This year I wanted to celebrate Earth Day for an entire week! I hope to provide ideas and useful tips showing you how to use items that would either have been thrown out, dumped off at the thrift-store, or are just perhaps forgotten.
Many of the ideas can be found in my book Creative Embroidery, Mixing the Old with the New, where I show you how to put all of your stashed, hoarded, and handed-down bits and pieces to creative use! Through techniques and projects I walk you through innovative uses for all kinds of embellishments — like lace, vintage linens and hankies, trims and ribbons, buttons of all sorts, and vintage notions. I provide tips for taking care of your treasures; from cleaning vintage finds to fiber identification.
ATTIC, GARAGE, AND JUNK DRAWER FINDS
Rummage through your stash of stuff hidden in the sewing room, the kitchen, or the garage, and look for unused and forgotten items like the ones below.
- Cookie Cutter Wreath: I wrapped different sizes of heart-shaped cookie molds with twill tape, burlap and grosgrain ribbons. I attached them together with a glue gun, and added in zipper roses, lace roses, and burlap roses, (directions for the flowers can be found in my book Creative Embroidery, Mixing the Old with the New).
- Jell-O Mold Pincushion: This is a simple, fun, Stash Project in my book Creative Embroidery, Mixing the Old with the New. It uses an aluminum aspic mold, a bit of fabric, and in about an hour you have a fun, funky pincushion.
- Hoop Frame: This is a Stash Project in my book Creative Embroidery, Mixing the Old with the New, that uses either a metal or wooden embroidery hoop. It is a simple and pretty way to frame a piece of embroidery.
- Scrap Pin: This is a simple, fun, Stash Project in my book Creative Embroidery, Mixing the Old with the New, that uses a large laundry safety pins, or knitting counters to hang a small scrap-pieced project.
- Mushroom Garden: Utilizes an old metal frog that I found at the thrift-store, I use it to display my collection of felt mushrooms that I made for a gallery piece in my book Hand Embroidery Dictionary.
- Wooden Spool Vase: This is a simple, fun, Stash Project in my book Creative Embroidery, Mixing the Old with the New. Make a few rosettes, put them on a stem, wrap a spool with a bit of zipper tape, and in about an hour you have made this fun little adornment.
- Scraps and Leftovers, is a gallery piece that I made for my book The Embroidery Book. I used a wooden knitting needle that had belonged to my husband’s grandmother for the hanger.
- Into the Garden is a gallery piece that I made for my book Creative Embroidery, Mixing the Old with the New. The old wooden hanger is a perfect way to hang a project, as well as a place to add more color.
For other ideas check these past Tips and Tea on Tuesdays Posts:
- Repurposing Saltshakers
- Repurposing Glass Jars
- Repurposing Unexpected Bits
- Find and Repurpose Vintage Aluminum Molds
- Ornaments from Recycled Treasures
- Recycled Trees
Here are some other tips to live by:
- Take a walk, instead of driving a short distance.
- Use your decorative grocery bags, every time, even when shopping at the quilt or craft store!
- Go paperless, send receipts to your email address, you know that you are only going to throw it away when you get home.
Happy Earth Week, be kind to her, she is the only one we have. ~Christen
Christen's Creations 
Thank you, Christen, for your excellent reminders of all that we still can do to save life on Earth, even though we like to think that we’ve done enough. Bless you.