Paper Jewels

I’m probably joining a very big bandwagon here, but I don’t care - they need to find a way to let Vermontasaurus live.

You’ve probably heard about it, but if not, here’s the short form: Brian Boland, a gentleman in Vermont, decided to turn a bunch of trash, scrap lumber, discarded broken ladders, and you name it, into a… well, a dinosaur-ish creature. This was apparently a spontaneous idea, and a fun one, and the stuff was just trash and junk, and he (and a bunch of volunteers) made - Ta Da - Vermontasaurus:

Vermontasaurus, The Only One Of His Kind

And they - the guvmint, the revooners, the permit people, the Official Nameless Ones, are probably going to make him tear it down. It’s probably a fire hazard, or somebody might stab themselves on a rusty nail, or maybe kids will god forbid play on it.

Yes, kids should probably stay off it. And I guess they have to think about the fire thing - although the ‘raw materials’ trash was allowed to collect, and nobody hollered about it. But either way, dammit, this is Art, or at least Fresh Air, this was spontaneous or so we’re told, and it’s fun. At a time when we could use a little of that - well we always need fun, truly - but right now? with all the bad news out there? Come on.

Let the Vermontasaurus live.

In my eternal quest for pretties for my home - that are attractive, useful, moderate in cost (or, well, cheap) - and bonus points if they’re paper - I found these goodies. Yum!

Just look at these wonderful colors!

and

These fabulous photos/prints/wall art can be found at Urban Design at Artfire. Her work is super affordable, she has lots of offerings, and you can see how talented she is. And her studio bio says she’s only been doing this for a year or so - I mean, wow!

Okay, you want to spruce up your place, and you want it to be (1) easy, (2) affordable, (3) great looking, and did I mention (4) easy?

You really should check out the vinyl wall art - stickers for grownups! at Savvy Gal Designs on Etsy.

Like this fabulous graphic:

These are great for renters - easy to apply *and* to take down.

Personalize your space! Not only can you apply them vertically or horizontally, you can choose your own color. Go for it!

I saw the most amazing creation over at Ecofriend.org. This building is a teahouse, very much in the tradition of a handcrafted Japanese structure - but this one is made entirely of recycled paper.

Now this time I’m not suggesting we should go build our house out of recycled paper - at least, not without an engineer’s knowledge of materials and how to adapt them to building techniques. But I do suggest that we could all be inspired by this structure.

One, we can learn - or remember, because we already know it - the all-important concepts of reuse, rethink, recycle… and “rethink” is a real important part of that trio. Take a look at some of the stuff you’re about to discard. Some of it can have a new life. Some of it can have a very COOL new life.

And if a building out of recycled paper isn’t in your immediate future - what about an ottoman or footstool, built with “bricks” you made yourself of paper? Or… well, you’ll think of things. Unleash your Mad Creative Scientist and make something for yourself!

Now this combines several of my passions - paper (natch), recycling and even more important RE-USING… also art, making your home comfortable and attractive, DIY-ness…. lots of good stuff.

This article from Sunset.com shows an example of re-using old CD jewel cases as “frames” for your art:

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Used in multiples like this, they make a great graphic statement - and even more special is that you can use a common theme - pics of your friends? landscapes? alien bugs? you name it! - or, maybe a similar color - all sorts of images in blue, for example. Truly it can be tailored to exactly what you like, or what you want to say.

And the graphics / pics you insert in the cases can be recycled, too. Gorgeous flower pics taken from old magazines? old pattern images?

How about cutouts from your kids’ drawings? Talk about a special, personal, and way fun decoration for your kitchen or alcove? I love that idea!

Okay, it’s not recycled paper - you know I like to recycle my fave medium - but it’s definitely recycled, and it is definitely art. Take a look, this is gorgeous!

This gorgeous display - wall art - cascade - was created by Michelle Brand via Green Design Girl.

I’m not suggesting you should copy her - but be inspired by her? Definitely. Can’t you see this in front of a window? or adapted to become, oh, the ‘door’ of a cabinet? (come on, work with me here). There will be ways we can take this inspiration and use it. If nothing else, hang it in front of a window.

(Don’t buy all those bottles though. Enlist everybody to save them for you.)

Couldn’t resist - the article in Apartment Therapy even called this “The Best DIY Ideas to Steal”. Well…okay! Take a look at this cool use-wallpaper-as-art example:

She’s surrounded the paper with molding to “frame” it. And has lots of other good inspiration-ideas

Wow. I found an incredible artist who works in paper - you won’t believe the intricacy. Take a look:

Intricate Hand-Cut Paper Art by Auyama Hina

My source is Paper Forest, a nifty blog that features paper in many incarnations. Another of her recent features is a fun do-it-yourself box:
- and yes, she includes “how to”s.

Check out her blog - and have fun