The website is called ToolGirl….more like Cool Girl (ba dum psh). I came across it while searching for ways to reuse wine corks, and was very impressed with the nifty projects Mag Ruffman features on her site.

One awesome idea is the counter made of books. It would be especially cool for a bookstore, though it would work anywhere. Let’s face it, everyone has a collection of hard cover books that they’re likely to never read again (especially with all this new e-book technology) so why not reuse them in a productive way?

Or, if you have kids who have outgrown their lego phase, how about this idea? Very unique and it would make a great conversation piece when you have guests over! It just takes a lot of patience…and about 20,000 lego pieces. But I would LOVE it if someone gave one of these ideas a try!!

Info here.

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Watercolor Artist Jody Ziehm has transformed the children’s room in the Lewiston Library with images of vibrant, whimsical creatures, all reading books. What’s more, she’s painted these pictures on doors, and included vintage doorknobs from Buffalo ReUse! “I’ve always felt the library opens doors for people of all ages,” said Zeihm, explaining her inspiration.

View a slideshow of the series of art from the Lewiston Library here!!

Next wednesday, March 10th, Buffalo ReUSE is hosting a tin ceiling workshop at 2pm. The workshop will be at the ReSOURCE. For those who do not know, this is our store (where you will find many great things that you may or may not need), so check it out for yourself! 298 Northampton.

If it is nice outside, plan on being outdoors catching some rays and fresh air. Hopefully the weather will be like it has been this week.

I have included a previous blog from one of my colleagues that was written in the past. It includes a great history of tin ceiling as well as the steps that are involved in tin ceiling restoration that we will be partaking in. 

Some may think tin ceiling is out of date, but with a little creativity anyone can come up with different uses for it and bring back its original sublimity. Come next week to find out some neat ways!

Who knew coffee filters could serve so many purposes? Better than paper towels, and a lot less expensive! Thanks Marsha for finding these interesting ways to use coffee filters. Here’s my top ten:

1. Cover bowls or dishes when cooking in the microwave. Coffee filters make excellent covers.

2. Clean windows, mirrors and chrome…coffee filters are lint-free so they’ll leave windows sparkling.

3. Filter broken cork from wine – If you break the cork when opening a wine bottle, filter the wine through a coffee filter.

4. Hold tacos. Coffee filters make convenient wrappers for messy foods.

5. Stop the soil from leaking out of a plant pot. Line a plant pot with a coffee filter to prevent the soil from going through the drainage holes.

6. Use as a disposable snack bowl for popcorn, chips, etc. Less dishes to wash.

7. Use them to sprout seeds. Simply dampen the coffee filter, place seeds inside, fold it and place it into a plastic baggie until they sprout.

8. Use them to wrap Christmas ornaments for storage.

9. Keep in the bathroom, they make good “razor nick fixers”.

10. Protect china by separating your good dishes with a coffee filter between each dish.

<–One crafty person made a dress out of coffee filters!

And if none of these ideas sound good to you, they are always great to use in your coffee maker.

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.

Hope to see you there!!

Today is Michael Gainer’s 35th birthday!  If you see him, pinch him on his cheeks; he deserves it!  While Michael celebrates today, I wanted to remind you to mark your calendar because ReUse will celebrate our 2nd Anniversary (as an organization) in our traditional way–with music, art and merriment!  Join us and 18 local artists who are participating in this year’s 2008 ReFind Arts Exhibition on Thursday, October 23rd from 6:30-10pm.  Come and see how artists have transformed beat up or discarded doors into clever sculptures.  The party is at Grant Street Gallery near the corner of Lafayette and Grant. 
Fudgychewy will perform and I am convinced your shoulders, hips and feet will groove you–you might even make goofy faces.  Click on their logo to hear a sample. This event is free to the public.  We’ll also recognize all our volunteers and supporters who’ve given so much of their time and effort. Michael might get all weepy and sniffle in his cider–it’s probably because he’s getting emotional in his middle 30s.

p.s. Artists may still submit entries until the 15th contact refindarts {at} buffaloreuse(.)org
call for artists

Have you ever walked inside of a painting? If you have, I suspect it was probably confined within the floorplan of an art gallery or museum and it was a temporary installation. But what if your whole neighborhood existed inside of a painting? How long would it last and how long would it take to construct something so large? And what if the city came in and bulldozed your painting? Would you just give up or move to a different neighborhood or different city?
The Heidelberg Project is a unique neighborhood artscape which began 22 years ago when artist, Tyree Guyton transformed one abandoned crack house on his block in Detroit with discarded stuffed animals and remnants of urban life. He finished that house and started another one. He even painted the lots, sidewalks, burned out cars and everything else between. Today the Heidelberg Project, a local landmark, is a two-block area on Detroit’s lower east side and the third most visited tourist site in Detroit!

