Conservatory of Flowers

The Transamerica building made out of old computer keyboards with the aluminum spire made out of CD discs. It was one of the buildings on the garden railroad at the Conservatory of Flowers in San Francisco.

The San Francisco Conservatory of Flowers in the Golden Gate Park has special exhibits that last a few months at a time. We came across an article on the internet about a garden railway exhibit but it was set to end this last weekend. It just so happened that we were able to go down and see it before the last day.
Garden railways are often found outdoors but this one was inside the building. The theme of the railway was San Francisco buildings made out of recycled items. Eleven landmark San Francisco structures were on the railway and it was interesting to try to figure out what was used to build them.
For instance, the Ghirardelli building was made out of light switch covers. Another building was built entirely of old cassette tapes. The Transamerica building was made out of old computer keyboards with the aluminum spire made out of CD discs.
The railway was a combined effort of many individuals and was constructed in only eight days. It consists of three separate loops of track that continually run trains without needing an operator.
The regular exhibits were also nice to go through. The Conservatory of Flowers is a large building that is divided into several environmental zones.
Upon entering the building the first zone is the lowland tropics, the next zone is the highland tropics, then the next is aquatic plants. There is also a section for potted plants and the section for special exhibits. Each zone is independently climate controlled for both temperature and humidity to resemble the climate from which the plants are native. In one it might be very warm and humid, but the next zone might be cool and much dryer.
The special exhibit is changed periodically. Starting May 7 and going to November they will have an exhibit called Edible Expeditions. Details are at: http://www.conservatoryofflowers.
Featured plants in this exhibit produce many food products that we use every day, such as chocolate, vanilla, coffee, rice and spices. According to conservatory descriptions, various demonstrations will explain how the food goes from the plant to the finished product.
The Conservatory of Flowers was completely rebuilt about seven years ago. They display over 1750 species of plants from dozens of countries, including Brazil and the Philippines. There are about 16,800 window panes in the building which are all whitewashed to reduce the light and heat intensity and to maintain the historical appearance.
The structure of the building is made mostly out of redwood, because it will not rot in the high humidity present in some areas. About two-thirds of the redwood was salvaged from the original building and reused in the present building.
The Conservatory of Flowers was a great experience. And it is within walking distance of several other attractions, such as the Museum of Science and the Art Museum. Our only advice in going is to get there early, as parking is quite limited.

More repurposed denim

Denim parrot and oatmeal canister covered in decorated denim. All denim used is from worn out jeans.

Great ideas are coming in. Several readers have given us suggestions for more things to be made with used denim jeans. Also one reader emailed us about a TV antenna he built that was similar to the one we wrote about several weeks ago in this column.
The web site he referred to in making his antenna is at: http://vimeo.com/2931902?pg=embed&sec=.
The denim ideas suggested are:
One reader called and said her mother cut squares out of used jeans and made a quilt. In the past we had heard about others that did this so we tried one too. Then about half way through we decided it was too heavy for us but not all was lost. We made it into a dog bed which we wrote about in our Aug. 24, 2007 blog "Dog bed."
Another reader emailed this idea: "My favorite use for recycling jeans when my sons were young was to turn the best fabric left into bean bags. We then gave a half dozen or so to the older sibling of a new baby when we delivered a baby gift. My own boys loved trying to toss the bags into a big plastic bucket on rainy days."
We also found more ideas to make using denim. One is at: http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2009/04/how-to_make_a_nature_can.html. It is an empty oatmeal canister covered with denim and decorated with felt cutouts. We made a similar one but used iron-on appliqués and various trims instead of the felt cutouts.
Next we came across a parrot pattern, Simplicity 3691, that suggested fleece fabric be used for their birds. We instead used denim.
Using denim was a little difficult to work with but it is doable. This was not a quick and easy project but if you really want one it does work. Fleece fabric is expensive and used denim is free. That made the difference for us.
Of course we never follow a pattern exactly. We started with view B and cut out all the pieces from blue denim except for the eye pieces. Those we cut from a used white twill pair of pants.
Next we sewed around the wing, tail and feet pieces about a fourth-inch in from the edge. Then we frayed the edges. The feet also have wire in them to make the bird stand up.
After machine sewing the bird body according to directions we attached the wings, tail and feet by hand. Then for the eyes we used a permanent black marker to draw the eyes and lines around the eyes.
This parrot is just for decoration and not a toy because of the wire used to make it stand up. But we found another child-friendly variation of this bird on the internet that used polyester fabric from outdated garments.
Pictures and explanations about changes are at: http://www.craftster.org/forum/index.php?topic=276223.0. They are changed to look a little more cartoonish.
Keep those ideas coming. It is fun to see and hear about what others are doing.

