Melted plastic bags styled with lego bowties

Make your t-shirt a changing canvas for your Trashion Plastic Artwork! 10 minute fun with cutting plastic bags and melting them to t-shirts. This technique is not permanent. The plastic will stay on a few uses and should be removed before washing the garment (it will come off in the washing machine). Check out my tutorial on Fusing plastic bags to t-shirts and knitwear. This will look great with my lego-bowties! I´m planning to make a few of these bowties for sale in my Etsy shop.

Invisible Book Shelf and Suitcase Pet Bed

Invisible Book Shelf tutorial from Instructables.


A padded suitcase is the cat's meow -- and just the ticket for a contented kitty.

How to Make a Retro Pet Bed? from Natural Home. This pet bed uses the better half of a junk-store suitcase whose days on the luggage carousel are long gone. Simply remove the top of your vintage valise and tuck a feather pillow inside. An easy-to-remove flannel pillowcase makes laundering a breeze. This perch is the perfect curling-up spot for the discriminating catnapper.

Rolling socks with Sabrina Melis

Sabrina Melis of Alghero Sardegna Italy sews jewels from old socks and other materials. Her soft jewelry is 100% recycled and gorgeous! Like candy. Her rolling-technique is very god to use when doing crafts from woolsweater scrap pieces or other thick fabrics for clothing details, home decor (like pillowcases, floormats) and soft toys.


Via HauteNature blog.

Attention Trashion bag ladies!

(bag made by Post Scriptum)

Are you an upcycler? As in, are you into making stuff from things that others cast away? Now is your chance to show the world your trashy treasures. The Compai ladies — Justina and Faythe Blakeney (authors of 99 Ways To Cut, Sew, Trim And Tie Your T-Shirt Into Something Special) — are working on a new book about bags made from recycled materials.

Submit a hi-res image of an original bag (or bags) that you have made from old tires, nuts and bolts, candy wrappers, seatbelts, old clothes, plastic bags, vinyl records, etc. to justina@venuszine.com. Bags can be any shape, size or style so long as they are made from recycled materials. Along with the images, send us your name, occupation, age, URL (if you have one), location and a short paragraph explaining what the bag is made of and your design philosophy.

You could be chosen to be a featured designer in Compai’s upcoming publication (to be published by Potter Craft, a division of Random House), plus win two free copies of the upcoming title. The winner also will be featured on Venuszine.com.

Deadline: August 20, 2008, at 5 p.m.
Submit to: justina@venuszine.com with "Bag Book" in the subject line.


(Lace glove bag made by Flymissy)


(sweater bag by Brenda's bag)

Trashionista group in Flickr

As you know I´m admin of a group called TRASHIONISTA - Sustainable style and recycled fashion in Flickr. We have over 1000 members so far! I created this group to support sustainable fashion thinking and all you crafty trashionistas out there. If you have made, sewn, knitted, reconstructed fashion pieces, clothes or accessories from recycled materials or eco-friendly materials, this group is for you. Come and show us your talent! Thank you for all who have contributed so far. Below some of my favorites. Reduce Repair Reuse Recycle - TRASHION!

Dress and hat by Sunshine Loves You



Recycled fabric bunny called Betty by JunkerJane.


Patchwork dress by eviegreenpixie.


Reconstructed dress and zipper corset by LoriMarsha.



Knit reconstruction by -astronette-


String scarf by psarokokalo.



Converse belt by rachelyra.

Trashion light fixtures

My latest finds in trashion lighting fixtures made from recycled materials. I just wish I could do metalwork or electrical work.

Coffee filter sconce lamp


Propaine tank lamp by fringecollection.etsy.com


Tincan light fixtures by MariposaAvenue


WASTE NOT lamps made from recycled plastic utensils by BVBCollective





MILAN 2008: Fethi Atakol’s Functional Artwork


Lamp shade from recycled and melted plastic bottles by ThisGallery.

Discarded to Devine 2008 runway show pics

Discarded to Devine 2008 recycled fashion show was held in SF in April (previous post HERE). The organization has now released some runway and entry images of this fantastic event on their site. Click to "Design & Designers" and 2008 images. Definately worth checking out! Also keep in mind that Discarded to Devine 2009 is coming, so check back to the site for more info. Maybe some of your designs will make it to the 2009 show!

