When does hoarding become a bad thing?

Hands up those of you who saw the documentary about hoarding last night?

Judging by Twitter I wasn’t alone in feeling very disturbed by the lack of compassion or understanding that some of the neighbours displayed    ..and a feeling of intense claustrophobia! 

 Mental health issues aside, what particularly struck me was how fine the line is between storing and hoarding. At what point do you tip over from being someone who stores things to protect your resources and reuse where possible to being a ‘hoarder’? Is it about the sheer quantity of ‘things’ that you keep, or whether you actually reuse, recycle or upcycle them?

I'm sure that many of our MIAMI friends and members are very good at not throwing things away indiscriminately, but what is it that stops us keeping everything? Where do we draw the line? Keeping something that's broken or not to your taste or useful any more isn’t sustainable either. Taken to extremes you're just creating a landfill site in your home.

So what do you do if you don’t want something anymore, but can’t stand it being thrown away? Obviously you can reuse it or repurpose it, but if that isn’t going to happen, you could offer it to someone who might want it. There are lots of sites on the net where you can donate, swap sell or recycle your goods, so it's worth spending a few minutes seeing what other people want.

So as we rush headlong into Christmas and the chance to acquire yet more ‘things’, 

what's going to dictate what you throw away and what you keep? 

What’s your litmus test?  

Tell us where  you draw the line? 

>>Click here for your chance to catch up on Obsessive, Compulsive Hoarder

Hilary Bruffell

Chair today - gone tomorrow

I was wandering around the grounds of Durham Cathedral with my sister and her partner today when I came across this skip full of office chairs. There must have been at least 30 of them. They looked in remarkably good condition but had just been thrown on top on some of some builders rubble and were already stained by the rain.

I don't know which of us was the most angry. My sister also pointed out that as well as local recycling initiatives that would have found a home for the chairs, there were three local prisons in the area with workshops dedicated to repairing and renovating old items.

You can't help but wonder what the builders and craftsmen who created the cathedral, its beautiful carved stone, intricate carpentry and  wonderful paintings, would have made of this waste? Can you imagine them chucking away the pews for want of  nail or a lick of paint?

Anne

Inspirational sewing makeovers

MIAMI member Carol Seatory is a fantastic role model. She's put her sewing talents to everything from making small purses and little girls' dresses to  re-upholstering old chairs - and along the way has transformed her work as an illustrator  by working with scraps of fabrics to make fabulous collages.

Carol squirrels away remnants and unwanted scraps in her fabric stash and then finds all kinds of uses for them. Here's a little Welsh stool Carol has rescued and recovered in vintage fabric - itself "rescued".

Read Carol's story - including how when pregnant she just couldn't stop herself from sewing until she'd made over 40 little dresses - even though she knew she was expecting a baby boy! Read about Carol and see more examples of her work on our website

Beer can sculptures

We've published quite a few pieces on art from recycled materials - but it's been a while! so I thought I'd remedy that today. One of our earliest blog pieces features the Buddhist monks who built a whole temple out of beer bottles - see here

Today's recycled art has another beery theme but this time it's cans rather than bottles and we're amazed at the ingenuity of some of the creators. From this giant peacocks to full-sized cars and more, the sculptures make great use of old cans.

But it's not just sculpture. We like these bags that Sarah Roemer makes and sells on Etsy. (Sorry purses for our American friends). You can buy Sarah's beery creations here

Whilst always ready to make sacrifices in the cause of fashion I think I might draw the line at these wonderful creations from Nikos Floros, a Greek scupltor who made a series of beer can based opera costumes for an exhibition. I find pointy toe stilettos a trial when they're made of soft leather, I think wearing these canned shoes would be like having root canal work.



Have a look at our other posts on recycled art
New life for dead shopping trolleys
Art from the floors of China's factories
Art from toilet rolls

Children's Art Day

This week sees the start of Children's Art Day, an event that, depsite its name lasts from today until the weekend. The CAD consists of a number of events throughout the whole of Britain, intended to get children more involved with art. Programmes are available to both individual families and via schools.

