Can you hear me now?

 

I was hoping Blogger would be kind to me today, but that doesn't seem to be the case.  I will leave you a comment when Blogger sees fit. Until then, I still get "Failed to Publish."  Please understand, this is NOT my doing.

Thank you for visiting today.  This is a special day, as it is for the Earth.  It's also a culmination, where for 22 days beginning April 1, I attempted to show how to rethink, reduce, reuse, recycle, re-invent, recover, restore, or repurpose something in order to save it from the trash. It all led up to Earth Day, or "bEARTHday" in my world.  Of course, I believe EVERY day should be Earth Day, because we must find a way to save our planet. 

 

As an aside, there is more to think about than just trash.  There are endangered species to consider.  Do any of you remember when the California condor was on the extreme endangered list?  It became extinct in the wild in 1987.  In 1982, only 23 condors survived world-wide. By 1987, all remaining wild condors were placed into a captive breeding program in an effort to save the species from extinction.  According to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service:

Since 1992, when the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) began reintroducing captive-bred condors to the wild, the USFWS and its public and private partners have grown the total free-flying and captive population to more than 500 condors In 2004, the Recovery program reached an important milestone with the first successful chick hatched in the wild. In 2008, more California condors were flying free in the wild than in captivity for the first time since the program began.   

Now it's time to help endangered porpoises. With fewer than 10 individuals believed to remain in the wild, the vaquita is one of the most critically endangered marine animals.  It is also known as the Gulf of California harbor porpoise, or cochito.  According to NOAA Fisheries:

Vaquitas have the smallest range of any whale, dolphin, or porpoise.  They only live in the northern part of the Gulf of California, an area that is rich in fish and shrimp.  Fishing is thus a major source of income for the people there, who almost exclusively use gillnets, but vaquitas can also become accidentally wrapped in the nets and drown.  Scientists agree that for vaquitas to survive in the wild, "gillnet" fishing, also known as Fishing Net Entanglements, must end within the vaquita habitat.

Perhaps we need legislation that actually works to save these endangered porpoises. 

As those of you who have been here all 22 days know, I have brought back a favorite post from the past from April 2015, 2016, and 2017.  Today is no different.  I am sharing part of a favorite post from April, 2017.  As you read from the title of today's post it is called  

Can you hear me now? 

 

For today's recycling entry

I started with a book cover given me by my friend Sally.

I added some gold infused tissue paper

I saved from a gift.

I used white PVA glue to adhere the tissue paper to the book cover.

While the glue was drying, I decided to create a new universal hole locator.  I began with a pad of post-it-notes and a steel ruler.

I measured down 2 mm from the top of the pad on two sides and drew lines.

I used those two lines as guides to create a single line across the width of the page.

I measured 2.5 mm from the left and right sides

and drew two perpendicular lines to meet the horizontal line.


I drew a small circle at the intersections of each line,

then wrote the words "left" and "right."  That was for your benefit, not mine.

The idea is, no matter what width

you are measuring, the hole locater will work perfectly by lining it up with either the left or right side of the piece.

Here is my completed assemblage with holes punched, but minus wires.

I'm really happy about the completed assemblage.

I'm including a few random shots for your enjoyment.

I need to adhere the "Hear Hear" a bit better, I see.  As an aside, it is left over from the deli paper I used a couple of days ago.

For this assemblage, I started with a book cover and some used tissue paper.  I deconstructed an old cordless phone and used the "motherboard" as the main assembly.  I added the speaker from the same phone, along with some beads and baubles I either assembled, or used to add interest to this assemblage.   For the hanger, I used a colorful deconstructed telephone wire.  I used a stencil to write all the words on the scrap deli paper.  Everything except the PVA glue has been recycled or repurposed today.

Thank you beyond belief for your continued support of my recycling efforts through the past 22 days.   And please have a glorious Earth Day everyone.  BTW, I won't be eating cake today.   Instead, I'm having a glazed doughnut.
 

