Recycling at the Mall: Some Tips

A Saturday morning phone conversation with my brother:

Him: What are you doing today. 
Me: Well, I'm going to the mall.
Him: What... Why?
Me: I'm going to go recycle some things.
Him: Oh I knew something had to be up, you wouldn't just go there. What kind of recycling?

I'm so glad he asked. It makes for a perfect setup for this post.  But before I get into what and where to recycle at your mall, let me commend my brother.

He is a very smart man who knows me well.
He knows I would not go to a mall just to shop.
Further he knows I would not use my precious Saturday hours to battle finding a parking spot, looking for pants that just don't fit and spending too much money.

That's not to say I would never go to the mall.  I would and I do. Occasionally.

I would go to the mall to: 

To buy an Auntie Anne's pretzel,
To watch a movie, or
To fix a wardrobe emergency. 


What is a wardrobe emergency?
A wardrobe emergency for instance could be if your strapless bra decides to cease having elasticity in the middle of church, slips around your waist and can't be convinced it is not belt. This is a wardrobe emergency, and it warrants leaving service and driving straight to the mall.

Here I was, instead of the above reasons, taking old things to the mall and leaving them there.

I've been taking bottle caps to the mall for years.
Did you know the plastic used on soda bottles and milk jugs can't be recycled normally?

Aveda collects them and...at this point I have heard 2 different things.  I have been told/ read that
they turn them into new bottle caps for their products. (Now their caps are recyclable so this possibly changed). Saturday I was told they redistribute them to schools to use to make art projects.
Either way, I feel good about it.

Next, is a new one.
Did you know you can recycle old clothes at H&M?  Recently, Julie Johnson photographer/ blogger/ friend from Life Astonished posted about this not so long ago.

I know some of my clothes are so ratty they should not go to Goodwill or any other clothing donation for that matter, and consequently I have held on to them. But no more! H&M wants my old clothes. It wants your old clothes. It wants old clothes.
And if recycling pitted out ripped up clothes and freeing up closet space wasn't enough of an incentive, they also give you an in-store coupon for your effort.

Finally, one you probably know about, is shoe recycling. Look into where you can recycle your old shoes. I typically do a shoe roundup for me and my friends every couple of years and take a trek out to the Nike outlet, but more and more stores want your rubber soles.

See? Malls have something for everyone, even for the wary consumer.

Today's lesson: Do a little research, reduce, reuse and recycle.

How to Put a Cork in it: DIY Necklace

It's Summer.  I'm 2 days into break and am already blitzing through projects that have been on my list for at least a year.

Here's one that's been on the bottom of my list for far too long: make a necklace using these corks.
I love the texture, so when I found them in a vintage science kit, I grabbed them up.

  

I proceeded to neglect the corks for about 2 years, until last night.  I was itching to do something creative and my other projects (mostly things involving paint) need time to cure.  In an effort to cultivate patience I set up to make a necklace instead. 

First I found my sewing kit.  It was a present from Erin, who owns Yellow Bird Gifts.  Check her out! 

    

I also located 2 pieces of felt from a failed felt Peter Pan collar necklace that I attempted to make a little bit ago.  I laid out the corks on the fabric to see if it could work.  And it did!  

Waste not; want not.   

 

I used a safety pin to poke holes in each cork.  You could do this with a needle to save some steps, but I didn't want to risk bending a sewing needle.  

Then because the corks have a rustic texture, I marked each hole with straight pins so I wouldn't lose all of the holes I'd made.  I thought they looked pretty.

Because they do.

Then came the not so pretty part. I sewed the corks to the felt in the arrangement I'd planned.  I used upholstery thread because it was the closest color to that of the cork that I had.  I stitched as much behind the corks as possible, because I didn't want them to be very visible. 

This led to and irregular stitches and a very messy look. 

After stitching and securing each cork, I tacked on ribbon on the ends.  I could have also attached a chain, but I wanted to keep the media down to wood and cloth.

The good thing about a failed Peter Pan collar is that there are two pieces that failed and are identical.

I stitched the second piece over the foundation felt to help the necklace look more polished.

Polished is a relative term, I know because I'm clearly wearing corks.    But it works!