Wolf Bench

Wolf Bench

If you're looking for a great project, made from recycled material, you should consider making a bench for your entry way. This great bench was made from a glass pallet. We just painted it and added the drawers and fabric. This bench is great for shoes or blankets. You can personalize it to fit your style and colors. The best part is that you made it yourself and recycled in the process.

Carousel Mirror

Carousel Mirror

When it comes to Christmas and Birthday's, I have always made a special gift for my loved ones. It gets hard to come up with new ideas every time. One of the projects my husband and I have started doing is glass etching. It's pretty simple to etch glass either with etching cream or with an electric etcher. We have taken the etching a step further and began etching on the back of mirrors. It looks great and you can personalize any one of them to fit your needs. This Carousel Horse is one of our finished projects. Give it a try, it's easy.

Wood Burning Is Fun

Wood Burning Is Fun

When you're looking for a recycling idea, you might want to give wood burning a try. Wood burning is easy and quite fun to do. Some people say that the smell of the wood burning smells like popcorn. The only thing you have to keep in mind is that the fumes can cause headaches if you breath it in for a long period of time. To avoid headaches, just do the burning outside or in a room with a fan.

This wonderful wood burning is an example of the beautiful results you can receive with just a little bit of patience and dedication (since this "sofa sized" picture took over 60 hours to burn).

Don't let trying something new intimidate you, Wood burning is just as easy as coloring a picture with crayons, except the "crayons" are 900 degrees. Get out there and BURN!

"Harley" Bench

"Harley" Bench

Got a man garage? Consider making this great bench. One day, one of my husband's friends asked him to come up with a bench for her husband's "Man Garage", she was very specific about what she was looking for. "It has to hold shoes" she said. "Plus, it has to be a "Harley" bench" she added.

My husband went right to work making this bench. It turned out great! It made a great addition to his friends man garage, and best of all, the wood was all recycled!

Carousel on the Round Table

Carousel on the Round Table

My Mother-in-Law gave my husband and I an old round coffee table. We used the table for a couple of years before finally getting a new one. The problem was, there was nothing wrong with the table. Sure there were scratches and it looked like it came out of a Disco Club, but structurally, there were no issues.

I have a passion for Carousel Horses (Duh...Carouselshell). I look for reasons to have them around me. It was a no brainer when it came to what I was going to do to that old table.

My Husband removed the legs, and I drew a giant Carousel Horse. We glued the picture to the table top and began to Mosaic the picture with old plates and tiles. We hung the finished product on our workshop door, that's where it remains today. I Love it.

We've Gone Off the Rails

We've Gone Off the Rails

This really great plant stand was the perfect addition to our back yard. Believe it or not, it used to be a porch railing. My husband used to work for an awning company in south Florida, the job they were doing required them to remove a porch railing. Rather than throw away the old railing, my husband turned it into this great stand. This stand was original made to hold 3 fish tanks, One in the middle and one on each side. A few years ago, we moved to Illinois and no longer had a need for such a big fish stand.

In 2004 my husband and I bought a house. In our yard, we have a mature Honeysuckle vine, it was a mess! Now it has a home, and so does the stand. I guess you could say that we re-recycled that old railing. I Love this stuff!

*By the way... The 3 Bird housed hanging in the picture were also made with recycled material.

What the HECK is a "Pallet Fence"?

What the HECK is a "Pallet Fence"?

My husband works for a big company here in the Quad Cities. Twice a day they empty and dispose of the industrial pallets (7'X7' -300#). These pallets are eventually broken down into wood chips. What a waste!

Knowing that there had to be something he could do with them, he began to bring them home. Do you know how many 7' pallets it takes to fill a 50' driveway? about 72. Trust me I know, I had these in my yard for a year. I finally told him that we had to do something with them, since the neighbors were begining to ask questions.

Our yard measures 250' X 150'. We knew it would be an expensive chore to put up a privacy fence. But my genius husband had that covered. This is a picture of the finished fence that he made from those pallets. The final cost for materials was around $ 1500 for a 700' foot- 51/2 high wooden privacy fence. Not only did we get a unique fence, but we recycled thousands of pounds of wood that would have been thrown away.