As a maker, I spend a lot of time thinking about how to find the right balance between design, time, and materials. Repurposing is something that Lina and Vi is rooted in, since all of the burlap is upcycled from coffee bean burlap sacks. It's no surprise that I'm always thinking about ways to use the materials and time I have to create something that is new, beautiful, and unique. So today I am sharing my top three reasons for repurposing. Even if you are not a crafter, sewer, maker, or whatever the trend is calling it right now, thinking about how we can repurpose what we have in hand can help us be more creative and find solutions in a new way.
1. Save Money
This is a big one for me as I am pretty passionate about waste... wasting time, wasting money, and wasting the things we already own. Repurposing helps me find a new use for something, even if it's not always an exact fit. Sometimes we can be flexible and apply a tool or item in a new way and have the same outcome. I have a fond memory when I first went to live out on my own of attempting to make cookies and realizing I needed a rolling pin. I pulled out a tall drinking glass, turned it sideways, and improvised. Problem solved, money saved, and one less item in the kitchen with rare use. Sometimes it is not an exact fit but we can see past the limitations and focus on our main priority for what we need.
2. Stretch Creativity
Repurposing an object or finding a way to build on top of it to create something else helps me become more creative. By having to think about something in a new way, I have to come up with multiple ideas and see that thing in a different perspective beyond just what it is today. There is a reason that giving a team a set number of objects to build something new using only those materials is a common team building problem solving activity. When we repurpose something, even if it is just switching up decor in a room and moving it around in a new way, we force ourselves to stretch our creativity muscles. We build those muscles so they become stronger over time.
3. Build the Only One
There is a desire to have something unique to only us, and repurposing allows us to make something that truly is one of a kind. When I repurpose burlap into new zipper pouches or paint on the burlap to make a decorative burlap pillow, I am creating something that not only is handmade but is also difficult, if not impossible, to reproduce entirely. The challenge here is that we have to accept the flaws that come with a one of a kind repurposed item. Upcycling something means that you aren't starting from scratch but you are building upon what is already there and making it into some new form. That form didn't exist until you repurposed it, so there is definitely gratification in knowing that we came up with a new design that really is the single only one there is.
Those are my top three reasons for repurposing burlap. I hope you find some parallels in your life with how you choose to reuse, recycle, and repurpose things to help make your day more creative while saving some money and taking pride in a totally unique design.
Thanks for stopping by!
Erica
