Category Archives: Hands

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Vom Buch zum Organiser

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Bücher sind großartig, doch nicht alle müssen gelesen werden. Die inhaltlich häßlichen können als schöne Notizhalter wirken. Das Bild zeigt es leider nicht gut, es sieht aber ziemlich originell aus. Aus Büchern kann man auch Wandkunst mit verschiedenen Falttechniken zaubern. Oder eben so einen Organiser. In der einfachsten Variante wird jede Seite in der Mitte gerade gefaltet. Das Buch wird zu einem dicken Fächer in den sich allerlei Notizen stecken lassen.

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Auf Fahrradschleuchen sitzend

Auf dem Weg von der Markthalle Neun in Kreuzberg nach Hause, fand ich diesen Bambus-Hocker. Ein Loch in seiner Mitte, heimatlos am Straßenrand. Schnell noch in den lokalen Fahrradladen, die Tagesration kaputter Fahrradschleuche mitnehmen, und schon war ein neuer Bezug erdacht. Vom löchrigen Bast befreit, ließ sich der zerschnitten Schlauch leicht um den Bambus wickeln, unten zuknoten und in mehreren Streifen weben – fertig der neue Sitzhocker. Ob man damit wohl sportlich hockern kann? IMG_4353.JPG IMG_5398.JPG IMG_5400.JPG

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Untertopf als Seifenhalter

Meine Mitbewohnerin ist die wahre Upcycling Queen. Ich liebe besonders die Dinge, die einfach umzusetzen sind, aus Materialien die uns ständig umgeben, um dann in etwas praktisches und ungewöhnliches umgewandelt zu werden. Untertöpfe gibt es in unserem grünen Haus immer mal, von gekauften Kräuter, Blumen für den Balkon oder Pflanzen für den Garten. Besonders die kleinen benutzt man selten wieder.  Manchmal verschenken wir Ableger darin. Eine außergewöhnlichere Idee: Einfach das untere fünftel gerade abschneiden – und ein Seifenhalter ist geboren.  Love it!
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From milk carton to book cover

Trying to reduce as much packaging as possible there is still some around. Milk cartons from soy or oat milk for example – when there was no time to make it myself. Instead of throwing them away they are cut at the bottom and rinsed out. Sometimes they get a second life as a storage container for soup that goes in the freezer. In spring they are turned into tubs to grow seedlings for the garden. They also work as a book cover for note books or calendars. The silver inside of the carton is a great contrast to the outside print. With an older tough sewing machine there was no trouble getting through two layers of carton. With one of the newer “plastic” ones I would not recommend this. Instead maybe try hot glue, a staple gun or a hole puncher plus a thick string. For decoration and further attachment options I wrapped a bicycle tyre around the front cover. Inside the book cover is a school calendar. An elastic around the back of the cover allows for the attachment of an additional note book. Here is the story in pictures:

Front with pen holder and tyre decoIMG_5317.JPGLast page. I did a bad sewing job at the top…getting used to the material.IMG_5322.JPGFirst page inside. The colorful note book on the right is attached via a blue elastic that you can see in the next picture.IMG_5318.JPG

IMG_5319.JPGLast page with the calender and a drawing booklet inside.IMG_5321.JPG

 

From milk carton…IMG_5324.JPG

 

..to book cover.IMG_5323.JPG

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Nature is abundance

Gardening is one of the best hobbies. Even with a not so green finger there are enough plants that just love to grow no matter what. One seed into the earth, some care-taking and whoooop hundreds of seeds or leaves or fruits or flowers. Some snapshots of the last season.

IMG_4576-0.JPGSalad from beet root and zucchini with borretsch and nasturtium (Kapuzinerkresse) flowers

IMG_4675-1.JPGFire beans

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Porridge with red currant and blackberry – great jams too.

IMG_4505.JPGSunflower seeds – pure or roasted

IMG_4397.JPGApples and pears in all shapes and tastes.

IMG_4504-0.JPGBlackberries and red currants. Fire beans and tasty wild tomatoes (green & yellow)

IMG_4370.JPGwhite, black and red currant. red and green gooseberry.

IMG_4369.JPGherb pesto and nasturtium.

IMG_3198.JPGthe tastiest radish ever

IMG_3524.JPGflowers as gifts, for teas, for bees or just for the eye and nose

 

Flower pots from plastic waste

Waste, no its not to waste. It can be resourceful – Just a matter of perspective.

Upcycling means to give higher value to something that has lost its purpose or meaning. It means re-using things and adding value through creativity. Instead of throwing the bags that contained my coffee beans I look for their other possible functions.

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One of the things with the shortest lifespan are plastic wrappings and bags. During one of my last workshops I made various flower pots from plastic bags, drink cartons, floppy disks and washing liquid plastic bottle. For the outer layer I used a good looking bag or box, for the inner pot I used a bag or box that I filled with soil and plants. Two drainage holes are cut into the bottom. For convenience the inner pot stands on the cut off bottom of a plastic bottle like in the picture below.
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The workshop table during pot production.
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A beautiful plastic bag that once held rice is covering a milk carton with two drainage holes, filled with soil and plants.

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And here is how to make germination pots from milk cartons.
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Even better is this vertical garden using milk cartons. When using the same package it looks pretty good! Now you just need to look after the plants ;)

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Plastic – reduce, reuse, upcycle

Plastic is a crazy material. In comes in various forms and is omnipresent. Once you start looking for it you see it everywhere. Packaging of food and drinks, household tools, our tooth brush, even in our cloths in the form of polyester. The exact components are often a secret by the producer. The main component however is raw oil, a scarce resource. Once turned into plastic it takes hundreds of years to decompose. Since we use it much and only shortly it is a real environmental problem. In the decomposing process micro plastic enters the food chain. It fills the stomach of animals and carries bacteria. Through meat, hot food and drinks on plastic it enters our body. Studies have shown that plastic has entered out blood stream and can lead to infertility. The documentary Plastic Planet gives a good insight on its reach.

The best way is to avoid plastic as much as possible. A simple start is buying fresh products e.g. at the market and bringing your own bag. When shopping elsewhere I try to buy products in larger packages or in paper bags or cartons. Pioneers, experimenters and fore thinkers are showing that there are many ways to reduce it with homemade beauty or cleaning products.

Another problem is it’s short lifetime. Plastic bags for example are used 25min on average. Upcycling them means adding value to them and making them usable longer. Plastic bags can be ironed together into a robust larger plastic sheet or they can be knitted, braided and crocheted with. They also make for good flower pots. Plastic bottles and milk cartons can be turned into a vertical garden. More inspiration can be found here.

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Cable on Chip Card

A nice and good looking way to organize your cables. These ear phone cables had a rough life roaming through a backpack. Now they live on a plastic card. The shorter ends of the card need to be curved in slightly. Rough edges can be polished with sand paper. The end bits of the ear phone best are slid in a hole with a cut to the outside. Look at the pictures and do it. 10min and you have a cool cable carrier.

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