Sunday, October 2, 2011

Upcycled, Recycled, Reclaimed

Recycled bottle glass & copper
Here are some of the newest pieces I've created, all made with recycled, re-purposed and scrap materials. I wanted to make a whole line of items that show that recycled jewelry doesn't have to be hippy-dippy, but can be classy, fun, beautiful. I used some new materials, mostly the metals, like earwires, snaps and wrapping wire. But primarily I focused on using things that would otherwise be thrown away.

The Sunday funnies

I experimented with making beads out of newspaper and plastic soda bottles. I cut apart soda cans, discarding what I couldn't use in the recycle. I was able to purchase some really colorful recycled glass beads at Goody Beads online. Some jewelry incorporates hemp. All in all, I've had a lot of fun seeing what I could come up with, but I feel like I've just skimmed the surface.


Prepared cans for jewelry
Pop can flower rings

Recycled glass & paper beads

I love to sew, but hate following patterns,
so I really enjoyed making all kinds of cuffs.

Reclaimed fabric scraps