 

T Stands For Coasters

 

At 3:52 p.m my time today, one comment was published.  I was overjoyed.  However, that joy was quickly dashed when, after publishing this post, I couldn't get another comment in the queue to publish.  When I tried to reinstall Firefox, I got the message that Firefox is up to date, and it wouldn't let me reinstall it.  I am once again sorry, but I seem to STILL be unable to publish my comments.

Welcome to another edition of T Stands For Tuesday.

Now it's time to recycle some felt.

I have several pieces of felt that were left over from previous projects.  Some of the pieces are quite small.

Using various objects to draw circles around, I cut five circles.

I cut two of the largest circle because the black circle is the one that will sit on a table.

I stacked the circles on top of each other and tried to match the center lines as equally as possible.

Did you think I would miss an opportunity to create something with my wonky sewing?  I began in the center and worked my way around the smallest circle.

Then I worked my way outward.

I used different variegated thread on the two sides.

It was time to see if this prototype design would work from a functional standpoint.

It seems to work fine with a cup

and a mug, too.  This is day 18 of 22 leading up to bEARTHday and I recycled bits and pieces of felt left over from other projects.

Now it's your turn.  The rules are extremely simple.  Your drink related post may be anything from a photo of a glass, cup, or mug, to an actual drink.  You may choose to share a sketch or a digital, hybrid, or traditional page in your scrapbook, art journal, or altered book.  Maybe you'd prefer to share a tag, or wow us with your photography.  You might choose a postcard or decorated card.  Or perhaps you prefer to review a place you visited, a movie, or book.  It makes no difference as long as it's drink related.  And don't forget that the more unique and outside the box it is, the better we like it.  Please tie it back here, and please link only to your T post, not your entire blog.  When you link, Bleubeard, the T gang, and I will be by to visit.   Bleubeard would also like to remind you that your photos may be taken any time, even months ago, if you choose.

 

This post was originally published in April, 2017.  For 2026, this is Day 21 of 22 leading up to bEARTHday.  Thank you for visiting today.  Your continued support has kept me going and I am extremely grateful.  Bleubeard is, too.

 

 

Laminate Chips

 

Those of you who have been here since late Wednesday, recognize I haven't left you a comment.  PLEASE don't blame me.  It's a Blogger problem.  I even reinstalled Firefox, but that doesn't seem to help this time.  I am so sorry.  I hopee to soon be able to publish the comments that are waiting on Blogger to treat me with respect.

This post is from April, 2016, but the magnets were made one year for Christmas and again in September, 2008. 

Laminate Chips 

I have a vast array of laminate chips that are commonly used in counter top home improvement projects.  There are several brands, but the most famous are Formica, Pionite, and WilsonArt.  You used to be able to get them at big box home improvement stores in the US, or you can order a few online.

Here are a few I turned into magnets for Christmas one year

and a few more I made in September, 2008.  I'd say I've learned a lot about composition since then. 

Aren't we all glad I got rid of this horrible camera?  I displayed these on my refrigerator. 

Today is Day 18 of 22 and I shared a post about laminate chip assemblage I made over a couple of years. 

 

Using Sharpies to make bakers twine

 

"Failed to Publish" is back.  One minute I could leave comments, the next I couldn't.  It started late Wednesday and Blogger continues to reject my comments.  My sincere apologies.

I have to admit that up until this post, everything I've created in the past has been something someone else did before me.  Even the assemblages are not new concepts.  Only the materials are different.  Today, however, I can truthfully say, I am sure this is my own creation.  This is actually a Second Thursday Tutorial and I posted it on April 14, 2016.  Here it is in its entirety.

Using Sharpies to make bakers twine

It's the second Thursday in April, and time for a post dedicated to a tutorial.   It's also Day 14 of 22 days of recycling, repurposing, or rethinking a project.

My supplies are:

Sharpies, because I already had them
Index cards I found while going through a drawer in my office
Embroidery thread that was given to me

I knew I would never use the thread under normal circumstances, so instead of letting it go to waste in my craft room, I decided to put it to good use.  Since I had already purchased and paid for the Sharpies several years ago, I thought it was time I put them to good use again.  After all, craft supplies that "go bad" are a waste of money, and that always makes me sad.

