Upcycled Inspiration Gallery

 -- conscious consumer, mindful discarder; creatively reusing everyday waste

Rainbow Finger Labyrinth -- Upcycled finger labyrinth on a vinyl record with rope from a well-loved hammock.

Homemade Charcoal and Bamboo Holders -- Inspired by the book, The Organic Artist, I created charcoal from bamboo and yucca plants sourced from our yard. The charcoal holders are also created from bamboo.

Denim Dahlia -- An old pair of jeans upcycled into a dahlia flower.

Upcycled T-shirt Sunflower -- A golden t-shirt is hand cut & sewn into a sunflower. The center is made from a vintage wooden button

‘Born in Western Massachusetts’ Bottle Cap Earrings -- I love Western Massachusetts (& yes I was born here too!). Brewmaster Jack is a brewery based in Northampton, MA and I couldn’t resist upcycling their bottle caps into these fun earrings!

Bird on a Jar -- I found these mini mason jars at our local Goodwill store and I thought it would be fun to embroider on the lids. It was AND I got to use the template from my DIY Hello Birdy pattern in an unexpected way!

Upcycled Wallpaper Beads -- I was delighted when I found this vintage wallpaper at Knack: The Art of Clever Reuse and just knew it would make lovely paper beads.

DIY Essential Oil Drawstring Pouch -- This project was inspired by my love of crafting with repurposed materials and our pursuit to live a healthy lifestyle. I created this design immediately after receiving my first set of essential oils so I could easily carry them around with me.

Japanese Kusudama Flowers from Book Pages -- Discarded book pages upcycled into Japanese Kusudama flowers. Flower center created with button backs and embroidered french knots.

Denim Snail

Finger Labyrinth -- Upcycled from a vinyl record and rope from an old hammock.

Denim Dahlia with Vintage Fabric and Mirror

Finger Labyrinth for Word Lovers -- Upcycled finger labyrinth on a vinyl record. The pathways were created using rope from an old hammock. The final piece was decoupaged with random dictionary page clippings.

Fingerknit Tarn Necklace -- Handmade t-shirt yarn has been fingerknit into a necklace.

Tomato illustration on dictionary page with handmade bamboo charcoal

Handmade Card: Hello! Spirograph Flower -- A discarded cereal box has been repurposed into a handmade greeting card and embellished with embroidery floss. To create the design, I used the lazy daisy and back stitch.

Clementine Weave: By the Ocean -- Do you recognize the red plastic mesh often found on the top of a crate of clementines? When I saw this, I immediately thought of weaving. This piece is done with yarn scraps I had, but you could use so many different materials from paper to plastic to fabric…I’m feeling the desire to make another one ;)

Embroidered Bird on a Jar -- I found these mini mason jars at our local Goodwill store and I thought it would be fun to embroider on the lids. It was AND I got to use the template from my DIY Hello Birdy pattern in an unexpected way!

Upcycled Canvas -- My mom gifted me this lovely canvas that reads, “Your journey is unfolding exactly as it should be“. It hangs proudly in my creative space. Over time I’ve added my own embellishments. Including denim seam snails and rosettes, as well as an embroidered sun using my favorite embroidery stitch — french knots!

Beach House Bouquet: Book Lover’s Edition -- Old book pages are upcycled into Japanese Kusudama flowers. The centers of each flower vary; some are painted bottle caps others are vintage and sea-themed buttons. Each stem is a thin bamboo reed. The bouquet sits in a repurposed vase filled with sand.

Wallpaper Bead & Hemp Necklace -- Vintage wallpaper found in the crawl space of our house built in 1937 is the material used in these chunky paper beads and I absolutely love how they came out!

Beach House Bouquet -- Leftover wool yarn upcycled into fluffy pompom flowers with bamboo stems.

Junkmail Masquerade Mask -- Security envelopes, a decorative paper punch, and decoupage glue was all that was needed to upcycle this masquerade mask. I just love how it came out!

Upcycled Daisy -- This daisy is made from a discarded white t-shirt, yellow bottle cap, and bamboo stem. It is embellished with yellow embroidered french knots.

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