Saturday, May 7, 2011

New Segment: Recycle, Reinvent and De-clutter

I've been trying to think of ways to add more posts about DIY stuff, so that the blog doesn't become totally revolved around books(not that that's a bad thing, but I would just like to have a bit of variety on this blog) and I was starting to clean up my room and found that there is a lot of clutter that we are not just ready to get rid of yet that doesn't have much of a use. There were also a lot of things that I wanted to make or buy that I could have recycled. I thought this segment would be a great way to give tips on how to Reuse old things and save money/space in the process. If you do not take well to being given advice I suggest that you skip reading this post.

DIARIES, SCHOOL BOOKS and MAGAZINES:
I found that many of the things that I was interested in getting rid of in my room were things like old school books, magazines and old diaries. While to some people it may seem weak to hold on to such trivial items, but I worry that they are too valuable to put in the garbage. Some of these items have a big sentimental value and I can't help but think I may need to keep my maths book for future loan calculations. Also each magazine I've bought has cost me around $5 or more depending on the magazine and I have about 20 that I want to get rid of. So that's $100 that is lying around on my bedroom floor and I can't exactly sell them because magazines become outdated quickly.

Ways to salvage them:
-Favorite articles and lessons could be cut out of books and pasted into another old book or kept in a folder for reference.
-Paint over unwanted schoolbooks and journals and use these as art journals or save them for use as scrap paper.
-Cut pictures out of a magazine to use for decorating new schoolbooks, art journals or for art inspiration. These could also be used in a collage or altered art form.
-If an old diary is thick enough it could be made into a book box.

Obviously there are going to be some school books, magazines or journals that you are going to want leave untouched, but for the rest of them there are definitely some better uses.

FOOD PLATTERS,  MAKE-UP PALETTES:
There may be one-too-many food platters taking up space in the kitchen cupboard or a scungy make-up palette that could be cleaned up and put to good use.

Things to use them for:
-Craft dish for sorting collage pieces, beads and buttons
-A Paint palette
-A dish for hair clips and pins.

What you decide to use the dish for will definitely depend on the depth of it.

OLD CHINA CUPS AND PLATES:
You've had that clumsy aunt over for dinner again and she's dropped your china cup and a small chunk has broken off. Or you've dropped a china plate while you were washing it and it slipped out of your hand. No need to fret, while the beautiful dinner wear may be sharp and dangerous to use it makes a very creative centre piece.

Ideas for Reinvention:
-Tea pots, tea-cups make for adorable indoor pot-plants and vases. Ones used for pot-plants will need holes drilled for drainage and possible a china plate to accompany so that you do not have soil and water dropping onto carpet or coffee tables.
-As a pencil/paint brush holder
-A water jug/cup for cleaning paintbrushes
-A plate can be used as a palette for mixing paints.

If you don't already have clutter that you can recycle within your house-hold, but need a new pencil holder with a creative edge, maybe drop down to the local charity shop or discount store for a solution. Some of the items described on this page can be found in a charity shop also and vintage items can add a well-designed and unique look to your household.

Your favorite Cynical blogger
Natalie

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