The first thing I did was cut two slits at opposite ends of the index cards. I then wound the thread around the cards.  This took forever, but it was worth it.

I took one Sharpie and drew lines along the length of the wrapped thread, as shown above.  I turned the card over and repeated the process.

The next color I used was red.

I did the same with orange, drawing vertical lines on both sides of the card.

Next came green, but I don't think you need to be reminded again.  After all, it's very tedious, yet boring work.  I found that if I held onto the thread as I was drawing a line, I got a better line.  If I didn't, the line seemed to meander off course.

Although I had a few colors I didn't use, I was out of index cards and didn't want to cut old file folders and wrap more thread.  I had already spent nearly five hours doing this.  Like I said, tedious and boring.

After I finished the lines, I was mortified to think the ink had bled through to the back.   Upon closer inspection, I realized

I was looking at ink from the opposite side.  Although it had bled through the index card, it didn't affect the thread on the opposite side of the card.  The good news was, the Sharpies penetrated both sides of the thread, so no matter which way the twine was twisted, the color would still be the same.  

Now this tutorial has gone live you will find it on my Tutorials page under Making bakers twine using Sharpies.

For Day 14 of 22, I repurposed some embroidery thread I will never use for its intended purpose, and turned it into bakers twine, a product I have found to be either inexpensive and inferior in quality, or rather expensive but made with quality twine.

Thank you for your visit and if you decide to make some bakers twine from my tutorial, please let me know and I will feature it and you on my blog

.

New Wind Chimes From Old

 

"Failed to Publish" is back.  One minute I could leave comments, the next I couldn't.  It started Friday and I STILL can't publish the comments I left then.  You will hear from me soon, I hope. 

Today I have brought back a post from April 12, 2015.  It seems to have been a favorite by many commenters.  It is appropriately titled:

New Wind Chimes From Old 

I have these wind chimes that had fallen completely apart.  I wish I had taken a photo of them hanging on my front porch, but I forgot until I had them down with the help of a step stool and into the basement.

This is all that is left from these wind chimes I purchased a few years ago.  Most of my wind chimes last a bit longer than these have, so I wanted to make sure I repaired them so they would last.

I have lots of old (but not vintage) silverware that I've either been given, or picked up for pennies at the thrift store.  I think at one time, spoons were going for 5 cents each ($0.05 USD).  Now I'm sure they are much higher in price, but at the time, I had considered making jewelry or some such nonsense that was beyond the scope of my grip abilities.

Nothing matched, and that was what I was going for.  Even though I've seen lovely art made from spoons and forks, if I couldn't make jewelry or other adorable recycled art, I needed to find a way to use these.  Somehow, I've collected a HUGE amount of these pieces and it was time to put them to good use.

It was time to deconstruct what was left of the original wind chimes.

As I removed the strings from the base, I noticed they were held together by metal bands.  I also noticed the eye bolt on the back of the base, which I assume was for the clanger.

I cannot tell a lie.  It took two days for me to get to this point.

I sorted and constructed a lot of beads during that time.  Then I wrapped the wires around the silverware.  No drilling, no punching, just a lot of wire wrapping.  And not anything especially good enough to write home about, either.  But these were for me, and they didn't have to be perfect.  They just had to be artsy.  The observant person will note that all three spoons have beginning and ending gold beads that are made from tyvek and embossing powder.  I made 100 of them for a swap one year.

When I strung the wax thread, I started doing it wrong.  I got a bit frustrated because I had already assembled one when I realized my error.  You have no idea how much I dislike rework!

Finally, I was back on track, and was able to assemble the unit correctly.  As I took the wind chimes upstairs, I realized the spoon I was calling the clanger, was too long.  So I shortened it, and now

I have some lovely artsy wind chimes I can be proud of.

Not only did I make them myself, for Day 12 13 of 22, I reused the "Welcome" base and recycled seven pieces of old silverware and a ton of beads, including six I made from used tyvek and embossing powder. 

Thanks again for your continued support of my projects.  It's difficult to recycle items and make them not look like some six year old made them.  But I'm trying and I appreciate all your comments that continue to push me through these days leading up to bEARTHday.