Thight fashion - Päivän sukkahousuvinkki

Pantyhose or thights are a big no-no for the eco-concious fashionista since they are made nylon (= polymere plastic). They brake easily and therefore are often thrown away after just few uses. I prefer to use only fish-net thights because I have noticed them to be more durable and therefore I buy maybe 5 pairs a year. Maria Lau makes jewelry and other werables from thights and other recycled material by braiding and binding them together with beads and luxurious pearls. She has worked with fashion houses like Michiko Koshino and DKNY to name a few.






In case you did not know, re-using pantyhose in new ways is a bit of a joke in Finland. A local food market chain K-Kauppa used to publish "today´s pantyhose tips" (Finnish "sukkahousuvinkki") in their magazine Pirkka. Hilarious stuff like "Slip a champagne bottle in a pair of pantyhose when popping the cork. This way the cork will not fly to anyones head and hurt them". People claimed to use thights for almost anything and I do not doubt that some meant what they wrote in. The magazine actually paid for good tips... Anyway, if you do make something from recycled thights and want to wear them in Finland, make them so well that people don´t realize them being thights and don´t advertise the original material... Some people just wouldn´t get the trashion aspect. I´m sure this is not the case in the rest of the world. We are a funny nation sometimes.

How to make a thights necklace, a tutorial by Smaggle Style. Made from thicker winter thights.


Thight dress in Discarded to Devine fashion show in San Francisco.




I remebered seeing this dress in the inside cover of Destenys Child´s album. Look at the middle dress. I think it looks exactly the kind of design I would go for when using recycled thights. Although nylon can be a very "hot" material to wear, since it´s plastic, the dress has to be lined with jersey. Even the pearls are not a problem! I have a box full of wooden beads at home. The beads were salvaged from a dumster, a thrown away driver´s wood bead seat cover. They have been waiting for a project like this. I think the worn down wood beads and skincolored granny thights would get a major facelift on this kind of a project. Now I wonder what metal zippers (canvas part cut out) would look like mixed and bound up with thights....? My friends will propably think I´ve gone insane if I ask them to give me their cast off thights...? Have to think of a diplomatic approach.

Maria Lau´s link found via Style Bubble fashion blog.

Junk Beautiful interior design book

I love my local bookstore Hobboks. Every time I go there I spend at least two hours just reading craft books and having the complementary(!) coffee cup and cookies while sitting on a very comfortable couch. This is why small books shops kick departmentstore ass any day. You are able to spend time in them, talk with the expert staff and READ before deciding what to buy. I bought three wonderful books today: Junk Beautiful, a interior design book inspired by junkyard finds and repurposed materials, Workspaces by Martha Fay, an interior design guide for working spaces and Denim Mania, a jeans refashioning book. I´ll post about the two later but now to the most inspirational one:

JUNK BEAUTIFUL by by Sue Whitney and Ki Nassauer
Website: www.junkmarketstyle.com (sign in to see the good stuff..)

This is the best book on recycled and repurposed interiors and it is propably the greenest interior design book on the market. The Junk Market girls Sue and Ki have an impecable taste in decor style and original (and humoristic) ideas in their projects. All the projects, instructions and designs are very clever and presented beautifully. There is nothing boring to be found, even the layout is pretty. If you're into interiors made from repurposed materials (or if you just like thrifted old wood and metal things in your home) this is the book to buy! I also love the fact that this book costs half of all other interior books on the market (23 euro in Finland). Thank you so much for the authors! 5 stars. I´m so using this as my new home decor bible. I had to order also their first Junk book, Decorating Junk Market Style: Repurposed Junk to Suit Any Decor.

Inspiring zipper jewelry by Kate Cusack

I´ve spent the whole morning just googling zipper inspired jewelry. Found some fab things and artists. I got one tip through StyleBubbles blog comments (thanks Clover!) to check out artist Kate Cusack. Absolutely stunning work! In some pieces she uses only a few zippers, which is very good if you don´t have many same colored zips to use for your project. But of course my favories have more than 5 zips. :) I also found a zipper tab earring tutorial from Cut Out and Keep craft community.






