Recycling, Upcycling, & Salvage for Fun, Profit, & Practicality!

Reduce, reuse, recycle, is the catchphrase of environmentalists, but another phrase we hear a lot lately is "upcycling", also referred to as "trash into treasure" - Upcycle magazine defines this process as "taking an item that is no longer needed or wanted and giving it new life as something that is either useful or creative". Don't just throw away your plastics, junk mail, electronics, old clothes  - use your rescued resources to make something! If you are a craft-oriented person looking for a new hobby (or an activity to do with your kids) that's easy on your wallet and good for the planet, consider taking advantage of upcycling ideas from the library catalog.

Cool Odds and Ends Projects: Creative Ways to Upcycle Your Trash into Treasure by Pam Scheunemann

Cool Plastic Projects: Creative Ways to Upcycle Your Trash into Treasure by Pam Scheunemann

Trash-to-Treasure Papermaking: Make Your Own Recycled Paper from Newspapers & Magazines, Can & Bottle Labels, Discarded Gift Wrap, Old Phone Books, Junk Mail, Comic Books, and More-- by Arnold E. Grummer

Reinvention: Sewing with Rescued Materials by Maya Donenfeld

Recycled Home: Transform Your Home Using Salvaged Materials by Rebecca Proctor

Upcycling Celebrations: A Use-What-You-Have Guide to Decorating, Gift-Giving & Entertaining by Danny Seo

Puppet Play: 20 Puppet Projects Made with Recycling Mittens, Towels, Socks, and More! by Diana Schoenbrun [eBook only in our catalog]

Unscrewed: Salvage and Reuse Motors, Gears, Switches, and More from Your Old Electronics by Ed Sobey [eBook only in our catalog]

Salvage Secrets: Transforming Reclaimed Materials into Design Concepts by Joanne Palmisano

Make It!: Don't Throw It Away...Create Something Amazing! by Jane Bull

Cut-Up Couture by Koko Yamase

The Life of a Bowerbird: Creating Beautiful Interiors with the Things You Collect by Sibella Court

Unbored: The Essential Field Guide to Serious Fun by Joshua Glenn & Elizabeth Foy Larsen

Plastic-Free: How I Kicked the Plastic Habit and How You Can Too by Beth Terry