Recyclability | Personal Agenda
If any of you have read my other blogs about recyclability, you will know that I sort of think recycling is mostly hype. Reusing is where it's at. It's where we, as individuals, have the most power to impact the issue of waste and create better lives for ourselves.
Today in class (yes, that's right . . . I'm doing this blog at the very last minute, just hours before it is due) we talked about what kind of monetary compensation we, as designers, can expect in exchange for our amazing design skills. Since I'm pretty sure I'm not the 'superstar' designer that all companies are looking for, I might be offered something around $20k per year for the privilege of working my butt off for an ungodly number of hours per week. Even if I'm working for Duffy (wishful thinking) I'll still have to figure out how to live on that teensy weensy bit of money.
Now, I've been living on a pittance for several years, so I know how to do it, but I have to admit that I haven't been all that creative about it. You come over to my house and you just think "Damn, she's poor." That's all over. I've discovered that with a little creativity, some elbow grease, and a good amount of quirkiness (don't worry, you all qualify) we can live quite stylishly on very little cash-moola-greenbacks. It's all about REUSING!!
Myself, I'm going to start right off by shopping for an old Airstream trailer to make my home, but if mobility isn't a priority for you, the 'Redneck Mansion' might be a great place to settle in and put down some roots.
Furnishing your abode should be no problem: Aluminum cans, cardboard, abandoned shopping carts, and old compact discs with four years of homework assignments (useless for your portfolio) can all be repurposed into seriously chic furniture.
For those little touches that make a house a home, check out the
Goddess of Garbage. She can show you how to turn any old piece
of junk into a treasure!
Here are a few of my favorite sites for creative reusing and repurposing:
http://ecoble.com/2008/03/12/10-unusually-creative-ways-to-recycle-ordinary-objects/
http://www.instructables.com/id/Cardboard-shelf-for-groceries/
Oh my, Barbara! I think you took some of the concepts from lecture a little too far...!
Just kidding, this is very clever. I can't believe someone actually made that Redneck mansion.
Well, the 'redneck mansion' is actually a set for the Theater het Amsterdam Bos, a Dutch theater group. It was created by Catherina Scholten for a 2005 production of Anton Chekhov's Ivanov. But it's really cool, right? I think I could live there.