The Heidelberg Project is structured as a nonprofit organization whose mission is to improve the morale, lives and neighborhoods through art. “It is not simply art,” says Guyton, “the Heidelberg Project is more like a medicine. You can’t heal the land until you heal the minds of the people.”

Another unique artists’ neighborhood exists in Houston, TX where artist Rick Lowe created a space where artists and the public exchange community back and forth. Project Row Houses transformed 22 dilapidated shotgun houses into studio and exhibition spaces for artists to work and live and share with one another. The artist are selected and rotate out of the row houses every six months.

Please do not dismiss the value artists bring a community. Artists are boundary pushers and they know how to sacrifice and translate vision into reality. To hear more about the Heidelberg Project and Project Row House from the artists themselves, please join us at the Great Lakes Building ReUse Conference 2008! Register for the conference before October 9th to receive the discounted rate.

We hope you’ll be as excited as we are to speak with Tyree Guyton and Jennene Whitfield from Heidelberg Project and our other keynote speakers including:

• Michael W. Groman, Senior Director, Philadelphia Green Program, Philadelphia, PA. Groman’s program transforms and maintains thousands of vacant lots to increase economic investment and improve the quality of life in hundreds of Philadelphia neighborhoods.
• Jay Williams, Mayor of the City of Youngstown, Ohio has no illusions that he resides over a shrinking city, in fact, he fully embraces the “shrinking city” concept. His administration plans to strengthen the urban center through right-sizing; neighborhoods that are emptying out will be converted to greenspace through targeted demolition and development.
• and others in the field of hybrid deconstruction and building reuse.

The conference is about putting you in same room with ideas and policy makers who can enable similar projects for Buffalo (or where ever you’re living).

Great Lakes Building ReUse Conference
November 16 – 18, 2008
Hyatt Regency Buffalo
www.greatlakesreuse.org

1.716.885.4131
2008conference {at} greatlakesreuse(.)org

Buffalo ReUse announces our 2nd annual ReFind Arts Exhibition (formerly known as ReArt). This year’s show is Accessing the Imagination and we invite artists to reinterpret doors! It can be art on doors or with doors or of doors. The doors can come from anywhere–your basement, your gramma’s house, your neighbor’s curb. Artists can make functional or nonfunctional pieces–reassemble the door into a bunk bed, a gate to the 4th dimension, or a portrait of Monty Hall! Dip it in wax, string it with neon tubes, cover it with skeleton keys or ketchup, mustard & sweet relish–it’s up to you.

Deadline is October 15, 2008.
(please send jpgs/proposed plan to us so we can jury the show for variety)
Submissions/Questions should be sent to refindarts {at} buffaloreuse(.)org We’ll consider up to 5 works per artist.  $20 entry fee due upon acceptance/dropoff of work.

We do have some beat up doors set aside that “only an artist would love” and they’re just $5 each. We will accept jpgs or link to images of the works.

Please contact us if you’re also interested in assisting with the exhibition: see last year’s show here.

Wednesday, June 18

Carvings for a Cause Fundraiser-Buffalo’s historical figures will “come to life” at Carvings for a Cause Fundariser at the Town Ballroom, beginning at 6:00 p.m. The event will feature a film documentary “red carpet” premiere by Canisius College Video Institute, historical carvings will “come to life,” food stations, live music and auction items related to the 2006 storm, as well as environmental themed auction items.

Monies raised from this event will go towards assisting Phase II of the project, which includes a Carvings for Cause Tree Sculpture Park, a map & guide, audio tour, transporting and storage of the trees, and future maintenance, in addition to helping re-tree Western New York.

Tickets to the Carvings for a Cause fundraiser are $40 at the door or $30 presale, available at J.P. Bullfeathers (1010 Elmwood Ave.), Grille 620  Holiday Inn (620 Delaware Ave.), the Town Ballroom box office, or

www.tickets.com