Saturday 30 October 2010

dimentians of recycling!


I promise you it's not a spelling mistake!  I worked with a group of dementia sufferers and their carers this morning at their 'dementia cafe' and my Sophie couldn't remember the word dementia and used dimensions, which I thought was rather a fab play on words!  Anyway, getting to the point, we made little notebooks pretty much entirely from recycled materials, so I thought I'd share the steps with you here!  It was such a fun morning, with lots of laughter, singing, and new friends made :)

To make the book, have a rummage around the house and find some cardboard such as an Amazon box, discarded envelopes, the dregs of a matchpot of emulsion paint, string/twine, buttons and old book paper/music paper.


Cut two pieces of cardboard 7.5cm x 10.5cm


Tear off strips of the paper covering on one side of each of the pieces.


Use a piece of kitchen towel to smear some emulsion or acrylic paint over the card.  If you rub in a couple of colours it looks amazing!  I just wish I'd taken pictures of some of the work from this morning!


Trim at least 6 pieces of paper measuring 15cm x 11cm (that's 1/4 of an A4 sheet)

[digression:  the shift button on the numeral 4 on my keyboard gives me a $, so I  have £s and $s available; I was surprised to discover recently that US keyboards don't feature £s - I know I shouldn't be surprised, but I was!!!] 


Fold the papers in half, nest them together like a little book, poke two holes (no need for precision)  and tie a piece of string through.


Use double sided sticky tape, or a pritt stick to glue the card covers to the little book.  
Decorate using a flower and a button.  The button isn't sewn on.  I tie a piece of
string through before gluing it down :)




You can then decorate the pages inside with torn pieces of text...


and punched shapes...


Just outside the community centre where we met this morning was this gorgeous owl - isn't he fab?





8 comments:

  1. we just HAD this conversation about the pound and $ sign, didn't we, so now I will google to see if I have access to yours!
    Love the play on words and a terrific project for the group...you always know how to come up with what works! xx

    ReplyDelete
  2. btw....all it takes is 'alt'0163...I will have to put that on a post it note...: ) xx

    ReplyDelete
  3. Sounds as if you had loads of fun...and I love the recycling book, you are a girl after my own heart.....lol..... that is a terrific owl sculpture...wow.
    Annette x

    ReplyDelete
  4. An amazing book Sarah, what a great project. B xxx

    ReplyDelete
  5. LOOOOOOVE this project--what a great idea! You are everywhere! SO TALENTED and sharing your love of crafts! LOVE IT:) Great notebook! Must try this--never think of recycling (for projects) until I threw the item away that I needed! LOL!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. What a fabulous project Sarah! You are so creative & always thinking outside the box! Recycled or creative box that is ;)

    ReplyDelete
  7. Hi Sarah! Your artwork is always so new and fresh. I love this little book and your tutorial on how it's done. I'm sure the group you work with just adores you!...Oh, and that little baby owl peeking out of the hole is sooo cute! Happy November, Sweetie! xo Paulette

    ReplyDelete
  8. This is fantastic, Sarah. I adore books made from any recycled materials. It is one of my favourite activities. I am not good on signatures though....can never find a needle.
    I love the way you have incorporated so many different recyclable items. Brilliant!!
    Sue xx

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for leaving a comment; it makes my day!!

LinkWithin

Related Posts with Thumbnails