From special exhibitions to classes and workshops, children can have the chance to learn about all sorts of things from making an army and building a castle from cardboard boxes in west London to creating a crazy collage in Rochdale or making art from recyling rubbish in Birmingham. There are exhibitions everywhere from the Tate to the Baltic - definitely something for every child and in every area of the country.

>>More information at engage.org

Bra recycling – ‘bumper crop’ expected

Brighton and Hove City Council is the latest of many UK local authorities to set up a bra recycling scheme. There will be 10 pink painted recycling banks across the city. The first one was launched on The Level in central Brighton last week.

Cityclean, the council’s waste, recycling and street cleansing service, and BCR Global, a national textile recycling company are backing the scheme.

The bras will be transported, along with other clothing, to developing countries including Africa, Pakistan and Eastern Europe, where they will be repaired (if necessary) and sold on, providing business opportunities as well as affordable clothing.

Every bra donated will earn money for local breast cancer charity The Pink Dolphin Appeal, which was first launched in 2003 to raise money for local breast care services. The new breast care unit was opened in Brighton last year.

Councillors from Brighton & Hove showed their support by donating the first batch of unwanted bras. Council environment director Jenny Rowlands said that women in the city were already ‘brilliant’ at recycling clothing through charity shops and the many textile banks around the city.
‘However, many never think of donating their bras. Now we have a great chance to put all that unwanted underwear to good use.’

We are urging women in the city to have a rummage, dig out and donate all their old bras. I’m sure they’ll find the experience really uplifting!”

Spokesperson for BCR Global, Lynne Timms said:
“Residents of Brighton & Hove have an excellent track record for recycling and, if the donations by councillors are anything to go by we’re expecting a bumper crop of bras.”

If there is not an inititative like this near you then don't worry, you can still donate your (washed) bras by posting them direct to BCR Global. There are full details of this on the Breast Talk website .

....and don't forget this week (June 22nd to 28th) is National Recycle Week. More on this to follow!

Top Tip of the Week - storing plastic bags

Following last week's Lexicon for Recycling today's top tip involves reusing (plastic bags) and downcycling (tissue boxes).

If you're like me, you want to reuse those old supermarket plastic carrier bags - and avoid acquiring new ones. Trouble is I have so often arrived at the supermarket and found I've left my cotton carrier bags at home. I still have a number of old pastic bags that I don't want to just chuck into the recycling so they are crumpled up inside another bag in my understairs cupboard and are always spilling out everywhere.

Here's a handy solution. Fold the plastic bags flat. Get an empty facial tissue box (thus saving it from the recycling) and stuff the plastic bags inside. This keeps them neat and tidy and it's very easy to pull them out one at a time.

Now I keep one tissue box bag dispenser in the car so I have it to hand when I am doing the shopping and another under the kitchen sink for when I need a plastic bag at home.

Recycling Roundup

Inspiration for recycling, reusing - or upcycling as it's now becoming known. We've pulled together a quick guide to help you find recycling inspiration, whatever your interests.

Ideas and tips - ways to make new things out of old from beds to plastic bags:

Old beds into bowers - how to turn unwanted beds into fantastic garden furniture
Top 10 Ideas for Inspired Recycling at Home
How to make fused plastic out of old carrier bags
New life for old sofas
Re-using tin foil to clean your silver

Recycled Fashion - from vintage fashion to revamping your wardrobe you'll find loads of inspiration here:

Refashion, defashion, upfashion, downfashion - there's no limits!
10 Ways to update your wardrobe without spending a fortune
Bags from old tyres and Debenhams' suit made from plastic bottles
Checking out the Vintage Fashion Fair
Shoes made from London Underground seats
Charity fashion show of restyled clothes
Recycled dress for breast cancer
How to knit with recycled plastic carrier bags
Charity shop clothes on the Oscar's red carpet
Hairy legwarmers made from an old jacket

Creative inspiration - how artists and sculptors have used materials that might otherwise have been thrown away to create some fascinating new pieces:

Tim Gentry’s “Pleasure Spheres” and Paul Matosic’s “Landfill
Photography - seeing beauty in industrial waste
MEND - an exhibition in New York using recycled materials
Sculpture from living trees
Art from toilet rolls
Art from the floor-sweepings of China's factories
Sculpture from old shopping trolleys
The Knitted Brain
A Buddhist temple from old beer bottles

