Recycled style from Etsy sellers

In a recent post, where I discussed reclaimed materials, I promised to share some of my favorite Etsy sellers that make things using found or recycled supplies. Well, here is a little round up of just a few shops that feature creations that use found materials in an interesting way.

YAVA G l a s s specializes in taking recycled beverage bottles with screen-printed labels and converting them into decorative glassware. These particular glasses are made from IBC cream soda bottles. The style of the IBC logo and simplicity of clear glass add a bit of classiness to these that is really fun. Whoever thought trash could look so good?

Bodhicitta also has some really beautiful work made from recycled glass. My favorite of theirs are these tumblers that they make out of old wine bottles. Each one is a slightly different earth tone, which makes a great-looking set!

Isn't this little wooden whale made by William Dohman sweet? William gathers wood scraps from construction sites and uses what he finds to create hand carved signage, toy whales like this one, and even toy robots!

The pillow pictured above comes from Velvet Bean. She makes cushions and ottomans using reclaimed coffee sacks. I love how they are graphic and still so rustic! Velvet Bean was recently featured in Real Living Magazine Australia. Check out how great this room featuring one of her ottomans and pillows looks!

The lovely cushion above is from Ply Textiles. It is made using wool from recycled sweaters. The 100% wool sweater material is fulled in a hot washing machine to create a dense, strong, but soft fabric. The combo of beautiful colors, the texture of the fulled wool, and the graphic herringbone design can't be beat!

The adorable fabric baskets above were made by Tuuni. She creates home decor using recycled vintage fabrics and lace. They are beautifully simple, but the lace adds a bit of charm and character!

Last is this yarn from Auracauna Designs. It comes from an old sweater that the seller unraveled, washed, and line dried. It has such a unique look - and provides a chance for an old garment to be something greater!

Checking out beautiful work by other crafty folks always gets me inspired to go make something... now, I'm off to get to work!

Young MC's Quilt!

A few weeks ago I posted an in-progress photo of a quilt I was working on. Well, I finished and mailed it off to two of my best friends, Scott and Sarah, who are expecting their first baby THIS MONTH!!! I kept it under wraps before they had a chance to actually see it for themselves because I wanted it to be a surprise...

A collection of random linen samples were used for the top, and an Alexander Henry fabric, Spotted Owls, for the backing. I found the backing fabric at Intown Quilters in Decatur. Actually, I should say that my husband found it - because he's the one who picked it out! I don't think I could have picked a better fabric myself!

I love the way this turned out... specifically the color palette. I am all about this color palette! But, I also like that it is fun and kid friendly with out being too cutesy or gender specific. They are having a little girl, but this way, if they have a boy in a few years they can continue using it. This is the first quilt that I have actually completely pieced, quilted, and bound from start to finish. Now, I want to do another!

Quilt sneak peek!

Here is another quilt (!!!) I have in progress. I had this project in mind for a stash of 8 x 8" linen samples that I acquired a few weeks back. I cut out all of the pieces and laid them out on another piece of fabric and pinned them so they wouldn't get all mixed up. When I hung the fabric up (because I hang up pretty much everything that I work on) it looked like this!

One of my favorite things to do when I'm working on projects is to take materials I already have and come up with a use for them. It's fun to see where your mind takes you when you have a very defined set of conditions to create with. I actually had to trim the squares I had down to smaller pieces to make them work for the quilt. So, now I have a slew of 1 x 7 or 8" strips of linen. I was looking at my stack of trimmings wondering how I could make use of them - and I was actually able to come up with a new project idea! I will probably test it out in the coming weeks... hopefully it will amount to something!

Also, I am overjoyed to celebrate the first sale in my Etsy shop this past weekend!!! It's definitely a momentous occasion, and I thought I'd toot my horn over in this corner, quietly....