Repurposed denim jeans

Bucket bag pictured is repurposed from worn out denim jeans. Second photo shows extra strip to be sewn under butted together side seams.

Worn out denim jeans have been piling up at our house. Patches and mending can make jeans last a longer than normal life but even that comes to an end. We have used the worn out jeans for some craft projects in the past but still have piles of them.
In our search for ideas on how to make them useful again we came across a website on the internet that showed how to make bucket bags. The pattern used new fabrics but we thought worn out jeans would be just perfect for this idea.
Detailed directions are at: http://woolfoodmama.typepad.com/weblog/2007/06/my_bucket_bag_p.html. We used the dimensions given as a guideline for making our bucket but made ours a little larger.
Using the parts of the jeans that still have wear left in them we made a sample bucket bag. The lower portion of the legs worked great for the bucket sides. Further up on the back side of the legs was good for the bucket bottom. Strips for the handles came from other portions of the back legs.
First we cut the inside seams of the legs open. Laying them open flat we measured each for half the length of the bucket side and then double for the height. This way the outside leg seam is the top seam of the bucket. To avoid sewing over the thick side seams we cut one-inch wide fabric strips from another good part of the jeans, placed them under the side seams, then butt the seams together instead of overlapping them. We used a wide zigzag stitch to sew these seams together.
For decoration we sewed various widths and colors of rickrack and trims around the sides of the bucket and on the sides of the handle. The rickrack was hand sewn and the cording was sewn in the handle seams by machine.
To cover the bucket side seams we used wide bias tape sewed on with a decorative machine stitch. We also used a wide folded over trim to go around the outside bottom of the bucket instead of making the seam on the inside.
All the trims came from our stash that has grown over the years. As with all our craft supplies, we pick up trims from thrift stores, yard sales and even friends who are discarding things they no longer want.
These buckets are great to keep craft supplies in. They would also be good for children to keep toys in. If not enough drawer space is available for clothes the buckets could be used to keep socks and underwear in.
Used jean fabric can be used in many other ways. Our June 20, 2008 blog “Creative gift wrapping” shows how we used the legs from worn out jeans to make gift bags.
We would love to hear of other uses for used jeans. All ideas are welcome. Please leave comments.

Update: One of our readers called and said her mother made a quilt out of used jeans. We tried this once but about half way through we decided it was too heavy for us but not all was lost. We made it into a dog bed cover which we wrote about in our Aug. 24, 2007 blog "Dog Bed."
Another reader emailed this idea: "My favorite use for recycling jeans when my sons were young was to turn the best fabric left into bean bags. We then gave a half dozen or so to the older sibling of a new baby when we delivered a baby gift. My own boys loved trying to toss the bags into a big plastic bucket on rainy days.
Thanks for the ideas."

Improving digital TV

Homemade HDTV antenna.

The digital TV transition is here. For those that depend on an antenna to receive over-the-air TV broadcasts, getting the new digital signals may be a problem, even with converter box or using a new TV with a digital tuner.
Digital signals do not propagate as well as the old broadcasts. They can be blocked by buildings, hills or even trees.
The solution in many cases is to install a more sensitive antenna. Old rabbit ears and even older rooftop antennas may not be as effective as they once were.
We found an easy and inexpensive antenna project on the internet. It can be built in a couple of hours.
Directions are at: http://uhfhdtvantenna.blogspot.com/2007/01/post-any-questions-or-comments.html.
We built ours with scrap wood, four metal coat hangers, aluminum foil and a 75-300 ohm matching transformer. These are the steps we followed:
- Find a piece of scrap plywood, paneling or stiff cardboard 30 by 16 inches.
- Cover one side with aluminum foil.
- Attach a 2x4 to the foiled side of the panel. The 2x4 should be long enough to be useable as a stand.
- Cut out the “head” of each coat hanger. Then cut the bottom in half to make two vees from each hanger for a total of eight. Trim each vee to have seven-inch legs. Sand the elbow part to allow for electrical contact when assembled.
- Measure from the top of the 2x4, equally dividing the area of the 2x4 that covers the aluminum panel into four parts. Ours is seven-inches on center.
- Attach vees and hookup wire at the marked positions on the 2x4 with wood screws and washers. For wire we used leftover Romex wire, but any wire will do, even a straightened coat hanger. If a coat hanger is used sand it where it contacts the vees.
- There are two hookup wires, one for the right and one for the left. The wires are crossed at both the top and bottom vees. Insulate the wires where they cross.
- In the center of the 2x4, between the top and bottom two sets of vees, install the matching transformer. Attach the transformer leads to the hookup wires. Make sure the hookup wires do not touch each other.
Attach the antenna to a base of some sort. Then connect it to the TV (or converter box). We had excellent results with our antenna just sitting on the floor. It can also be installed in an attic or on the roof if it is built of durable materials.
The antenna is directional, meaning that it needs to be pointed at the broadcasting station for best reception. However, we found that ours worked just fine without aiming.
Broadcast station location and compass directions to aim an antenna are at: http://www.antennaweb.org/aw/Address.aspx. It is a marketing tool, but entering only a zip code will produce a list of broadcast TV stations for your area.
Improved signals are possible without spending a bundle. Try it for yourself.

