Too Many Sweaters?

We are enjoying a bit of a January thaw in the North East, but we are sure to have another bitter snap before Winter is done with us. How about upcycling an old sweater into a new accessory for the final push to Spring?

What exactly is Upcycling? Wikipedia offers a concise definition: "Upcycling is the process of converting waste materials or useless products into new materials or products of better quality or a higher environmental value." The Upcycling movement is growing and it is easy to participate.

We've talked about it before in many of my blog entries. If you aren't so crafty or you just don't have the time, here are a couple of services that will do the work for you:

Got an old cashmere sweater and a friend with a new baby? Contact TeddyLux. This Georgia based company offers plush animals and toys from recycled cashmere. You can also order a custom plush from your own sweater. Prices are reasonable. Animals are $50-$60 each with toys on offer for $15. They accept donations as well and will reimburse you for postage.

ReKnit is another company that upcycles. Each month ReKnit converts your old sweaters into a new product. This month - scarves. Users get to vote on the next item. You send in your sweater and the yarn is unraveled and reknit into the item of the month. The reknitting fee is $30. That's quite a bargain.

Best of all, you can re-purpose that sweater and learn a new craft yourself. First, check this unravel tutorial from Neauveau. Then select an old sweater from your closet or acquire one from friends or a local thrift shop. Next check out these resources on learning to knit. Better yet, find a local knitting group. Knitting circles are everywhere - from bars to home parties it shouldn't be too hard to find one in your community. A local yarn store is a good place to start or find one at Stich 'n Bitch.org.

--till next week Restore, Recycle, Refresh & Renew

Ambitiously Green

Now I know you all recycle your magazines and catalogs, but on my trip to Hong Kong I ran into an artist doing it in a really unique way - she's knitting paper! That's right. Movana Chen's first project used fashion magazines and her current project uses books.

I have a long history of knitting many materials - wire, fishing line, trash bags, ribbon, etc. Since I had most recently tried to knit pre-consumer chip wrappers while working on a project with TerraCycle, I was enthralled by Movana's work. Interestingly, I used a similar process to Movana, but I never perfected it like she did.

My Process: 1) I fed the wrappers from their pre-use rolls through a shredder. This didn't work really well since the wrapper is rather thin and the shredder was powerful. I didn't get uniform shred. 2)I tried to melt the ends together with an iron - no go. I tried to find a proper adhesive - no go. I settled on a tried and true method of tying the ends together - worked but created knots and fringes. 3) Even loose tension made the wrapper tear.

Movana's Process: 1)Tape pages into long sheets. 2)Feed multiple sheets through the shredder. 3) Connect the ends with double stick tape. 4) Knit several layers of paper as one thread.

I have lots of magazines to try so I am going to see if I can give it a go. It is the perfect project for our next really Big Snow!

--till next week Restore, Recycle Refresh & Renew-- Happy Holidays

Sheep Chic

In honor of my trip to the waterfront vacation farm for Thanksgiving, I ask you to ponder my $64,000 question: "What to do with the family farm?"

•CSA (not enough acreage and too much maintenance to be profitable)
•Organic vineyard (we have yet to protect the grapes from birds or deer)
•Fig farm (see birds and deer)
•Persimmon farm (The fruit suffers from the deer/bird issue, but the wood maybe, however, there is not enough to create a profit center).

Animals - now that is where it's at. Did you know that the Eastern Shore in Maryland is home to more than a few Llama and Alpaca farms? Maryland is home to 12 Llama farms, 6 of which are located on the Eastern Shore. Add my knitting expertise and this opportunity just might have legs.

•Raise the Llamas and/or Alpacas (I'm good with animals)
•Harvest their wool(This would require some research and help)
•Create the yarns(I already have the family heirloom spinning wheel)
•Sell the yarns(I am definitely a Merchant) AND
•Products made from them(No problem, I have been knitting since I was 3)
•Don't forget the workshops(I've been teaching for over 20 years).

Thanks to Daily Candy and model Lily Cole's, The North Circular project, I even have the business plan with all the right built-in buzz - eco-friendly, animal-friendly and charitable. Saving sheep, employing (mostly) knitting grannies and supporting charities through the Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF). A little modification could make for an interesting retirement plan.

--till next week Restore, Recycle, Refresh & Renew