Zipper necklaces by Kate Cusack.


This Zipper Necklace from Khoon Hooi Features: chiffon, wood, pearl, jewel and zipper detailing on body.


Zipper necklace available from 80spurple.com


Zipper tab earrings by wickedmoxie.etsy.com


Earrings by darhling.etsy.com


Earrings by mybloomnart.etsy.com

Inspiration: Human anatomy

I have an obsession with anatomy inspired art and craft. Skulls and bones (the real ones), jewelry made from anatomy text book images, clothes with anatomy prints.. Lets just say that cute pastel things with flower prints don´t do it for me. Some of my friends did not enjoy my post on Katharina Ludvig organ bottles and even thought the anatomy necklaces I recently bought from Paraphernalia were too much. Too "real" they said. Funny people. Human anatomy has inspired people from the times of ancient greeks so I suppose it should count as a classic trend. :)

Toolgrrl aka Rachel Wright is an artist I found from Etsy that reconstructs secondhand slips with appliques to create dramatic in-your-face anatomy inspired fashions. The buys all supplies from thrift stores and sews by hand. Check out her website www.rachelwright.net for images galleries. Some people might find them odd when I find them fascinating and beautiful. We can´t all like the same things.. That just wouldn´t be right. I love these dresses since it reminds me that we of the fragile and very personal eco-system of your own bodies. It´s a "respecting life and death" thing I suppose. For more anatomy inspired fashions, I recommend Undercover SS2005 collection and collection details.




Undercover SS2005 collection. Can you see the teeth, eye-balls and guts?



Eyeball necklace by alteredeleanors


Anatomy pillow by CrowsCloth


Anatomica collection necklaces by Paraphernalia



Spine neckties by Toybreaker


Heart earrings and skull necklace by Holly Modine

Trashion lunch

I love bagels. And here you see the perfect trashion-way to take your take-away lunch with you to work. Idea and instructions from Acorn Studios.

Geek-ware Trashion

Technology has gone supersonic in the past ten years. Our electronic devices expire faster and recycling centres are stuck with mountains of old computers, tv´s, dvd´s, phones, printers, VHS casettes and so on. Anyone who uses these discarded technologies as material for their projects or products is my idol. Geek-ware blog ("adventures of an e-waste recycler") is dedicated in finding new ideas and the people that gid through piles of computers and other tech-stuff to give them a new purpose or look. Artists have also come up with fab new inventions when studying our relationship with these everydaymachines. Recycle-retro-tech rocks!

Customizing your computer screen: Instructions HERE
How cool is this.. And did you notice the keyboard??


Recycling computer disks:

Floppy disc notebooks

Disc notebooks

CD-case:


Privacy-laptop sweater and other Body-Technology Interfaces.


Mac-jewelry:


Sheeps in technology heaven: Original post HERE

Altered Couture magazine

Altered Couture is a 160-page publication dedicated to altered and embellished clothing and accessories. It is filled with gorgeous photographs of altered jackets, t-shirts, sweaters, jeans, skirts, and more, accompanied by easy-to-understand techniques and endless inspiration. You’ll find new ways to transform your own garments and accessories into fabulous works of wearable art. This magazine shows you creative ideas on how you can add a twist to your attire with just a few resources: dyes, paints, bleach, rubber stamps, threads, buttons, beads, and more!

The 5th (Summer 2008) issue is out now. You can order your copy online.

Manon Gignoux´s love for wear and tear

Manon Gignoux makes clothes, accessories, jewellry and home decor from pieces of fabric. I think she has a wonderful way to combine (muted) colors and to transform an worn down fabric into something comfortable, soft and inviting.

"The origins of my work can be traced back to my last year of study at France’s Duperré School of Applied Arts when I carried out a photographic study of the clothes worn by workers in the early 20th century and explored the "traces of wear and tear" on clothes. Starting with details of a hundred or so photographs taken from books, I filled research notebooks and ended up with four themes: the "carpenter" or the traces of alteration, the "washerwoman" or the imprint of repeated movements, the "inside-out suit" or the dynamics of (de)construction, and the "woman shopkeeper" or the encounter between work clothes and everyday life and the way an object that is worn fits the body." (paragraph from Manon Gignoux website)




"I play on the relationship between clothes and object, I dress objects in order to protect them and to tell their story… damaged coverings, darned, made from accumulation and colours faded by time."