Refashioning thrifted clothes

First photo: Refashion skirt is now a purse. Tank top and t-shirt refashioned made a summer maternity top. Second photo: a tank top cut from one more large men's t-shirt plus the inside bottom of the skirt purse.
Thrift stores are some of our favorite shopping places. This last weekend was no different. We headed down to Chico this time.
One store was having a special where shoppers could fill a large paper grocery bag with clothes from several tables. The cost was only $2 per bag.
We decided to see what we could get into a bag. Our final total was 18 items of clothing in one bag making them less 12 cents each. Then the challenge came, how to use the clothes we chose to stuff our bag with.
Several items fit us and we can use them as is. The rest we are using to refashion into other usable items.
The first item we decided to refashion was a size three toddlers skirt with shorts attached inside. It has butterflies embroidered along the front bottom. Very cute but we can not use that size. So an idea formed to make it into a purse for our adult daughter. She likes butterflies.
First we cut the legs off the shorts underneath. Then we cut a contrasting piece of fabric from another thrifted pair of women’s pants to sew onto the bottom of the cut off short. That formed the bottom of the purse.
Next we cut another strip of fabric from the same women’s pants to use for the purse strap. After sewing and turning the strap we attached it at the sides of the skirt. The end result was a very cute purse.
The next idea came when we paired a women’s small tank top with a man’s large t-shirt. We decided they would make a nice summer maternity top to donate to CareNet Pregnancy Center.
Taking the tank top we cut it off just below the chest. Then the men’s shirt we cut straight across about 13 inches from the bottom. Next we laid the tank top and t-shirt bottom together and cut the sides of the t-shirt to flair out a few inches.
After sewing the side seams of the t-shirt we attached the two together in the middle. The result did not seem to be roomy enough for a growing baby.
After thinking about what change could be made to make the bottom a little roomier we came up with plan B. We cut two slits, one on each side of the center front and inserted triangular pieces from the bottom of the tank top. That seemed to be just enough.
Now we only have about a dozen more items left to redesign into clothes or items that we can use or give to others to use. Refashioning is a fun challenge. It also saves money when we do not have to buy new items.
This time we spent only $2 and have five items all ready in use. More ideas for the rest of the items are forming as we write.
Additional refashion ideas can be found in our March 13 blog.

Paper modeling

Paper steak, carrots, plate, knife and fork shown on napkin and placemat.

