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creative reuse

Make room at home and enjoy the holidays more

Make room at home and enjoy the holidays more

By guest blogger Casey Hazlett, Sustainably Organized, Inc.

Enjoy the holidays rather than just survive them: Consider these tips to create a plan.

Tip 1: Determine how much time you need to get ready for the holidays

No matter how much time you think you need – double it! This allows time for the unexpected and a little extra relaxation. Did Rudolph lose a leg? Consider how you can fix it before throwing it out. Make sure things (like gift bags) are stored properly so they can be reused each year. If you are planning to wrap gifts, consider creating a supply bin so you can just grab and wrap.

Bonus: Donate, give away or swap unused décor or supplies (like saved ribbon) that you hold on to but don’t ever seem to use or display. Organizations like SCRAP, Swap Positive or possibly family, friends and neighbors might appreciate them and it helps you clear the clutter.

Tip 2: Move furniture to display your holiday décor

Look at each room you’ll use during the holidays and think about it as an opportunity to declutter and reorganize. If you are moving a piece of furniture to fit more holiday décor in the living room, consider if any items can be donated. Check the Resourceful PDX map for options for resale shops and donation centers.

Tip 3: Plan for overnight guests

Use the guest room for guests, not storage! Consider giving yourself some time to make thoughtful decisions about where the best place is for stuff rather than hiding everything in a spare room or closet. If you still need that table or chair (or still love it!), discover a way to incorporate it into your home. 

Tip 4: Make space for new toys, games and stuff that comes home during the holidays

Now is the time to clear space to make room for the new stuff that’s coming in. What toys are no longer popular? Donate, fix what’s broken, or even consider having a party with friends to trade toys so you don’t have to buy new ones for your kiddos. PDX Toy Library is a local option for donation.

Tip 5: Take inventory of what you already have before heading out to shop

Gift wrap, holiday décor, baking supplies and presents that you’ve been saving to re-gift are just a few categories to check before you head out to shop. You’ll save time and money shopping at home first before heading out to the stores.

Bonus: Clean out the Tupperware drawer to reuse what you already own. If you are hosting a holiday meal and plan to send home leftovers with your guests, this is your chance to clear the clutter where you store durable and reusable items. Make sure you have the sizes you use (or can give away) and every bottom and top have a match. Use tins and baskets you’ve collected or buy used at a secondhand store.

Vintage rental options for your special event

Vintage rental options for your special event

Lane’ Bigsby from Something Borrowed invited Alicia Polacok from Resourceful PDX partner, Bureau of Planning and Sustainability, to visit her vintage-inspired rental shop.

Do-It-Yourself at heart of business

In 2011, Lane’ Bigsby planned her own vintage-style wedding, showcasing her and her husband’s Do-It-Yourself (DIY) vision and commitment to sustainability. This process inspired Lane’ to start Something Borrowed to help others have the unique events they envision while reducing waste, too.

DIY is at the heart of Lane’s rental business. In addition to her re-styling experience, she has taken up upholstery and her husband now does woodworking. Lane’ often repurposes objects many times and in many different ways, getting the most value out of each object, adding creativity to the event, and saving costs for her clients.

Renting saves you time from having to hunt items down and it’s often far cheaper than buying. I hear ‘this has been sitting in my garage for years’ very regularly so it also allows you to have less stuff that creates clutter.
— Lane' Bigsby

Fun and funky items to rent

The inventory at Something Borrowed includes a plethora of items to rent for any kind of event – from weddings, birthdays and baby showers, to corporate events, trade shows and production photo shoots. Clients have even rented items for family holidays and a funeral.

When considering new inventory, Lane’ carefully selects items that can be used many times, and have a big impact in saving waste. She shops from websites like Craigslist, Etsy and eBay, and from previous clients who offer Something Borrowed the chance to buy items from their one-time events.

Building a resourceful community

Lane’ says she enjoys helping clients learn new ways to be resourceful.

“My clients often ask about the other elements of planning events, besides the décor. I find myself steering the conversation to using durable items instead of disposable items, and educating clients about compostable plastics and alternative packaging options.”

Lane’ also incorporates what she calls a “hyper-local” attitude to her business.

“Establishing these relationships has helped create a network in the St Johns neighborhood. I can get a special item repaired instead of tossing it in the garbage, and can visit the local reclaimed wood shop for custom jobs, like benches I had made recently to add to the inventory.”

View vintage and modern finds on the Something Borrowed website and at the one-stop-shop warehouse and showroom by appointment in North Portland.

 


ReClaim It! Make art, not waste at this new retail space offering reused materials saved from the landfill

ReClaim It! Make art, not waste at this new retail space offering reused materials saved from the landfill

Cindy Correll, Reuse Alliance Oregon Chapter chair and Be Resourceful partner, weighs in on a collaboration that is advancing the reuse conversation in Portland. 

“I remember being at a transfer station, looking closely at a massive pile of garbage, and noticing a surprising number of items that were obviously still usable. The amount of perfectly good stuff that ends up in our garbage is overwhelming. Wouldn’t it be ideal if we could rescue these materials before they are crushed, compacted and shipped off to a landfill? 

Enter ReClaim It! Reuse. Repair. Reimagine. 

ReClaim It! is a new venture born from the GLEAN project, a partnership between crackedpots, Recology and Metro. By collaborating with these other organizations, GLEAN artists create original works of art using materials salvaged from the garbage and now ReClaim It! makes these materials available to everyone in their new retail space. At ReClaim It!, you’ll not only find reused art, but also the materials and inspiration you need to make your own unique creations. And everything in the store was saved from the piles of discards at the Metro Central Transfer Station. 

ReClaim It! is located at 1 N Killingsworth St and open 11 a.m. – 6 p.m. on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays. Plan ahead before going so that you are prepared to transport your treasures home. Why? Because once you walk through the door, you’ll find all sorts of unique items for your art and DIY projects. 

At their recent grand opening event, I found doors, salvaged wood, unique pieces of trim, bicycle parts, metal, musical instruments, assorted furniture and furniture parts, garden tools, and a wide assortment of interesting doodads.  If you’re looking for artistic inspiration, visit the gallery space at the back of the store, currently showing art made by GLEAN artists. 

As I perused the shelves, I noticed people picking up and carrying off all sorts of things – and everyone had that look of excitement that comes from discovering something really cool that they can turn into something even cooler. I stopped in front of a shelf stacked with pieces of metal, and that’s when I saw it – a sheet of hardware cloth – all rusty and beautiful with an edge that looked like fringe. I had to have it. As a welder, I saw potential in the material. I picked it up, paid for it, and walked out of the store with that feeling of happiness that comes from knowing I am reusing something in a creative way. I’m hooked and can’t wait to go back!” 

Find the inspiration you need for creative reuse at ReClaim It! or any of these upcoming events sponsored by crackedpots: 

crackedpots art show at McMenamins Edgefield
Tuesday, July 22 and Wednesday, July 23, 2014

GLEAN art show at Disjecta
Opening reception on Friday, August 8, 2014, 6 – 9 p.m.
8371 N Interstate Ave. in Portland
Show runs through the month of August