Wednesday, June 30, 2010

Find, Make, Do needs YOU!

Find, Make Do Too
Attention all you Finders, Makers and Doers.
Have you found, made or done something crafty that is not only unique and innovative, but also has an eco-conscience?
Drop me a line at findmakedo@gmail.com or leave a comment on the blog if you would like to be featured on Find, Make, Do or if you know some great Crafty goodness that will make us go WOW!
Guest bloggers, photographers and giveaway products welcome!

Saturday, June 26, 2010

Let the Games Begin

Vintage board games are like time capsules from our childhood. I have fond memories of the games I played as a girl. Here are some I've bought as a BIG girl, not so much to play , but for the graphics and the recycling potential.

Look at these recycled board game crafts.....better to give things a new life than to leave them sitting on a dark and dusty op shop shelf.

Spiral bound note books from Another Work in Progress.
Get yourself a book binder and almost anything can be turned into a note book......but wait till the kids have finished playing the game before you start recycling.
Operation Game bag from Emotional Baggage.
I regularly play Operation with my son Charlie. As a kid I always avoided playing this game as I honestly thought it gave you a real electric shock!

Twister Rain Coat from Craftster.
As a kid I loved the thrill of being tangled up with the opposite sex in innocent games of Twister......now you're older you can still do it in a crowded bus wearing this fancy coat!
Gorgeous idea from the Sassy Crafter.
Both the table and the Chinese Checkers board were separate Flea Market finds. And as Kim Taylor aka The Sassy Crafter notes " it was totally amazing that the existing table top fit perfectly inside the frame of the board game. It's like it was meant to be!"
Don't you love it when creative upcycling has that special synchronicity.

Sunday, June 20, 2010

Bench Marks!

I'm a big fan of using ordinary, everyday materials and giving them a fresh new twist.
My second favorite materials of choice (after Lino of course) is cut up bits of Laminex and Formica (the brand names of bench and table top laminate).

I have blogged about my Laminex scores at Lino Forest numerous times, but I'm not alone in my love of Laminex. Here are three jewellers who utilize the colourful and functional material and refashion it to create a small celebratory ornaments and amazing wearable artwork!

Alice Potter is an Adelaide based jeweller who works out of the Gray Street Workshop.
Laminex sample chips are one of her materials of choice, and she shapes, layers and rivets them to form cool abstract designs and super sweet "Bye Bye birdie" brooches.

Stored Laminex off cuts on Alices workbench.
It's great to find a jeweller who is passionate about recycling and doesn't like to waste anything. When asked about her creative process here Alice says "I reuse all of the waste product anyway (rework and refine the metals, keep all small scraps of paper and plastics for future projects, etc), so I am not fussed about getting my hands straight into the making side of things."
Alice Potter's simple, but effective Laminex disc earrings.
Victoria Matthew's 2008 exhibition entitled "The Tingate Family Caravan Holiday" at Studio Ingot was an ode to 50's nostalgia, family jaunts in the caravan with the kids and pets, and the fancy modern material of the time-Laminex!
Victoria's cut out silhouettes of housewives, working dads and well behaved kids remind us of the dated social mores and defined gender roles of the 50's.

Gorgeous sparkly and swirly Laminex caravan pins and pendants complete with matching poodle and family sedan/van combo earrings.
Victoria's perfect 50's cookie cutter family intricately cut from the popular bench top material of the era, Laminex.

Rebecca Hannon is an American born jeweller, living in Ithica, New York.
No prizes for guessing why her silver and laminate range of jewellery made my heart flutter. The bold colour palette ( the main reason I love using Laminex and Formica chips), the patterning, the layering and the general gorgeousnes of these pieces.

Rebecca says this about her creative process; " I work in a series and find each new grouping a challenge to create a tension between the story and the medium to evoke meaning. materials are endless; one must search and then concentrate to find the subtle message found in an object"

Monday, June 14, 2010

Betty Love

Today my son woke up and said "I don't have to go to school today because it's Betty's Birthday!"
So here's to Betty Windsor (Queen Elizabeth) and her non-birthday day public holiday.
To celebrate Betty's day, here are some Crafty Bettys that are far from pompous and regal.