Paper modeling is one of our favorite pastimes. Most of the paper models we make are downloaded from the internet for free. We recently came across one that we just had to build: the paper steak.
Most paper models depict a vehicle or building. Only a few are of animals or other organic things. The problem with such models is that it is difficult to get a proper representation of the subject. Most living creatures are made up of many compound curves and angles which are hard to duplicate in paper.
We found this model on http://www.wombat.zaq.ne.jp/fare/steak.html website. This particular website does in fact have several models of living things, including a paper hornet, a paper scorpion and a paper roast chicken at
http://www.wombat.zaq.ne.jp/fare/chicken.html.
The paper steak model is made up of two steaks, one cooked and one uncooked. Also included are two carrots, a plate, a knife and fork. We made the cooked version. The steak is mostly flat, which makes assembly easier. The sides are the steak are somewhat fiddly to get on, especially on the second side.
The carrots were also a challenge due to their small size. They are five-sided and fold so they come to a point at the end. The fork and the knife were easier to make, each consisting of several parts to give to appropriate thickness. The plate was the easiest to make, as it has only two parts.
We put the whole thing together in about three hours. Cutting out the pieces actually took more time than the assembly.
Recently we also acquired a model of the Kremlin. It is a Micromodels kit, published in book form. Originally the Micromodels were designed in the 1950’s and printed on post-card size 3 by 5-inch cards, which makes them really micro. The one we got was enlarged to double size and printed in 1983. Even at that, a lot of the parts are still fairly small.
Our copy of this book we found at www.paperbackswap.com. At this site books are swapped for the cost of postage only.
In doing some reading about the Kremlin we found out that the original building was designed as a castle to protect the local population from the Mongols. Its walls were first established in 1156 in Moscow. Gradually it was reinforced and expanded and in 1397 the first stone walls were built. As the Mongol threat diminished, the Kremlin became used more and more for government and church buildings. During the Romanov rule, which ran from 1613 to 1917, the famous cathedrals were built.
After the communist revolution in 1918 it was used completely for the government. It covers an area of approximately 64 acres and contains 26 major buildings, including Lenin’s tomb which lies outside the walls.
More information on card models can be found in these past blogs from 2008: “Card models and P&P games” on Dec. 19, “Card models” on July 18 and “Making Dune game” June 13.

Wardrobe refashion

Skirt made from a black extra large t-shirt with boarder trim. Pattern used was Butterick 5907 view c in one size smaller than normal to allow for stretch of knit fabric.

Wardrobe refashioning is a way to get new clothes at a fraction of the cost of new garments. It can even be done by spending no money at all!
Start with going through the closets and pulling out clothing that no longer fits or is no longer desired as it is. All these items are candidates to be refashioned into usable items of clothing.
Ideas for refashioning the old into new can come from catalogs, store sales flyers or the internet. There are even websites where people show off their refashioned garments such as http://nikkishell.typepad.com/wardroberefashion/. Websites like this can inspire many ideas.
A blog by Melynda found at http://countrygirlcouture.blogspot.com/ shows examples of refashions that she has done. Many of her ideas come from J. Crew. Their website is at http://www.jcrew.com/AST/Browse/WomenBrowse/Women_Feature_Assortment/NewArrivals.jsp?srcCode=GGLB00125&noPopUp=true.
Refashioning is a great way to learn to sew. Most ideas take some sewing skill and require the use of a sewing machine but some do not. But if mistakes are made the loss is small because the clothing was not being used in the first place. It was just taking up space in a closet.
Sometimes a refashion can mean adding trim or embroidery accents to an item to make it more fashionable. Or putting an appliqué over a hole or stain can make a piece of clothing usable again.
To completely change an article of clothing, say from a top to a skirt, may take a pattern. A place to get free patterns is http://www.burdastyle.com/patterns. A how-to for men’s boxers is at http://wkdesigner.wordpress.com/2008/08/19/boxer-shorts/. And thrift stores usually sell patterns for only 10 to 50 cents each.
Children’s clothing is the easiest to refashion. Instead of hand-me-downs make a hand-me-up. An example for a top is at http://blog.betzwhite.com/2007/10/hand-me-up.html. An example for pants is at http://blog.craftzine.com/archive/2009/03/howto_lengthen_kids_pants.html.
Another great site to make a child’s skirt is at http://whipup.net/2008/11/12/toddler-sweater-skirt-tutorial/. This one is made from an old sweater but the same thing can be done with a t-shirt.
One of our latest finds for ideas is how to use old, men’s ties to make scarves. This site is at http://redhenstudios.blogspot.com/2008/12/alchemy-necktie-scarves.html.
If inspiration does not hit with what is already in the closet the thrift stores are a great place to find items that can be refashioned. Shopping at yard sales can also yield clothes that are good candidates for a refashion.
Bed sheets are another great source when a large amount of fabric is required for a garment. Many even use just a pillowcase to make smaller things such as tops. An example of a top made from a pillowcase by Meg is on her blog at http://theclosetseamstress.blogspot.com/2009/03/how-to-wear-pillowcase.html.
Since summer is coming soon even cutting off long pants that probably have worn out knees and making them into shorts is refashioning. Cut long sleeves off to make short sleeves or even cut them all the way off to make a tank top.
Be creative and save money at the same time. See how many refashioned items you can make for your family.