A stable which he surprisingly used timber he bought so it was not strictly upcycled but he did use some reclaimed wood.
  • A contraption made out of our old roller skates and planks of wood that would mean he could easily transport items like the swing hammock from A to B on wheels!

Then there was my mum’s efforts where she once made me a BMX outfit, complete with elbow and knee pads and she even sew the word ‘aero’ (short for aerodynamics) onto the patches! It was great turning up at the BMX track full of kids in the latest BMX shiny new designer outfits bought from a shop and me in my one made from a grey jogging suit! Scenes from the film ‘About a boy’ spring to mind!  Luckily I hadn’t quite reached puberty so was not of the age where I was too aware, also my best friend at the time also had a mum who liked to make him BMX outfits too – in fact I think they probably exchanged patterns!  I am thankful however that my mum didn’t also make me my clothes like she did for my sisters out of what looks to be old curtains. I didn’t however get out of the bowl hair cuts! As you can imagine we’ve got some cracking family photos.

Looking back I had one of those great childhoods where my parents taught me lots of skills from a very young age, we were taught how to bake, cook, sew, knit, iron,do basic woodwork and diy and of course to wash up although I was a master of getting my dad to do this when it was my turn – being the youngest does have some advantages! 🙂  Not only was I taught these invaluable skills but I was witness to my parents who just got on and did things that needed doing.  There was no ‘I’ll do it another day’ or ‘i’ll get a workman to do that’.  Only when my dad had attempted to do the job, several times using various different methods and possible solutions and things would not go as planned would they even consider getting a professional in.

I can now see that the reason why I am a creative sort who finds it easy to turn my hand at most things and am not afraid of giving new things a go.  It’s because I was brought up with the attitude that if something needs doing then you don’t employ someone qualified to do it but you work out how to do it and do it yourself.

So while back then I could not see the forest for the trees, I now realise how lucky I was to have been taught such good values and the skills of upcycling and I have inherited my father’s eyes where he doesn’t see something discarded as rubbish but as an opportunity to give it a fresh lease of life and a new use!

Stay tuned for blog posts of my upcycling efforts or check out my blog posts about my entry of my garden office ‘Crafty Monkey on the Beach’ for shed of the year that includes my upcycling efforts!

 

Feel free to share in the comments any embarrassing or cool upcycling projects your parents did!

Crafty Monkey at the Beach Garden Office entry into Shed of the Year 2015

Posted by chrissyjbrown on February 24, 2016
Posted in: Shed Times. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . 4 Comments

craftymonkeyatthebeach compilation

So last year I decided to buy a Dunster House log cabin to put in my back yard as I desperately needed an office for my business Crafty Monkey…it was just intended to be an office but the problem with me is that I don’t often do things by halves and once the creative juices took over it became so much more…

While in the midst of constructing it I read an article on She Sheds which had a link to Reader Sheds Shed of the Year so I decided to enter just for fun! It was half finished when writing the entry and the closing date looming gave me the determination to get it finished.

Well you’ll need to read my other blog about what happened after I entered but for now here is my very, very, very long entry! Good luck and have a look at my other shed blog posts to see pictures!

 

THE ENTRY:

Hello my name is Chrissy and I’ve become a ‘Shedaholic’!

I’m a newbie to shed life, in fact I’m very green as the outside is still being constructed as I type – just shingles to be put on one half of the roof and then the outside trim to do before complete, oh and then the beach style steps up to it and I will then need to totally recreate the garden to fit around what is rapidly taking over my life, so quite a bit still to do but yes my “She Shed” has quickly become my obsession and I have totally fallen in love with what has become my sanctuary at the bottom of my smallish garden.

Once inside I am transported to a happy, calm and uplifting space, blinkering out the fact I am actually situated mid terrace in a town with houses all around me. Instead, I step inside and am now at the beach listening to the crashing waves and tasting the salty air on my lips with the sun beating down and all the stresses are draining away – yes I do have a good imagination! I’m not much for urban these days and am happiest in rural settings. I love nature and I love rustic and I especially love the coast however when you live in Cambridgeshire it’s not always practical to go to the beach so I’ve managed to recreate the feeling of being at the beach in my new log cabin!

Not only has a lot of love, sweat and tears been poured into the creation of my new found space but I’ve tried to incorporate important parts of my life into the place.

