Before we were Scraplanta, we were WonderRoot Creative Reuse, a program of WonderRoot in Atlanta. From 2011-2014, we published a blog as WonderRoot Creative Reuse. The posts you see here date back to that period. There is just too much good info here to let it disappear. Over time we will cull the entries so only those we deem “evergreen” will remain.
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Hey-o folks! I’ve been sweating it out in the WRCR storage unit, reorganizing and whatnot, making room for these sweet new items that just came in. And, as usual, I got super excited about them and wanted to share. Take note:
Hey gang! I’d like to veer away from my usual, overly-enthusiastic format of showing you what we have in store for our upcoming pop-up shop (Saturday, April 19th, at the Oakhurst Earth Day Celebration) to take pause and discuss some bigger-picture issues with you. Sure, we rescue wickedly awesome materials from the landfill; yes, we siphon those things to artists and teachers and other educational programs; of course, we’ll do whatever we can to empower you to make art and/or get your creative juices flowing because we honestly believe that makes you a better person. But, I think we’ve been rather delicate about the other side of our mission, the one that can hit you like a brick in the face. Or, more specifically, like a giant plastic brick the size of your car in your face:
You’ve heard of STEM, right? Science, Technology, Engineering and Math, in the context of education policy. So, our friend Jason Martin said, Hey, what about ART? And he added the ‘A’ to make it STE(A)M. Even better, he added a truck, to make it STE(A)M Truck(TM). There really is a truck. Just stick with me here.
Since WonderRoot is all about art, we have partnered with STE(A)M Truck in two ways: First, WonderRoot is a resource through which STE(A)M Truck identifies artists who can work as Artists in Residence at local schools. Second, WonderRoot Creative Reuse has supplied STE(A)M Truck with a pile of cool materials to use for some of their art projects.
Howdy, folks! Just a quick shout out to let you know that we will have a pop-up shop this Saturday, March 8th at the Drew Charter School Designorama. Taking place on the Drew Charter School’s Elementary campus, the Designorama “celebrates things people create themselves — from new technology and electronic gizmos to food creation to homemade jewelry, clothes and sculptures. This family-friendly event demonstrates what and how people are inventing, making and creating. It brings together Makers, Crafters, Inventors, Hackers, Scientists and Artists for a fair full of fun and inspiration.” Sounds like our’s and your’s cup of awesome, right? The event is from 3pm-6pm, so we hope you can come down in that tiny timeframe. And, just to whet your appetite, here are some things that we’ll have on sale:
Folks! I know we’ve been a bit m.i.a. for a spell, but let’s not dwell on that. Cutting to the chase: we will be at the East Atlanta Farmer’s/Craft Market THURSDAY, DECEMBER 19TH 4-8PM. If you noticed that slash, it’s because the EAV Craft market usually held at the Midway Pub is being integrated into the regular EAV Farmer’s market held across from the Midway Pub, so there’s going to be one ginormous melding of do-goody, sustainable, hand-craftedness of all kinds happening all around the Midway Pub. Two great things collide, at last. The farmers will be like, “you got craft market in my farmer’s market!” And we’ll be like, “you got farmer’s market in my craft market!” In any case, you win, so hope you can make it out.
We’ll have all the standards to get you making those last minute holiday treasures, plus maybe a few surprise specials that will make that perfect gift. And these new items, freshly donated:
If I had to pick just one thing I love about operating WonderRoot Creative Reuse–and between seeing kids eyes light up when they make something, or teaching an adult to sew, or hearing all your ideas for this or that item, it’d be a tough call, I assure you–it would be going through all your donations and sorting them. Granted, I’ve encountered some things that I wish I wore gloves when handling, but, overall, there are many thrills to be had in this process. Guess I was a born rummager.
Anyway, without further ado, let’s get to the goods we’ve received lately. We’ve had a bunch of you guys donate a bunch of stuff, and man oh man, did you deliver. In addition to a big box of patterns, canvases of all sizes (some even unopened!), an *almost* complete set of Prismacolor colored pencils (60-ish count), and some tile pieces, here’s really what got me excited:
We’ve just added another pop-up shop to our Spring calender, so take note: the DeKalb County Green Expo is coming up on Saturday, April 20, from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. Location: Georgia Piedmont Technical College in Clarkston. The address is 495 N Indian Creek Dr., Clarkston, GA 30021. Hope to see you there!
The Green EXPO is sponsored and organized by the DeKalb County Green Commission, Decatur Environmental Sustainability Board, Dunwoody Sustainability Commission and DeKalb County Commissioner Kathie Gannon – Super District 6. Continue reading
Howdy, folks! Really excited here that the weather is shifting into spring, because you know what that means: festivals! We have a few coming up, so here’s a sneak peek of what you might find at our upcoming pop-up shops.
Before we get to that, though, just want to give a shout-out and hearty thanks to our friends at the Lifecycle Building Center. They’re like us, only reusing and redistributing building materials instead of art materials. You know how a person can girl-crush or have a bromance? Well, we do the reuse equivalent of that with the LBC, whatever you may call it. Reuse-mance? Recycrush? I dunno, but you should really really check them out. They’re doing amazing things, to put it mildly, and we’re always super happy to partner with them.
LBC partway through the Ebster gym floor demolition. It’s how they do.
Perhaps due to Valentine’s warm fuzzies still lingering about, we here at WonderRoot Creative Reuse want you to know that we love you. We love your faces as they light up when you realize you can get tons of ribbon and fabric and yarn for next to nothing costs. We love your dozens of questions about what a bubble keg is and what it could be used for. We love that you’re just as environmentally conscious as we are, sometimes moreso. We love the enthusiasm you show as we tell you how we wish to grow and get the word out. And, most obviously, we love your donations. No matter how they come to us–disorganized, disheveled, maybe even a little dingy–just receiving them makes our hearts swell.
But, as some of you may be aware, sometimes we can’t take in everything. It breaks our heart as much as it breaks your’s. More often than not, we try to find a home for your goods just because we don’t want you to throw them away so badly. We find ourselves saying, “If it doesn’t work for us, we’ll find someone who it does work for.” It works the other way, too. When we meet you at a festival or a pop-up shop and you say, “I’m really into working with ________,” we keep our eyes out for blank and get in touch with you if we find it. As much as we’d love to be your go-to source for unique and low-cost art supplies, we have no problem being the middle man. We just want things to get reused and stay out of the landfill!
So that’s why we’re so elated that our friends over at Crafting A Green World have launched a brand new Share & Swap forum, a free space where crafters can offer up craft supplies to give away, post for supplies that they need, and list supplies for trade. It works like an online classifieds system where you can post free ads to give away extra materials, ask for specific supplies, or arrange swaps. *Kind of* like what your local Creative Reuse center does, but 1) online, 2) more geared to your specific needs, 3) nationally based (who knew that someone in Colorado has the exact pair of knitting needles you’re looking for?!), and 4) all materials are free or exchanged on trade. You know we’ll be there, scouting around AND posting things, so check it out! (Also, tour around Crafting A Green World when you have a few extra minutes. Those people are craftastic!)
Til then luvlies, happy reusing!
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