We had a lot of fun hosting a series of Wednesday Workshops before Christmas, coming up with fun DIY crafts such as making stockings out of recycled sweaters, cinnamon ornaments, and recipes in a jar.
We will be holding two “handmade holidays” workshops this February. The first is on Wednesday, February 3rd, and the holiday we’re celebrating is the Super Bowl (ok ok, not technically a holiday but it could be). We will be making coasters to be put to use during your Super Bowl Party. The workshop will run from 4-5pm at 158 Eaton St.
The second workshop is the following week, Wednesday February 10th. This time we’re celebrating Valentine’s Day. Come to 158 Eaton St. to make romantic candlesticks out of spindles from old staircases. What a great way to ReUse! The workshop will run from 4-5pm. For both there is no fee, but a suggested donation of $5.
When I was at the Buffalo ReUse office on Eaton Street the other day, I noticed a pail of kitchen garbage. I know everyone composts whatever’s compostable at BR, but sometimes in the winter it’s a bit more difficult because you have to go out in the cold and snow to dump the garbage on the pile. So I told Caesandra I’d set up a worm bin they can put in the basement.
And remembering her dictum “If you didn’t take a photo of it, it didn’t happen”, I set up the camera and took some snapshots of the process.
Worm composting is an easy way to make use of your household food waste. The end result is a wonderful natural fertilizer for all kinds of plants. Step by step, here’s how to make a home for your garbage-eating worms.
Inexpensive plastic crates make good worm bins. This is a Christmas ornament box I bought at a discount store after Christmas one year. $5 each, the largest expense of the entire project.
As is, liquid can collect in the bottom. This might make the worms soggy, or at least make them avoid the bottom. Best to put a few drainage holes in to make it easier to keep the worms’ environment moist, not wet. It will, however, cause your bin to leak worm juice. You can catch it and put it on your plants, or, dogs love to lick it up – yum! Read the rest of this entry »
Join us for our third and final homemade holiday gift workshop. On Wednesday, December 16th, we will be making gifts in a jar. We have tons of old mason jars here and we’d like to reuse them as soon as possible. What better (and more delicious) way than to fill them with goodies from the kitchen and include an easy and fun recipe???! To me, the holidays are all about baking and eating!
This workshop will take place from 4-5 pm at 158 Eaton St. A $5 fee will cover the supplies needed for these cute homemade gifts. Make sure you don’t miss our last gift workshop!
You may already know that Buffalo ReUse has enjoyed working with Americorps WNY’s ABLE Program and Americorps Recovery for this last year. We already miss Matt & Micki. We know that Rachel and Ben will be leaving later in 2010. Much of what our Community Programs have accomplished would not be possible without their hard work. Buffalo ReUse is looking for 2 more VERY MOTIVATED folks with a heart for the community. We’re now accepting packets for a ReSource Educator and a Green Space Coordinator under Americorps WNY’s Service Corp Program. This means you get paid by Americorps (which is like the Peace Corps except you stay local) via a stipend for one year; there is also an award to pay down your student loans once you complete your service.
Both positions are full-time and hard work. Both positions focus on rebuilding sustainable neighborhoods and both report to the Director of Community Programs. Together, they represent a renewed commitment to providing information and access to resources and an improved quality of life for our neighbors.
Share this opportunity with folks you’d highly recommend. We need to fill these positions quickly as the start date is January. To read the full job descriptions please click on their respective link.
Incomplete applications will not be considered. To all applicants, please make sure your packet details your experience in the field and that each file of your packet contains your last name. Impressive packets will receive follow up questions and a phone interview; top candidates must also have a second interview on-site and must complete an Americorps Orientation session.
For our second handmade gift workshop, we will be making cinnamon-scented ornaments. We will make them in a variety of holiday shapes, and everyone will be able to leave with several ornaments.
This craft workshop will take place Wednesday, December 9th from 4-5 pm at 158 Eaton St. It’s GREAT for the kids!! Like last week, a $5 fee will apply for supplies. Bring your holiday spirit!
ABC’s hit show “Extreme Makeover Home Edition” is coming to the Queen City! This exciting opportunity brings with it the chance to use the momentum gained by the national spotlight to fuel the revitalization of an entire neighborhood in the matter of days. You have the opportunity to improve not only one family’s life, but the entire surrounding community. This will be a great chance to show that Buffalo really is the City of Good Neighbors.
David Homes is designing and building an environmentally friendly home starting November 7th and lasting for one week. To sign up as a helping hand, go to http://www.davidhomesextreme.com/. They will need help with Food, Non-Skilled Construction Labor, Check-In, Media, Hospitality, Parking, Trash, Traffic, Barricades, Loading and much more. Join the Buffalo ReUse staff in this unique service experience!