Betty the Robot kitchenware assemblage by Artsy and Betty Babushka Lino brooch.

Betty Tee from Twisted Twee and Betty Sue softie from Two Peas in a Pod designs.

Friday, June 11, 2010

With this Ring....

A bit of ring eye candy today. I love the look of gorgeous rings, but sometimes chunky rings can drive me bananas. I have lost count the number of rings I have taken off when I start working and have kind of "misplaced" .....wedding ring included!Check out these amazing recycled bakelite and timber "mini sculptures" by Kyyote. L.A. based designer Amanda Loos strives to utilize materials and methods of production that are kind to the environment. She reuses and recycled materials that would otherwise be put to waste.Amanda's rings are made from pieces of exotic hardwoods left over from furniture manufacture and vintage plastic. And two trees are planted for every Kyyote piece sold.
Knitted rings by London designer Suzi Warren of Twisted Twee. They look so woolly and cosy, like a mini nana rug on your finger. While your visiting the Twisted Twee site have a look at all the "sometimes wrong but oh so right" cool, edgy and slightly twisted products .If you have knitted rings it's logical that you HAVE to have a knitting needle ring from the "Plastic Girl" herself Liana Kabel. What do you do when you have a big collection of vintage plastic knitting needles? Make them into cool knotted needle rings (above ), needle nobs with stirling silver rings (below left) and twisted Knitwit needle rings (below right)

If you are mad about rings, a visit to The Carrotbox is highly recommended!

Sunday, June 6, 2010

Crafty Ducks

Do you like flying ducks? Or do think they fall right at the end of the too kitsch spectrum?
I love me a retro ceramic flying duck or three. And crafty flying ducks made with recycled materials or with a quirky twist are even better. Here are a selection from flickr and etsy.
Crafty Flying Ducks
1. Flying duck brooch- REread 2. Lino Flying Duck brooches- Betty Jo Designs
3. Wallpaper flying ducks-Deborah French 4.Fabric Flying Ducks -Art Decadance
5. Embroidered Flying Duck brooch- Betty Jo Designs 6.Wallpaper Flying ducks-DeliaDivine
7.Painted China Duck- Trixie Delicious 8. Lino Flying ducks- Betty Jo Designs
9.Flying duck embroidery-Amanda JeanWalker

I particularly like this felted wool bag made from recycled sweaters made by Tasha Miller Griffith from Arizona. This bag is soft and cuddly, yet tough and washable. Tasha designs each bag one at a time based on what she can find.
According to Tasha "Each bag is truly one-of-a-kind. This keeps the process fresh and interesting for me, as I design each bag one by one to make the most interesting use of limited materials, instead of making several from a single pattern. Reclaimed belts, buttons, and vintage zippers also get a new life as handles and closures for these bags."
This series of three hand-embroidered pieces "fly away home" by Amanda Jean Walker are stitched on vintage cross-stitched fabric Each hoop has a minor variation in size and are ready to hang in whatever flight pattern you see fit. Amanda says"Embroidery is special to me because it is something that takes time and patience, and is a medium that requires slow, methodical work, something I enjoy immensely. I buy most of my hoops second-hand and everything I stitch is on vintage and thrifted fabrics."
Melbourne designer Mark from Record Attemps cuts flying ducks from recycled Vinyl LP records. "Mark had too many records. He decided he had to stop buying them or do something with them. He knew he couldn't stop buying them so he thought he would do something useful with them. Now people give Mark records they are going to throw out and he turns them into things."Prince Design UK ceramic Flying ducks

Earlier this year I started A flickr group for readers to upload pics of flying ducks.
If you have a set of decorative flying ducks (maybe inherited from your granny) or have made or found something crafty with the flying ducks image post them here.The more kitsch and/or retro the better........but please refrain from taxidermy (you know, stuffed ducks).