Endless Possibilities

I (Jelena aka Poppyseed) consider myself thrifter extraordinaire. It is really the thrill of the find that keeps me going. I see something, inspect and evaluate it, quickly develop a revamp strategy in my head, scoop it up and allow my imagination to transform it into something fresh and new. Luckily, I don't have a problem parting with my creations, as otherwise I could easily be classified as a hoarder. That of course is a general statement, but this little sewing chest really captured my heart and soul. Unfortunately I didn't take proper before picture and only have this one to share.

before

To quickly give you an idea of the state of the piece I will describe it as bland, boring and somewhat rickety, but nothing that my screw driver, paint rollers and brushes could not change.

after

I am not a sewer in general, so to use it as a sewing kit storage would be a waste of a resource for me. