GARTH JOHNSON Joins the Uncollection:
Using Unconsumption’s Mr. Cart Logo on Dinnerware!
In the latest stunning addition to our Uncollection — creative folks using our logo to breathe new life into old stuff — the amazing Garth Johnson has blown us away by converting some secondhand art-deco plates into genuine Mr. Cart tableware. Really fantastic! Here Mr. Johnson, whose work you may (should!) know from his invaluable Extreme Craft site, explains how he uses a vinyl cutter to “rescue thrift-store dinnerware”:
Let’s hear it for scrapbooking. If I hear one more hipster studio artist or crafter hold up scrapbooking as the “opposite” of what they’re doing, I’m going to lose my shit. Yes, scrapbooking is a multi-bazillion dollar industry, with entire aisles in Michael’s devoted to stocking Martha Stewart’s gear. As anybody who has haunted those aisles can tell you, scrapbooking has some cringe-worthy aesthetic elements, but what craft doesn’t?
Consider scrapbooking at its most basic—it takes old photographs and recycled ephemera and transforms them into mementos that actually see some use rather than sitting in boxes in an attic somewhere. I have come to view scrapbookers as a pretty badass group of people. Part of this badassery comes from the way they combine different media and experiment with processes from die-cutting and embossing to custom rubber stamp etching.
The main reason that scrapbookers are so badass is their actual gear. Scrapbooking is enjoying a major resurgence right now, so they have the economic clout to introduce hobby versions of tools that have traditionally remained in the realm of industry or technology. My favorite example is the vinyl cutter, which has been a staple of the sign industry for a couple of decades. Thanks to legions of rabid scrapbookers, machines like the Cricut and Silhouette Craft Cutter are now affordable… and are just waiting to be hacked for your non-scrapbooking activity.
If you’re not familiar with vinyl cutters, they’re fairly easy to explain. They cut sheets of adhesive sticker material using a tiny blade. You know the little Calvin peeing stickers people put on the back of their pickup trucks? Those were cut out using a vinyl cutter.
The great thing about vinyl cutters is that you’re not limited to cutting out vinyl. Most will cut paper. Some will even cut thicker materials like wood veneer. If you can create a vector design on a computer, you can feed that design into a vinyl cutter to make stickers, stencils or any number of crazy craft projects.
I love to use my vinyl cutter to rescue thrift store dinnerware and give it new life. I’ve been looking for a good use for a set of four Art Deco-inspired porcelain plates that have been sitting on my shelf for a while, and a contribution to the Uncollection seems perfect. I decided to use my cutter to make a permanent gold Mr. Cart logo in the middle of the plates.
This project is a little bit tricky, but if you have access to a vinyl cutter and a ceramic kiln, you’re home free. Here’s what you need:
AND THE WINNER IS…
Last week we announced that the latest addition to the Uncollection — the rebranded lemon-keeper above — would be given by creator Rubi McGrory (in connection with her Object Permanence project) to whoever could come up with the most creative reuse idea for the thing.
Rubi reports:
Thanks to everyone for such great suggestions of the most creative re-use for a lemon keeper.
Perhaps I have allowed myself to become a wee bit influenced by the latest episode of Project Runway, where the challenge was to create an outfit from items available at a pet store. There was no room for ho-hum, with the goal to push each material’s use far beyond its original intent. (I firmly believe the birdseed dress should have won.)
It was with a similar spirit of creativity in which this contest was offered. I have combed through the responses and have no choice but to award the prize to Ellonyia, who will turn the lemon keeper into a bike crash helmet for her Boston Terrier. She has promised photos. Lemon keeper goes in the mail today because we can’t wait to see the final product.
Suffice it to say we too would be very interested in seeing those photos.
Thanks, Rubi, and congrats to Ellonyia!
FIRST EVER UNCOLLECTION GIVEAWAY!
Another addition to our Uncollection, so soon? In fact, yes. And this one is unusual (although I guess they’re all unusual).
Friend of Unconsumption Rubi McGrory recently launched an un-consuming project of her own, called Object Permanence. More below, but the upshot is that she’s getting rid of a bunch of things in a bunch of creative ways — including the object you see above. (A “lemon keeper.” It’s plastic.) In this instance, she’s giving the object as a prize, to whoever can offer the best answer to this question:
What is the best possible re-use for this object?
Head over to Rubi’s site to offer your response (and, really, to read the entertaining responses so far). The object you see … could be yours!
And yes, to make that prospect even more appealing, as you can see, she has hand-painted none other Mr. (or Ms.) Cart, the famous Unconsumption logo, onto the object.
Here’s a bit more from Rubi about Object Permanence:
I am an accumulator. I don’t know if it is genetic (I come from hoarder stock) or that I am overly sentimental. I find myself surrounded by an odd array of objects: an undergrad color theory project circa 1989, a mojo-less rubber chicken, two identical spiral hole punches, 7 pair of crappy sunglasses, all these stripey beach towels — in addition to the things I use, cherish, or actively collect (respectively: sparkly embroidery floss, bobble headed Buddha and postcards, among many others).
In an attempt to free myself of the bonds of this stuff, I am examining what each piece means to me before breaking up with it. Without fail, there is a memory imbedded in the object, either of its giver, where it is from, my history with it, my possible future with it, or a simple association with something else entirely. By extracting this meaning through writing about it, then photographing the object, I no longer feel chained to its ownership. I release the object to go forward in another life, to create new memories through upcycling, donation, sale, or gifting.
Check out the Object Permanence project-in-progress at the86list.tumblr.com for more. And enjoy more of Rubi’s work — she’s a talented crafter, artist, and writer — at www.rubistudios.com.
And don’t forget to weigh with your object-reuse idea, for a chance to win the world’s first and (so far) only Unconsumption-logoed plastic lemon keeper!
Betsy Greer X Mr. Cart: Our logo in stitches
Yes, we have yet another very pleasing and exciting new addition to our Uncollection!
The latest contributor to our Artist Series is none other than Betsy Greer, now the proud owner of a Mr. Cart-stitched shirt, thanks to, well, to her own effort. Betsy has been exploring the idea of Craftivism for a while now, both thinking about and acting upon the intersection of craft and activism. Among other things, she’s the author of the very thoughtful and useful Knitting For Good! For a more recent project, see her anti-war graffiti cross-stitch. “I want to open dialogue,” she summarizes, “instead of closing it down.”
Up next for her: With Sally Fort and Inga Hamilton, she’s working on QR-3D, which “invites anyone, anywhere, to create a textile QR code and share it on a Flickr pool; works will be selected to be shown at Cornerhouse, Manchester, in autumn.” (Learn more about Betsy and her work here. She also blogs, and tweets.)
Bottom line: We’re really psyched she agreed to be a part of our efforts to make Mr. (or Ms.) Cart an emblem of creative reuse.
Here’s what she did… (and as always, those of you who follow through on this how-to, or any in our series, or who do anything cool with Mr. Cart, we welcome pix on our Facebook page).
Betsy explains:
I used Cat Mazza’s KnitPro program to transfer the Mr. Cart image to a graph (above; click here for a PDF). Then I stitched Mr. Cart directly onto a t-shirt using Rayna Fahey’s tutorial on how to add cross stitch to fabric.
If I had to do it over again, I’d probably use 3 strands of embroidery floss instead of 2, as when I stripped away the aida cloth the stitches weren’t quite as crisp as I was hoping. But I still really love the result!
We love the result, too.
But those of you who are paying attention will have noticed that our logo appears inverted on the resulting shirt! Why would that be? To look better during handstands? Or so that the wearer can enjoy Mr. Cart’s traditional smile by glancing down at her (or his) shirt?
Neither. Once more, Betsy explains. You’ll like this:
To me, our job as writers/makers/crafters/creatives is to open dialogue. And, of course, as we’re all different, we all have our different methods of doing so. My approach (not that it’s unique; in fact it’s the bedrock of many of us involved with cultural production and/or critique) is all about putting forth something that looks familiar at first glance, but at second (or third) isn’t that at all. I like the way that approach allows readers/observers to come to their own conclusions and — more importantly — develop their own response, based on their own comfort level, either by asking questions then, dismissing (or misinterpreting) the work entirely or by letting the work unfold in their mind later. As creatives, we are both permission givers and dialogue openers, so I like involving the reader/viewer directly in my work.
When I was trying to get a photo of the shirt, I took it to work and had a co-worker snap one. While we were doing so, another co-worker came into the room and saw the logo and smiled and said something like, “Cute! A little shopping cart!” and then paused and added somewhat confused, “it’s frowning.” My response was something to the effect of: “It’s based on consumerism and consumption being too ubiquitous.” More pausing, followed by a smile and a thumbs up. And that open space for her to get my meaning in a non-judgmental, non-confrontational way pretty much sums up exactly how I would wish all my work to be received.
Cool answer! Of course, you can orient the logo however you like — sideways, even.
Big thanks to Betsy Greer for being part of the Uncollection. What are you waiting for? Join in!
We’re very, very psyched about the latest addition to The Uncollection by way of our Unconsumption Artist Series, in which some of the brightest creative-DIY lights around make use of our logo in super-cool reuse projects.
This time around we’re lucky to have Christine Schmidt, of Yellow Owl Workshop, and author of the recent book Print Workshop: Hand-Printing Techniques + Truly Original Projects. She made the delightful video above.
Create your own stationery and envelopes with discarded paper. Created for Unconsumption by Christine Schmidt of Yellow Owl Workshop. Download Template here. For more fun projects pick up the new book: “Print Workshop: Hand-Printing Techniques +Truly Original Projects”
Junk Mail Stationery (by Yellow Owl Workshop), features music by Still Flyin’.
As Christine notes, the Uncon logo could be used in any number of the projects she’s created & collected:
The book is full of creative re-use projects, and this one is just the beginning. Use the Unconsumption logo to adorn old bottles with image transfers made with packing tape. Carve your own Unconsumption logo stamp that you can use on almost anything, or embroider your own consumption logo polo shirt that is far cooler than the original preppy horseman.
But this one really is particularly cool. I love the way she’s interpreted our famous Mr. (Ms?) Cart logo! (See below.) I also love that the project involves doing something useful with file-folders, of which I personally have a surfeit. (If you missed the link to the downloadable PDF template for the project, it’s here.)
Check it out and please help us spread the word!
Thanks so much Christine!!
Diane Gilleland x Mr. Cart: Reviving old T-shirts with fabric patches
We’re proud and excited to bring you the newest contribution to The Uncollection. (That’s Unconsumption’s do-it-yourself “ultimate lifestyle brand: all lifestyle, no products for sale” — any old item, object, thing, stuff, that gets a new life by way of anybody who wants to incorporate our logo into or onto it. You are encouraged to add your own stuff to The Uncollection, and post the results on our Facebook page.)
The second contributor to our artist series (following Tiffany Threadgould) is the fantastic Diane Gilleland: the Editor-in-Chief of CRAFT, she also publishes CraftyPod, a blog and podcast about making stuff. And as you’ll see, she’s pretty handy with the actual crafting, too.
Here she explains what she did, and how:
Old T-shirts seem to have a way of proliferating — most of us have a drawer (or back of the closet) full of them somewhere, and they show up at thrift stores regularly. So for my contribution to The Uncollection, I thought I’d make use of this ubiquitous raw material. I thought it might be fun to add contrasting fabric patches, making it clear that graphics are being deliberately covered up. And then I stenciled Mr. Cart over the patches.
Here’s one tee (above) before I started. I measured the screen printed area, and cut a big patch from another old shirt to cover it. I cut this patch about 1” larger on all sides than the graphic area.
To adhere the patch to a T-shirt, you can use one of two methods. For a small patch like the one above, on a different tee, I fused it to the shirt with fusible webbing. You can find this wonder-stuff in most fabric stores. Steam-a-Seam and Heat-n-Bond are good brand names to try. Just bust out your iron and follow the package directions to do the fusing.
Or, for a larger patch like the one I added to the orange shirt, you may want to sew it down. I just folded under ¾” on all four edges of the patch, pinned it to the shirt, and sewed around all four edges with my sewing machine.
Next, I printed Mr. Cart at the size I wanted him to appear on the shirt. I taped some freezer paper (shiny side down) to a cutting surface. and then taped the print-out on top of that. I carefully cut all the outlines with a craft knife.
Tiffany Threadgould: Shrinky-dinked Mr. (or is it Ms.?) Cart Earrings!
On Monday we announced we’d be sharing the things that Tiffany Threadgould, author of the (awesome!) new book ReMake It! Recycling Projects From The Stuff You Usually Scrap, made, incorporating the Unconsumption logo.
Above (and below, actually) is the finale in this series of three: A pair of earrings made with recycled plastic! Tiffany explains:
To remake your very own recycled plastic shrink jewelry, you’ll need #6 plastic (found on most deli lids and clear plastic takeout containers), scissors, hole punch, permanent markers, aluminum foil, an oven, an oven mitt or tongs, and jewelry findings.
Use your markers to draw your own designs — like Mr. (and/or Ms.) Cart — onto the plastic. The plastic will shrink over 50%, so keep that in mind as you’re creating. Since the plastic is clear, it’s easy to place an image under the plastic and trace. Cut out your shapes. Use a standard 1/4” hole punch to punch a hole in near the top of your piece.
Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Place your plastic piece on top of a folded piece of aluminum foil. Aluminum foil may be hard to grab once hot, so be careful as you remove it. Keep an eye on your plastic. It usually only takes about 30 seconds to cook. Carefully take out your plastic piece and add your jewelry findings. Your new shrink jewelry will have big style.
Happy ReMaking!
For more inspirational yet practical remaker projects — 95 of ‘em in all, involving all manner of materials — check out ReMake It! Recycling Projects From The Stuff You Usually Scrap.
The Unconsumption team thanks Tiffany for this incredible work!!
And if you’re inspired to create your own reuses of our logo, post a picture on our Facebook wall. Maybe we’ll feature it here on the flagship blog! Help build the Uncollection!
Tiffany Threadgould: Turning glass bottles into lovely vases
Earlier today we announced we’d be sharing the things that Tiffany Threadgould, author of the (awesome!) new book ReMake It! Recycling Projects From The Stuff You Usually Scrap, made, incorporating the Unconsumption logo.
Here’s the first one: A pair of glass bottles remade into lovely vases after having been etched with glass etching cream. The brown glass is an empty container of vanilla, and the clear one (with tulips) was a bottle of kombucha.
Tiffany says:
To make your own glass etched project of Mr. Cart or your own design, you’ll need a glass jar, electrical tape or vinyl sticker paper, scissors or a craft knife, glass etching cream like Etchall, and a paintbrush.
Create your design on your glass with the vinyl tape. Any area that is masked off with the tape will not be etched, so keep the positive and negative space in mind as you’re creating your design. Once your design is taped on, follow the directions on the etching cream for application.
Most etching creams take about 15 minutes to set. Once the cream is set, wash it off and you have a new-to-you glass jar with your own personalized design.
It’s clearly a great way to remake old glass jars into personalized creations.
Happy ReMaking!
For complete instructions, see Project Number 88 in ReMake It! Recycling Projects From The Stuff You Usually Scrap.
And if you’re inspired to create your own reuses of our logo, post a picture on our Facebook wall. Maybe we’ll feature it here on the flagship blog! Help build the Uncollection!
This week: Tiffany Threadgould repurposes our logo!
We could not be more thrilled to announce the special team-up that we’ll be sharing with you this week! Tiffany Threadgould, of the heroic RePlayGround, will be unveiling some amazing Unconsumption-inspired creations on this site over the next few days, in conjunction with her new book (more on that below).
When we introduced our logo a while back, it may not have been particularly clear what function a logo for a project like Unconsumption would serve, since it’s not like we’re going to start selling branded merch! But the idea came up that we could simply make the logo “available” for anybody who wants to use it on things they already own. The concept in a nutshell: Take an old T-shirt you don’t really wear anymore, print our logo on it — and it becomes, on some level, a brand new T-shirt!
The result would be The Uncollection, the first-ever line of products consisting of stuff people already owned. It’s the ultimate lifestyle brand: All lifestyle, no merch!
Which brings us to Tiffany Threadgould…
When we got wind of her book ReMake It! Recycling Projects From The Stuff You Usually Scrap, we sensed an opportunity: Maybe we could convince Tiffany to make use of our logo in one or two of the excellent how-to projects in her book.
And she said yes!
So we’ll unveil her creations, and share more about her and her book, over the next few days — starting this afternoon. For now, rush over to RePlayGround for more about ReMake It! and all the other stuff she does. (And you can read this Consumed column about her work, too.)
Stay tuned for more Uncollection surprises — and if you get inspired to make (re)use of our logo, we’d love it if you shared pictures of the results with us on our Facebook page.