I started by whitewashing the walls (have loved the whitewash effect after living in California for a year in the early 90’s) and in general feel white gives the impression of more space. White also creates a blank canvas ready for me to put my mark on the place. I am minded however that too much white may appear like an asylum which some days is where I feel I belong so maybe it’s quite apt but I decided to break the white up a bit by painting the beams blue to go with the exterior of the cabin. I had set out to do it out shabby chic/vintage stylee and was originally thinking of painting the beams pink but after a few stokes of my brush with the blue my creative flair just took over and I remembered I had a 3 part canvas under my bed of a beach scene that I bought in a sale years ago – I just had to have it as got it for a steal and when I look at it I’m transported there in my mind but is it a bargain when the only place you can put it is under the bed? I had no suitable place to put it but couldn’t throw it out hoping one day I would make use of it but nowhere ever seemed suitable until NOW! I rushed up stairs and pulled it from under my bed, dust everywhere and held it against the back wall of my cabin – Eureka! That was the moment it all clicked into place and the picture became a cornerstone – I knew that my new found space was to become my very own beach hut. It made perfect sense and just suits me down to the ground. I am a well seasoned traveller and over the years have backpacked to so many continents and countries and know I am my happiest with the sound of the waves crashing into the shore, sand between the toes, the saltiness of the wind rushing through my hair, time drifting by beach combing, the warmth of the sun soaking into my skin and up at the crack or dawn for walks on the beach watching the change of colours in the sky as the sun comes up or goes down – yes it makes perfect sense that I have a little bit of the beach in my back yard! In fact I find it difficult to visit the beach and not come away with a special little shell or polished looking stone which have always looked a bit out of place in my house but now I have a place to keep these little mementos of happy memories and have my collection of shells, coral, small bits of driftwood, stones etc from all the different places around the world I’ve visited.

I then went through the house picking out items that would fit into my new beach themed office and was actually astounded by how many things would fit perfectly in there so in they went. I also had lots of stuff in my garage that I’ve held on for years, how could I possibly throw it out as ‘one day I may need it’ – other people may call it junk and call me a hoarder (a trait I can thank my parents for) but at last I have found a use for these things – one example being two pine shelves which I must have had for near on 20 years and still in wrapper that I picked up from a car boot and are very dated now (I used to be a sucker for a good car boot bargain whether I needed it or not!). Anyway, a bit of white wash later and they make the perfect new home for more things I had cluttering up the house! Or the wooden box that I picked up from the tip for a fiver many moons ago (how many people do you know who go to the tip with an empty car and come home with a full one?!), I love this wooden box that’s been in my life a long time and has weathered with me but it recently got kicked out of pride of place as a coffee table in the living room when I got new furniture and was residing at the end of the bed in a spare room. Alas,it’s now once again enjoying the spotlight in my shed. All it needed to fit in was an old brown stripy mat I had wasting away in the garage and a few seat cushions to make it into a seating area and great storage for a blow up bed and bedding for when I want to spend a night at the beach – just because I can! I love camping and sleeping outdoors and now I can glamp in my back garden! Bonus!

My project has really given me a sense of fulfilment and I feel great as not only have I decluttered my house and garage making areas feel a lot more spacious but I’ve kitted out my beach hut without having to spend a penny! Yes, you may have picked up that I’m a frugal sort. I learnt it from my dad who made all sorts of contraptions out of junk, I remember he once made a conservatory for the grand total of ﾣ5, picking up free double glazing and even got old car seats for 50p from an auction. Believe it or not it’s still standing – Just!

Now for the next bit – moving the office in! Ummm…here I hit a stumbling block! Hold on a minute, I’ve just created this lovely calm space and now I have to ruin it by a boring looking imposing desk and having big ugly files staring at me from all angels. How could I possibly do this, it would take up way too much space and ruin the vibe! I seriously started contemplating keeping my office up in the small room which is a bit insane considering I bought it to be an office! On the verge of despair creativity hit again…

While not wanting to ruin this Zen-like calm and tranquil atmosphere, and wanting to also put my stamp on my space, I was scouring ebay for a more suitable looking desk that would fit in more with the new environment – I currently had a boring looking big desk, beach coloured veneer, you know the type, the sturdy standard desks you find in most offices around the world, not offensive in the slightest but they are just there and do nothing for me. However, nothing was hitting me in the face and I’m not one for waste or detaching myself from things plus the desk was a decent size and very practical so I decided I would give it a chance and upcycle by decoupaging it with past memories. I set about getting together all those old bits of paper, tickets, bank notes from all over the world that I had left over (only small denominations before you plan on raiding me) and things that I can never throw out as they have sentimental value yet all they do is clutter up the place. I also have the very first bible that I was given as a nipper that has always been very special to me and also my first ever world atlas where as a kid I would open it up and the pages would spring alive. I’d be intrigued and daydream about visiting all the far flung places in the world not knowing that at a later date I would. Both travel and the bible are big parts of my life so it seemed fitting that I set about ripping them up and sticking them onto my desk! I did find this hard however as have a big respect for books so ripping up a bible did feel a tad wrong and the ultimate sacrilege but I justified it by the knowledge that this way I get to see them every day rather than once in a blue moon. Within the desk montage of memories, I have part of the letter from the NBMXA (National BMX Association) where I was ranked no 2 nationally back in the 80’s, I have an excerpt of the book I got from University which lists me achieving my first class honours degree (another important achievement) and other poignant moments of my life. Oh and of course I had to use some old Beano comics I found to cover the legs of the desk and drawers as another reminder of my childhood. Would have liked a bit of Smash Hits too and New Internationalist which I subscribed to at the age of 13 but I’m way to impatient to seek them out! The beauty is it can be added later but happy to give Jackie a miss though as that is a tad embarrasing! Yes you could say I live in the past, holding onto all those precious childhood memories! But hey, it worked, my desk certainly doesn’t look boring and I wondered if I’d gone a bit too far when I realised it would now be a mission to locate anything on it! Oh well I love it and will be too busy flitting in and out of daydreams about the good old days when I see the reminders of parts of my life all over the desk! In between being very productive at work of course!

