upcycling in the windy city

My last weekend in Chicago was spent going to a craft fair and checking out various handmade things made from unwanted items - upcycling in effect. I must say that my first encounter with 'turning junk into funk' in a land of plenty was met with delighted surprise. Some of the creativity on display was rather cool for want of a better word. One stall in particular stood out for me.

Nancy Maize is a jewellery designer making creative pieces like necklaces, bracelets, rings and earrings using old watch gears and other items commonly termed as 'junk'. As they are hand-crafted all her pieces are one of a kind and quiet creative. She said that she started of making beaded jewellery for her son's project in school and has now graduated towards using bits of old watches, buckles, drawer handles etc to create artistic, wearable pieces. You can check out her website here.

Upcycling is not a new concept - it can be defined as creative recycling or value-added recycling. Every time you convert a piece of 'junk' into something of value, you are upcycling. At the fair I also met a woman who converted bottle caps into miniature portraits and magnets. Another used zippers to express her creativity by converting them into rosettes for hair-bands. She also used designs on old crockery and cut them out to convert into pendants.

With upcycling, the creative potential is limitless as you can convert, change, modify literally anything into something of value. There is lots of information out there on upcycling and how to convert something that is worn-down, worthless and old into something new and of use. It may even lead to new business ideas or attractive presents for family and friends.

Many of the women at the fair used their upcycled products as a means of additional income . As they always say, "one's man trash, is another man's treasure". I walked away from the fair with a fairly strong impulse to rummage through all my old stuff and get creative.

Photos: Akhila Vijayaraghavan ©
Image 1: Necklace made of old watch parts
Image 2: Headbands made of zippers

bio boxes

I think plastic and its derivatives are on its way out. It is fast becoming a redundant concept. We should stop hanging on to it and take a look around at what else is available, biodegradable and eco-friendly. The Eco Expo in Hong Kong was a real eye opener in terms of alternative packaging material. I've made a passing mention on these alternatives in my previous post. Some of these innovations have been around for awhile like bagasse take-away food boxes which are made out of sugar-cane waste after the juice for sugar manufacture is extracted. These are reusable to a degree, microwaveable and freezer safe and they bio degrade within 3 months. They can be molded into plates, glasses etc which are excellent for party-ware.

PSM material is another innovation that has a larger scale of use. It is a plastic substitute made from corn starch and can be used for disposable dinnerware, food containers, electronic packaging, toiletries, carrier bags, stationery etc. This material is water-proof, oil-proof, heat resistant. It bio degrades to water and Co2 and when incinerated produces non-toxic smoke and the residual ash can be used a fertilizer. The UK based smoothie company Innocent already used corn-starch bottles for their bottles. They are still working on alternative materials for their caps.

Rice husks are being molded into melamine-type crockery and cutlery by a company in Malaysia which are repeatedly reusable. microwave, dishwasher safe and when they reach the end of their life can be safely composted. This is an excellent idea of upcycling or turning waste material into useful products.

India also produces these recyclable material like bagasse boxes and plates, cups etc made out of areca nut leaves. Areca nut is the precursor of beetle nuts and the leaf sheath of the tree dries out naturally which is collected, dried and molded into desired shapes. The next time you have a party consider this option instead of paper or foil plates. Areca nut plates can be composted and they bio degrade easily. India has a rich natural tradition of using natural materials and it is a shame that we are now copying the west. Bring back the time when food used to be packed in a banana leaf and newspaper. Do away with plastic, when you can, where you can. Insist that your local take-away or favourite restaurant uses eco-friendly packaging material, or better yet take your own boxes with you when you order in.