yay! it's the power day give-a-way!!!

Hi Everyone!

Whew!  Happy to announce the first Power Day Give-A-Way of the year.  As some of you know, I've kicked off a Power Year with the awesome Megan Quicke.  Here are my goals for the year, and here's my first update.

I'm having a ton of fun following through with these challenges and similar to "when the student is ready, the teacher will appear" I've found that "if a public forum is needed, an event will appear".  Meaning, I will also be participating in the Salon-Style Bicycle Art Show.  More details to come on that one.

Drumroll please...

Here is the very fun-to-have-made-for-you, awesome reclaimed paper, wire-bound notebook!  It's filled with lots of fun and colorful graph and lined papers.  All reclaimed, even the wire and machine used to make it are secondhand!

To enter to win this (and a few other goodies, free shipping included...) simply follow this blog or add it to your rss feed and leave a comment below.  If you'd like a topic, tell me about a time when you  worked super hard towards a goal...  The winner will be randomly selected.  To get additional entries, repost a link to this blog entry on Twitter, the Facebooks, or your own blog.  Just include a link below so I know you did it and count your additional entries!

Because this is such a green book, all recovered materials and all, I'll select the winner on the day we celebrate by wearing green, St. Patty's Day!  So you've got till sometime next Thursday to post away!

Thanks for helping to spread the word about my project.  The support really helps me stay motivated and I've got lots of fun things I'm looking forward to sharing with you.  Such as, Monday I'll be reviewing my weekend with you in photos.  I've just come home from an awesome art show and am looking forward to telling you all about it!

Have a super-awesome weekend!

xoxoZ

{eco find} guess who's coming to dinner?

here's a gorgeous way to reuse old wooden pallets and create space for friends!  a table out of old pallets!

find step-by-step directions over at readymade.

it'd make a great statement as a dining room table or a no-fuss option for outdoor furniture this summer!

{eco find} re-upholster

here's a lovely video made by two of the upholster-ers of spruce. ah, the sprucettes!



they find chairs to update with (ironically) vintage fabrics. they also offer green options when reupholstering chairs; like natural and organic padding materials and fabrics.

i love how the two sprucettes work together, side-by-side, completing this chair make-over in the video.

and what an important component of their business, to pass on the lost art of upholstery by offering classes in their austin, texas storefront. here's a great link to student before-and-afters!

and guess what's getting added to my maker list...  actually, re-upholstery has been on my list, in the form of two chairs in my parents' garage... ever since i saw this posting at sea of shoes (and found two chairs at the side of the road).

happy monday!

{eco find} re-purposed leather

ahhh, the demi-corset.  not too rigid, not to lackadaisical.  defines the waist, glamorizes the figure...

this one comes from hende of re-purposed leather and a wooden pin to close your corset.

and by the way, oh my gosh, i am totally enamored with this shopkeeper's profile on etsy!  her balance of life seems very serene and inviting to me right now...  go take a look too!

not only using sustainable materials, but keeping her whole eco-footprint as small as can be by keeping errands to fewer days.

it's lovely to be inspired by such beauty and to know it's possible...

i did! i did go!

dear blog,

wow!  what a blessing to be able to follow up on a goal!  back in october i had stumbled upon hospitality house's community art studio during an open studios walk.  i found a wonderful welcome and the offer to come back and paint, work with clay, make an artistic kite, paper machie...  so many creative options!  i was like, "ok! i'll be back within a week to have an artistic day".  cuz i knew if i didn't do it soon, i may never get back.  jump right in!

however, i did not go back in a week.  instead it's taken me 7 months to get my creative little hands back to that site.  but i made it!  and it was a wonderful experience.

not only did i get a personal lesson on how to throw clay on a wheel, i met some other inspiring artists who make time for their creativity, got shown the screen printing set up, and found a wonderful new community.

i really sunk myself into the moment as i was working with the clay on the wheel.  to cone it up and cone it down, feeling the cool clay work against my hands as the wheel forces it around and around...  it was just as i had imagined way back (at least) since 2004!  that's when i ran a girl scout camp with two potters wheels.  i thought i'd have the whole summer to make lots and lots of pottery.  yet, i made only one item, hand pieced and had to reboot the kiln after the art teacher had shut everything down for the season! 

so there's a glimpse at how i use to dis my inner-artist.  that's why it's so important to me today to listen to that creative voice and take action to explore my talents!  and to practice at messing up and improving my technique!  i give thanks to the artist's way book group i'm involved with this year and for it just being time for me to hear this message from the universe.  creativity is vital, it's a gift, and it's an obligation!

xoxo,
rootmix!

oh, and p.s.  the clay was recycled!  bonus!

