Recycled Art Beginnings

My interest in making something new out of something old is not a new one.
When I was little, I didn't have many coloring books, and I didn't usually ask for them.  Instead, I had a seemingly endless supply of Ladies' Home Journals.  My Grandma Jacobs had a subscription to the magazine for years.  I was between the ages of five and ten, 1983-1988, and some of the magazines were from the 70s.  I have many memories of sitting for hours at a time, reading the articles (you learn some fascinating things from this stuff as a kid!), then using different colors of markers I found laying around to improve the pictures I saw.  Most often I would alter the images of women's faces.  I gave them a decidedly more dramatic look.  a pink highlighter served as blush.  A wide black magic marker provided them with gorgeous manes of wild curls.  A black rolling ball or narrow felt-tip for mascara & eyeliner, and most often, red Sharpie lips.  

6 yr-old Nif thinks Cristina needs blue eyeshadow & red eyes!

Admittedly, my personal taste in makeup and hair was still developing at that age, as were my artistic sensibilities.  

Eventually, I began using blank paper.  But the idea of taking something old (like that outdated fuchsia lip color!), and turning it into something new (a black-eyed demon wearing a furrowed brow and Bette Midler's wicked smile!) never faded.

Or, Bette Midler wearing a Fraggle...Ok...I'll stick with the demon idea.

   .
 

Before the Beginning

Hello to one and all who have stumbled across this, my 2013 Arts & Crafts blog!  Designed to light a much-needed fire under my arse to stop planning and to start creating on a regular basis. The challenge? To create a piece of artwork or craft during each week of 2013.  52 weeks, 52 crafts.  The catch?  I cannot purchase ANYTHING to assist in the creation of these works.  I can reuse things that have been bought before or during that time for other purposes (a cereal box is fair game, for instance), but I must not spend a single dime.  This will force me to come up with more creative ways to accomplish my goal, and it appeals to my sense of practicality and thriftiness.  Not to mention the fact that we can't really afford my habit.  Crafting can be expensive!

Now, as any person who has a love of arts & crafts will surely know, this does not leave me with nothing with which to work.  

Current state of my crafting station: Utter disaster!

 
Nope, not by a long shot. I have yarn, fabric, glue, beads, buttons, clay, paint, stickers, etc., etc...TONS of crafty crap that I've accumulated over the years.  Not to mention stuff that I have just lying around that I've been itching to upcycle or beautify.

What is fueling this challenge?  Many things, actually. 

1. I've been inspired by recycled artwork I've discovered by artists such as Aurora Robson, who is featured at the Franklin Park Conservatory in Columbus, Ohio. 
This links directly to her site, so you can see the amazing work she does:
 
http://aurorarobson.com/sculpture_oleum.html

(c) Aurora Robson

 
She uses soda bottles, discarded plastic tubs, junk mail, cardboard tubes, and debris washed up on the beach to create her pieces. There are many other artists out there using pencils, toothpicks, CDs and CD cases, and any number of obsolete objects to make something new and often beautiful. 
Why does this (recycled materials & no new purchases for the project) matter?  Well, I personally believe that we buy and throw away too much.  
We've become a world of super consumers, caught in an endless cycle of buying, using, and tossing at a rate that Earth can't accommodate without some severe consequences.  Instead of throwing away everything, finding a new use for it seems like a practical solution.  And not just in the art world.  Simply by changing a few habits, such as using glass instead of disposable plastic (and reusing the glass containers we buy), buying in bulk when feasible, canceling our junk mail, etc., we could significantly reduce the amount we consume.  I won't give you figures, and I'm not going to calculate them because I don't do math.  Let's just say "a lot".  Every little bit helps when it comes to becoming more ecologically friendly.

(removes self from soap box)...

The other reason it matters:  I'm a recovering hoarder.  Not to the extreme you see on television, but I was moving slowly in that direction when I started re-examining the purpose behind purchases I made.  I didn't always have good reasons.  Sometimes I realized "it's cheap" or "it's pretty" was enough.  And my justification for hanging on to things was often lacking in logic.  To avoid spiraling into that destructive tendency, it's best that I eliminate the potential as much as possible.  The fact that I am limited to materials I already have on hand will force me to USE the things I've accumulated to use in this-or-that project, that I tell myself I'll get around to someday.  Someday is now.

2. I've seen dozens of Pinterest pins that I've wanted to try, but often I haven't followed through to the actual execution of said craft because of my 3 enemies: Time, Disorganization and Procrastination.  My hope is that this project will help me to better manage those demons by giving me an attainable goal that requires a little time management and some basic organizational skills. 

A close-up of a Pinterest Pin I DID follow up on!

The idea for this blog was a result of combing through Pinterest, in fact.  I found a blogger who was posting 52 weeks of crafts, and decided that may be a good way for me to maintain focus.  The name of the blog and the blogger sadly escapes me, but with some digging I should be able to locate it and give her some props for the inspiration!

3. This will also give me an opportunity to hone skills that I feel have somewhat atrophied or have simply never been developed to their potential.  The only way to improve something you know how to do is to practice (and look for online hints & tips), and the only way to do something you've never done before is to learn how. 

From the time I was very small, I have been an art fan.  The first painting I fell in love with was when I was about four.  It was John William Waterhouse's "The Mermaid", found in my mother's school textbook about myths and legends. I enjoyed drawing, painting, taking photographs, and making objects for my dolls (I recall making a lamp out of a toothpaste cap and clay, for instance).  So this is just an expansion on that interest.

"The Mermaid" by John William Waterhouse

  I do have a long-term dream and goal underlying this project.  Besides all of the ways this will help me to be a better me, it's also a stepping stone to something larger. I'd like to make things that I can look at with more pride than scrutiny, and that others can enjoy as well.  This will be a self-study course in crafting for me.  An opportunity to grow and improve.  And if along the way I'm able to inspire someone else, all the better! 

So, that's it for the first post.  The challenge doesn't start until January 1st, 2012.  But it's best to start before the beginning, so I don't fall behind too fast.