As the weather turns colder, we will be working in the gardens less and less. Buffalo ReUse is switching our focus to the house we are rehabbing. The upstairs currently holds our offices, and the downstairs – eventually – will be our Community Space. The vision is for the first floor to be a space where church groups, women’s groups, boy scouts, etc can gather and hold meetings. There will be a computer with internet access, a copy machine, and a DIY book lending library, to mention a few things. HOWEVER, this house still needs LOTS of work, and that is why we need YOU.
As part of our community programming, we hold free workshops on gardening and home repair every week. The home repair workshops are usually modeled around what needs to be done in the house at the time. Past workshops include: DryLoking the Basement Walls, Installing Insulation, Tiling the Bathroom Floor, and ReFinishing Stairs. We are asking for volunteers to :
1.) Lead workshops. If you are a handyman and can help us repair holes in our drywall or reglaze our windows or any other home repairs, please let us know. We will arrange a day and time for your workshop which will be advertised on our monthly calendar.
2.) Attend workshops! If you are not so handy but are willing to help us out, please come to one or two of our workshops. We learn as we go along, so most of the time we may be pretty clueless too. But the more the merrier, and then you can bring your new-found skills back to your own home.
Contact volunteer {at} buffaloreuse(.)org if you would like to host a workshop or participate in one. Our monthly calendar of free workshops can always be found on our website.
There’s a buzz in Buffalo–snickering and whispering and “What Iffing” because of the Swinger’s Convention up in the Falls–4 days of hanky panky. I sure hope they stay hydrated! I’ve actually wanted to write about swinging for a long time and now that the events at the Holiday Inn are smoldering in people’s minds–I couldn’t hold back. Can I tell you a secret? I actually know some folks in Buffalo who started a very special key party of their own! This group of couples have an assortment of skills and they share them with each other different nights and weekends as their schedules allow. When I first heard about it I wanted to blab to everyone, but then they cautioned me to be discrete because they want to keep it somewhat exclusive.
It’s not scandalous or anything, but Peter & Tamara swap… houses! Yep, they do–with 2 other couples on Manchester Place. They created a small network of neighbors who’ve learned some home improvement skills and they go over to each others’ houses as a group and tackle those respective Honey-Do lists like painting the kitchen, tiling the bathroom or installing cabinets or ripping out carpet. Of course, they open a bottle of wine and they order chinese or a pizza and make an evening of it. It’s not controversial, it’s not even risque’ (drat.) I am sure it happens in kitchens and baths all over America–or at least I hope it does! Peter says he loves it–”doing chores with friends makes for light work.” They rotate the houses and tasks–one weeknight a month.
It’s just an idea–go ahead and start fantasizing about what you can get done in your house with intimate friends–why else are you staying up in middle of the night watching all those DIY videos and that HGTV on cable? If you don’t have any skills in that department we can certainly help you, since we have those types of free workshops all the time.
As you’re writing your holiday cards and thinking about gifts for your friends and neighbors who you’ll stand next to at the eggnog bowl this season . . . Why don’t you take a risk? Raise a few eyebrows by suggesting a key party–ReUse style!
I bet you’ll get some takers.
Meet the Patty Pan, a uniquely- shaped and rather large squash, grown right in our own children’s vinery! We are proud to announce that we have had several grow, and we harvested 4 and gave them to 3 employees and 1 super volunteer with a challenge attached to it.
Nhan, Peter, Matt, and Caesandra were told to experiment with these veggies and to post the results. The recipe challenge has begun, and as you can see in this awesome video below, made by super volunteer Nhan, her patty pan looks like it turned out DELISH!
Stay tuned for updates on the challenge, and feel free to contribute your own recipes!
The Buffalo News caught up with our friend and supporter David Lanfear of Bale on Bale Construction, and got a tour of his green roof, perched atop his small garage at his home on the West Side. Look, Caesandra – he has strawberries!
We had a lot of fun hosting a series of Wednesday Workshops before Christmas, coming up with fun DIY crafts such as making stockings out of recycled sweaters, cinnamon ornaments, and recipes in a jar.
The second workshop is the following week, Wednesday February 10th. This time we’re celebrating Valentine’s Day. Come to 158 Eaton St. to make romantic candlesticks out of spindles from old staircases. What a great way to ReUse! The workshop will run from 4-5pm. For both there is no fee, but a suggested donation of $5.
Join us for our third and final homemade holiday gift workshop. On Wednesday, December 16th, we will be making gifts in a jar. We have tons of old mason jars here and we’d like to reuse them as soon as possible. What better (and more delicious) way than to fill them with goodies from the kitchen and include an easy and fun recipe???! To me, the holidays are all about baking and eating!
For our second handmade gift workshop, we will be making cinnamon-scented ornaments. We will make them in a variety of holiday shapes, and everyone will be able to leave with several ornaments.
Meet the Patty Pan, a uniquely- shaped and rather large squash, grown right in our own 