Now to do something about those ugly files which unfortunately are needed in most offices! I had a couple of cheap pine untreated shelving units, one which I’d whitewashed back in the 90’s which has moved with me all over the place, and another one bare pine which soon got the white wash treatment and I managed to cleverly position them so that all I needed to do was cover the back of one of the units to hide all the unsightly files when sat in my calm chair. I found some cheap straw cladding used for fences and with glue gun in hand I set about uniting the unit and the straw (along with a chunk of skin from my elbow!) further adding to the beach effect! I had now created a filing area where I could also put my paints and brushes neatly creating a multi-purpose space, office and painting studio to the left and sanctuary to the right!

So far I haven’t mentioned what I do. I run a pottery painting, build a bear and craft studio called Crafty Monkey which is based in the local town (hence me having Charlie the Crafty Monkey, one of the build a bears, sat in the corner), I desperately wanted to find new premises for the business last year as it’s grown and I really needed my own office. Finding a new location that met with my stringent criteria proved hopeless so I had to change the plan and decided to have the office at home. I have girls who work in the shop which frees me up to work from home where I can get more done but now I can work from the beach (well in my head!) and I’ve created the perfect space for painting up samples and commission pieces! Bringing me to my next bit…

So I hear you gasp ‘you run a pottery painting business yet there’s nothing related to this in your space’. Well the reason for this is purely due to time, while I have samples in the studio that would fit in perfectly, I need to keep those for customers to see and I’ve literally only had it built a week or so ago and all my time has been spent painting the thing inside and out while also trying to get work done – yes I do keep having to remind myself I have a business that won’t run itself! I didn’t want to rush it but I am planning on painting a plaque for the outside saying ‘Crafty Monkey HQ, The Beach Hut’ or words to that effect with a beach scene as the back drop. I also need to paint up my ‘She Shed – Men allowed by appointment only!’ plaque as my partner seems to think it would be a great place to enjoy evenings in with friends (I may be generous and give him a few passes seeing as he helped me paint the outside and has to endure my obsession for it). I also have some pottery beach huts I want to paint up and lots and lots of more ideas for the place but I’m minded I don’t want to over fill the space and for now I need to concentrate on the outside and have great plans for garden: I want to make garden furniture out of all the pallets I get from deliveries to my studio and I want to make a table out of old apple crates, I want to put lights around my pagoda and so much more – the ideas keep flowing…

There’s also still a few jobs to do inside – paint the cork board white, get a round coir style mat for the seating area, a chair for the desk (my dining room chair is in there temporarily while I scour ebay for probably a wicker style chair) and a basket to put shoes in that will house flip flops to wear for me and for guests! I also have a love of photography so a few images i’ve taken of beaches and boats from around the world will no doubt surface adding more to the memories. Oh and I’d best get some electricity sorted too as at the moment I’m running an extension lead from the house.

I apologise for my verbal diarrhoea but I am head over heels in love with my new found shed!

To finish, I would just like to thank Cupronil for producing coastal mist and daisy white, without which it would not be what it is!

I would say The End but it’s just the beginning…

After visiting my accountant in his garden office I instantly had shed envy and knew I had to get a garden office despite the fact my garden is not very big. All logic went out of the window, I just had to have one and when I get this feeling I don’t stop until it happens! I set about researching log cabins, starting off looking for the cheapest one I could find and was looking at second hand ones (I love a bargain) but then considered the time it would take to dismantle then scratch your head trying to work out what bit goes where when home and thought it actually is not probably going to be cost effective. I also thought spending a bit more for a better quality one (slow grown spruce, thicker walls, floor and ceiling, insulation and double glazing) would actually pay off in the long term so I popped along to Dunster House to take a look and walked out of there as a brand new owner of a 5x3m log cabin! A few weeks later all the bits were in my back garden waiting to be put together and the rest as they say is history!

I actually set out to move my office from the smallest bedroom in the house to a larger area but what I have in fact done is create an oasis of calm and a place for escapism in a hectic world. Who would have thought a home office could be such a place. Also the project has also given me my mojo back, I was just trundling along in life and had got a bit lazy but this project has reignited me and got me off my backside and out in the elements getting lovely paint streaks in my hair and creating great tribal war paint all over my body, broken nails to boot and rashes on hands from wood preservative! It’s reawakened my creativity with new ideas buzzing around my head and in the mornings I can’t wait to get up at the crack of dawn (I’m not joking, I’m a bit of an insomniac) to work on and in my beautiful new haven!

Shed life – you can’t knock it!