{eco find} vintage fabric slippers

i love making a lighter footprint on the earth by using less new resources and conserving where i can.  these eco toes help to make that happen... practically literally!

i noticed these yellow plaid slippers on the front page of etsy and had to investigate further.  infusion is a shop run by abby on the premise of not just reusing materials, but creating something durable and long lasting.  the infusion fibers blog is also lovely, showcasing beautiful sustainable home projects and images.


i've reclaimed many samples of upholstery fabric, but they are still piled up waiting for inspiration.  infusion has figured out a striking way to reuse such fabric.  polka dot eco toes!

this pair below reminds me of the environmental studies project i completed waaaaaay back in college.  i presented facts and findings on the massive amounts of mattresses ending up in landfills.  could they be designed to be disassembled and their components reused or recycled?  ticking was a tough one to find a new home for.  it's the fabric usually on the outer-most surface of the bed.  not quite absorbent enough to use as rags... but as shoes, yes!  and the stripes are so cute!  though, i think this vintage fabric made it's way from somewhere else than a mattress.

hope you all are enjoying your monday!

xoxo,
rootmix

p.s.  i love this poem found on the infusion fibers blog:  relationship.  check it out and leave a *hello* message!

{gold!} just loving these images!

checking the front page of etsy one more time before heading to bed last night, i clicked on the shop called tavin. i was drawn there by this dress...

being struck by this image, i had to explore more and pulled up this dress listed next to it, a beautiful blue knit dress. i love the expansion and constriction of the pattern movement.


the images are peaceful, delicate, and beautiful. and the sentiment erin, the proprietor, shares about her shop and building an online community through her vintage offerings feels like a genuine warm hug!


under each beautifully photographed vintage garment, erin writes some prose, sharing her observations of moments.


this last one features a 1930's look i think we can relatively easily emulate now. a coin-bedazzled necklace, a thin scarf tied as a headband, and a worn-in, soft cotton tank top... and i love those white tights. but that style, that look, capturing that image... not so easy to replicate. learn more about the style photo-shoot at erin's shop announcement on etsy



xoxo,
rootmix

p.s. erin's got quite an inspiring story on her etsy profile of her path to having her dream of tavin shop come to fruition! see even more pics on her flickr.

5 days to go! ooo, la, la!

this is so cute! thanks purl bee! i totally have some reclaimed felt to use on this garland project. other upcycled options to complete this project include felting a thrifted sweater to cut out little circles, or even fabric scraps, newsprint, ephemera papers. what can you come up with?

if you make your own new year's eve garland, let me know in the comments, share a link to a photo of what you come up with!

i will make one and i will call it *confetti garland*!

xoxo,
rootmix

santa gets to rest now!

hope you all had warm and cozy holidays! i enjoyed time with my family and sending out holiday cheer to my friends far and near. i was a surprise leader in all the family games; who knew sudoku would train me so well for boggle!?!?!!!

i'm getting excited about the new year... all the seasons to come again, saying *twenty-ten* a lot, kicking off some daily crafty projects (*fingers crossed*), and FINALLY participating in thing-a-day february! whew! most exciting of all may be my round-the-clock decluttering & organizing marathon - can i get done by december 31st? stay tuned...

before i get to work, here's a look at some of my favorite holiday images and links i've been enjoying on YOUR blogs. you've really been getting me in the holiday spirit this year. it's been inspiring!

{click on pictures for source!}

this is a fun one! get one more dose of that holiday spirit while listening to some christmas songs on ukulele by lady harvatine! she's even got links so you can download the songs and a tutorial to fashion a fancy cd sleeve, if you so desire!
xoxo,
rootmix!!!

p.s. did you hear about the home alone twitter project?

{gold!} patchwork style

such a soothing image and *look* they're made by reusing scraps of fabric left over from your other projects! see how to make another version of these lovely potholders over at etsy, with lots of schmancy diagrams for how to cut your fabric. patchwork style, came out earlier this year and shows you how to make this project as well as many others!

p.s. i love fabric with text on it!

{gold!} spotted!

oooohhh, look what lady smaggle dreamed up! this necklace is so bright and cheery and reuse-y!!! save those snagged tights and find out how to make your own adornment here!