Dear readers,

We have featured many repurposed projects on here, but I always get a bit more excited when we have a local friend of Goodwill contributing their creative spark.

Julie Bailey, a member of Etsy (she also sells crafts on artfire), creates pillows, toys, purses, and bags with fabric and other items found at Goodwill (usually the store in Windham).

She recently made a plush owl out of an old scarf that is pretty adorable (and owls are so IN right now!), so I asked her to share some simple instructions on how you can make your own.

If you have repurposed projects you would like to feature, please leave a comment – we would love to feature your creations!

Simple Instructions for Making  Plush Owl:

Step 1: Find a scarf or other piece of fabric that you like.  The fabric should be woven material like wool or acrylic; not knit!

Step 2: Fold the scarf or fabric in half lengthwise, sew up the sides, then cut it in half across.

Step 3: Sew the one short edge (the top) and turn it “right side out” (there is actually was no “wrong side”).

Step 4: Stuff it until you think it is full enough and handstitch the bottom closed.

Step 5: For the face, I just rummaged through my fabric scraps, found suitable pieces and cut them into circles and triangles.  I usually baste them on with a bit of fabric glue and then hand sew them on – this is much easier to do when the form is stuffed and gives you a much better idea of placement for eyes, etc.

Bonus! My scarf yielded a second half with the fringe from both original ends now all at one end..I decide the fringe would be a great topper to the head of another plushie.  So I just sewed up the plain end-making it the bottom.  I turned it out so the seams were inside and proceeded as before!  The fringed top is a little trickier to sew up,but not too difficult.

Sewing Tip: I find a good bottom is easy to do by making little triangles of the corners,folding them over the long seam and hand stitching them down.  It’s a bit like making a french seam on a bag!

Our blog likes to occasionally feature local Etsy artists that reuse and repurpose materials. Today we are showcasing Silver Pair Designs, a member of the Maine Etsy Team.

Silver Pear Designs is a mother-daughter team that creates beautiful jewelry, wallets, and bags. I find their jewelry to be simple, elegant, and pretty affordable. They create their bags and wallets with discarded fabric scraps. Best of all, they donate a portion of their proceeds to Goodwill’s Brain Injury programs.

Please find some of their creations below:

Graduated Swirls Sterling Silver Necklace

Golden Heart Earrings

Green Upcycled Bag

What materials do you use when repurposing items into new objects? Would you like to featured on Goodwill’s blog? Let us know!

I am excited to feature Etsy member, SuzeesJubileeZ, in today’s post. She is a member of the Maine Etsy Team and creates hats, mittens, and other felted gifts out of sweaters donated to Goodwill! She was kind enough to share some pictures and simple directions on how you can make your own pair of mitts (wrist warmers) at home.

From Susan:

Here is a hat that I made from a sweater.

I made this little pouch from an upper sleeve of a sweater.

Here are some larger bags made from the bodies of sweaters.

Here is a cute little bag made from a sweater vest!

The mitts are gone at this time but I do have some waiting to be made. Lately I have been working on needlefelted ornaments.

Here is a pair that I sold:

How to Make Your Own Mitts!

Mitts are very easy to make . First I wash the sweater in very hot water. It has to be 100 percent wool (dry clean only) and some “wool” sweaters made abroad don’t seem to work (it is unclear why). Figure out how long you want them to be and cut the sleeve right before the elbow ( after the first wash). You want the original sleeve cuff to ride the hand around the first knuckle of your index finger so measure the distance between that and your thumbjoint and cut a hole big enough for your thumb to go through. Make sure to blanket stitch this cut and the end of the cuff ( I generally stitch with 100% non washable wool yarn). I also add beads sometimes and tassles near the elbow.

Embellish as you wish but some sort of finishing stitch with wool is a must at the thumb hole and near the elbow.

The holiday season is officially upon us. I have found and received many great inexpensive and green gift ideas for the holidays. Following is a round up everyone’s suggestions:

1. Handmade Children’s Toys: I know I suggested checking out etsy in the last post, but I really liked this Rainbow Bunting Set that Queen City Craft highlighted in a recent post. It is a great gift for young children and made locally! Green Mountain Wee Woolies also has plenty of other handmade creations.

2. CD Covers: Roxy Jewelry had a great post about recycled CD/DVD covers made from old Magic Eye books. As she suggests, what a great idea to make a music mix and wrap it up in something special–this is an easy, thoughtful, and inexpensive gift anyone would appreciate. Though she has run out of this design, she has Grand Canyon covers available and it is also easy to make your own!

3. Cookie Molds: Do you have friends or family members who love to bake? Check out Brown Bag Designs. For the second year in a row, they have created a cookie mold whose sale benefits a different non-profit. This year they chose Heifer International and created a beautiful “Heifer and Friends” cookie mold. They cost $19.95 with $12 of the sale going directly to Heifer International.

4. Books: For all of you book-lovers and friend of book-lovers, how about putting together a collection of used and vintage titles? A post on Thrifty Chicks has inspired me to put together a collection of children’s books for my nephew. Whether you have a friend or family member who loves classics, mysteries, romance, or history, browsing through Goodwill and other second-hand stores is sure to be successful.

5. Candles: How about homemade candles? Check out this post about how to make candles in your crockpot!

6. Lip Balm: Don’t let your friends’ lips get chapped! Lip balm is fun and easy to make. Try this simple recipe at Green Bee or check out this post if you would like to make a bunch at once.

7. Food: Who doesn’t like to eat? How about putting together a basket of local foods from Maine, New Hampshire, or Vermont? You are sure to find these products at your local grocery stores or specialty shops. Maple syrup, oatmeal, ployes, granola…there is lots of great local food that would make for excellent presents.

Final Thoughts…

Not to drag down all this holiday cheer, but the holiday can produce lots of waste: wrapping paper, ribbons, bows, bags…you get the picture. I read a great post on the Lean Green Family about some easy steps you can take to reduce holiday waste.

Finally, this is the time of year for giving. If you’re not sure what to buy someone, rather than get them stuff you they may not want or need, consider making a donation to an organization they care about in their name. This is a gift anyone will appreciate. Read more about giving on the Lean Green Family’s “Spend Less, Give More” post.

Please stay tuned for more posts this month about affordable holiday options, including some great finds at Goodwill stores!