Repurposed and Upcycled

I've been thinking about something lately and thought I'd share it with you. My aim is to be real, and by that I do not want to throw around new hot words without making sure I am using them correctly. I do not do what I do because green is in. I do it because it is the right thing to do. Anyway.... on with my thoughts... repurposed, upcycled...what do these terms really mean?

According to Merriam-Webster the definition of repurposed is " to give a new purpose or use to."

So we have repurpose. What about upcycle? I had to go to wikipedia for that one. Here it is:

""Upcycling" is the process of converting waste materials or useless products into new materials or products of equal or better quality. The term was originally coined by William McDonough and Michael Braungart in their book Cradle to Cradle: Remaking the Way We Make Things. The goal of upcycling is to prevent wasting potentially useful materials by making use of existing ones. This reduces the consumption of new raw materials when creating new products. Reducing the use of new raw materials can result in a reduction of energy usage, air pollution, water pollution and even greenhouse gas emissions."

OK, so they're not that different. When I take an old discarded bed sheet and make it into a reusable sandwich baggie I am giving it a new purpose. I am also making something out of it that is a better quality and more useful than it's original state. Way cooler than just throwing something in the recycling bin after you are finished with it. My aim is to do this more and more...think before recycling and find at least one more use for it before it gets recycled. Ahh, less waste, less energy, less carbon emitted....less.

So, why am I thinking about all of this? I'm starting to plan for my January craftiness. I have some beautiful vintage sheets and pillowcases. Not sure of their final destination, I begin thinking about how many ways they have been useful over the years... and how happy I was to find them and give them new life.

I LOVE shopping for new fabric. There's just something so relaxing about walking thru my favorite huge non-big box fabric store and seeing all of the bolts of potential. But I am learning to think differently about crafting and these 2 buzz words come to mind. Repurposed and upcycled. I'm learning to change my thinking and see the same potential when on a thrift store date with my daughter or when walking thru a rummage sale.

These words also remind me of one of my favorite movies of all time, The Sound of Music. Remember the curtains? No, no worries, I will not start dressing my kids in matchy-matchy outfits. But I do have a beautiful pillowcase that is whispering to me to gain new life as a skirt for my daughter...

I also have a really pretty pink flowery vintage flat sheet. What should I do with it? Want to see more upcycled sandwich/snack baggies? Would you like to see bulk bags made from them? What about lunchbox napkins or hankies? Let me know. Maybe I'll make them and you can be the first person to call them your own!

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Just so you know, my last sale is over. But my lunchbox napkins are still listed at a reduced price. Be sure to become a FaceBook fan to be the first to know of sales and specials!