Advice on Recycling

Top Tips from Which? magazine to ensure your recycling actually gets recycled
Third World Wisdom - what we can learn from others
Start a fixers' collective - a Brooklyn scheme sets a great example
Five top tips for sorting your recycling
Go to work on an egg - why eggs are highly useful materials for inspired recycling
All about upcycling
A new lexicon for recycling

Recycling News
How London Transport is "oiling the wheels" with recycled cooking oil

Top tips from Which? to ensure your recycling gets recycled

According to the May edition of the UK's Which? magazine, some 229,389 tonnes of recycling and composting material put out by households in England last year ended up in landfill.

The experts spoken to by Which? say recycling only gets rejected if it is ‘contaminated’ – for example when the wrong type of material gets put in or the items are in poor condition (soggy newspapers).

Rejection levels vary around the country. The 5 authorities with the highest rejection levels, according to Which?, had rejection rates between 22% (Hertsmere Borough Council) and 11%.

We have our own views on whether local authorities truly embrace recycling or are just going through the motions but, as make and menders, we should give them the least possible excuse for rejecting what we put out.

Which? published some excellent tips from Philip Ward at Wrap for improving your recycling skills. Wherever you happen to live, this is sensible advice to follow if you are consigning items to a recycling facility or kerbside collection.

Top tips from Which?
1. Only put something in a recycling box if you know your council will accept it. One wrong thing could result in the whole box being rejected. Ask your council or use the postcode checker at recyclenow.com.
2. Wash and squash – use old washing up water.
3. Remove lids and labels if your council asks you to do this.
4. Find alternatives for items your council can’t deal with.

We’d add one more tip: On the morning of your recycling, double check if a passing pedestrian has tossed something into your box that would lead to it being rejected (crisp packets and half eaten sandwiches seem to be particularly popular).

TheWhich? guide to recycling has tips on what to do with those difficult-to-recycle items, how to make the most of your council's services and a detailed breakdown of the materials councils typically accept for recycling.

Useful links
>> www.which.co.uk/recycling
>> Make it and Mend it tips for sorting recycling

New life for old sofas

You flop into the sofa to watch a bit of mindless television but just can’t get comfy. A spring's sticking in your bum, the seat cushions are squashed unplumpably limp and lifeless, the bit the cat got is hanging frayed and tattered or those worn shiny patches on the arms taunt you.

Yes, it’s that time. You need a new sofa!.......But do you? Couldn't you repair it? Couldn't you recover it? New sofas are so expensive. What do you do?

There's a new website to help you to decide. 'Save our Sofas' helps you through the process of deciding if you can fix it yourself. If it's beyond you, they'll help you to recycle it or reuse it by giving it to people who will refurbish it and find it a new home. They also give you advice on buying a sofa that will last as well as tips on fixing it up.

They'll also give you the chance to make your upgly old sofa a star. http://www.saveoursofas.org have launched a competition to find Britain’s ugliest sofa. Go to the site and upload your photo and you could have the chance to win new upholstery to give it a new lease of life.

Inspiration from Buddhist monks

We just heard about this wonderful example of recycling: using Heineken beer bottles. Apparently about 50 years ago the Heineken Company said they were going to reshape their beer bottles to make them usable as building blocks. Unfortunately it never happened.

That's the bad news. The good news is that a bunch of monks from Thailand's Sisaket province took matters into their own hands and collected a million bottles to build the Wat Pa Maha Chedi Kaew temple. The results are absolustely amazing and should act as an inspiration to us all.

Hairy legwarmers made from a jacket

These colourful legs belong to Anne's Swedish yoga teacher Jeanette. She is the most amazing person. She has an allotment, makes delicious soup with vegetables she has grown herself and snaps up some great charity shop bargains.

Jeanette has a creative talent for recycling and restyling clothes. What she's wearing in this photo as leggings used to be the the arms of an old jacket. They're warm and look great tucked into boots. We'd love to see some other interesting examples of recycled and restyled clothes.