Upcycling What?

Kind of a confusing word. It's almost the opposite of recycling, which takes items and turns them into still usable, yet not as-high-quality products as they were before. Of course, not all recycling turns items into lower-quality items, but a lot of the time, that's what happens.

Upcycling, on the other hand, takes trash and turns it into treasure -- almost quite literally. When you upcycle an item, you turn it into something new that has equal to or greater value than it did before.

Here's an example of an item that is commonly both recycled and upcycled: The plastic bottle.

By now, most everyone recycles their plastic bottles. If you're not, I highly suggest you start doing so. But this product is so common that it has made its way into upcycle projects such as hummingbird feeders and automatic waterers for pets. Plastic bottles also make excellent mini-greenhouses for your seedlings.

Here, I upcycle quite a few things, even if only on the most basic of scales. A lot of what I do could be considered repurposing, which leads to more confusion. Repurposing is taking an item and simply using it as something other than what it was intended for. I repurpose small flower pots into pencil holders, but I upcycle small flower pots into decorative bells and knick-knacks.

Today, I cut off the bottom of a cereal box and decoupaged newspaper scraps all over it. It's going to hang beside my desk as a holder for my specialty markers. I'm going to make a few more when I'm done eating the cereal for note cards, stationery, etc.

Not finished yet, but you get the idea ...

It's all about finding things that you know you can use and using them instead of throwing them out. Another idea I recently saw was turning old feed troughs into garden containers. The picture I saw looked as though the feed troughs were brand new, but what an easy way to add a rustic look to your yard, deck or patio.

I also upcycled a long, rectangular, horizontal box into a vertical shelving unit. I turned old forks and a block of scrap wood into a coat hanger. I turned old forks into curtain holders and jewelry hooks. I could probably go on and on ..