Martin Margiela Artisanal SS08 collection

Maison Martin Margiela has released their new SS08 Artisanal colection on their website. Once again I find myself gasping. And belive it or not, I have been playing with the idea of creating "pixelated" prints/images to clothing and home decor by combining different colored buttons for the past two years... I should have done it then. I´m just happy to see Margiela´s studio and I seem to share thoughts. As always I love that they tell how the garment has been made + the work hours put into it.

Scream-button-dress: Vintage buttons are embroidered on a silk chiffon to create a bit-mapped effect motif. Two rectangular pieces of silk muslin are assembled to form a dress. The front is embroidered with various buttons of mother-of-pearl, metal, plastic to draw a mouth. Dress : 25 hours

Pixelated prints from buttons:

The plastron of a vintage shirt is embroidered with various buttons in mother-of-pearl, metal and plastic, composing the drawing of an eye. T-shirt : 20 hours

Mirrorpiece jacket:

Small mirror squares are assembled as a top. These small tiles like those found on a facetted disco ball are glued on an open-back top lined in black leather. Top : 45 hours

Pleated top:

An extra large T-shirt is partially slashed in bands to create a circular motif. The new armhole is made with a series of hand-made knots. T-shirt : 19 hours

Elastic Band Jacket:

A plaiting of elastic bands creates a jacket. Various widths and qualities of elastics are plaited directly on the dummy to make a jacket. The different types of elastics brings a particular colour to each garment. T-shirt : 29 hours

Necktie dress by Post Decadent Trashionista

Post Decadent Trashionista made a beautifull dress and stole by using my tie-feather tutorial. Well done girl! I´d definately wear this to a party :)

Fashion Reconstruction collective called Andrea Crews

Meet the Andrea Crews design collective. Creative, un-expected, fun. I love it.

"Andrea Crews's project bases on the use and the reinterpretation of the second-hand garment, it is a social, economic and ethical choice. Andrea Crews transforms tons of secondhand clothes into unique pieces, chic and trendy. Within the workshop, around the heap of clothes, the raw material, Andrea Crews settles sewing machines and creates experimental collections.Beyond a simple craze for the vintage, the concept " post-vintage " of Andrea Crews is more than ever of current events. More than a simple appropriation, she proposes a reinterpretation.

Each piece is treated one by one according to the potentiality of the clothe and the stylist desires. The results are indeed unforeseeable, strange, tempting and daring. Dipping into several sources of inspirations, Andrea Crews uses fragments of a sub-culture counting comics, mystic rastafary frescos, fanzines, scribbles, cut-up porn, electro rhythms, punk flyers … GranPa trousers are transformed into mini overalls, a rotten T-shirt into a sexy docker, a baggy sweat into a night dress…"

Quote from Andrea Crews website.

The story of stuff -documentary with Annie Leonard

The story of stuff -documentary with Annie Leonard

From its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad, yet most of this is hidden from view. The Story of Stuff is a 20-minute, fast-paced, fact-filled look at the underside of our production and consumption patterns. This documentary exposes the connections between a huge number of environmental and social issues, and calls us together to create a more sustainable and just world. It'll teach you something, it'll make you laugh, and it just may change the way you look at all the stuff in your life forever.

I think this is a good documentary from an important issue made in a cartoon form (suitable also for children). You are able to download the documentary from the website for free distribution or order a DVD.

My trashion skirt from mens trousers in episode of Kirppis (Finland TV1)

Finland YLE TV1 approached me a couple of months ago to apphear on their show called KIRPPIS. This show is being filmed live every Sathurday morning from my favorite weekend flamarket Valtteri in Helsinki. They have a short feature in the program where visiting designers turn something old to new. In my first episode (aired 23.2.2008) I sewed three men´s suit pants to a skirt. You can find the instructions from Kirppis website, but unfortunately they are only in Finnish. I forgot my camera home the day we shot this, so I do not have any good pics of the finished skirt. I´ll be doing a second show later this spring.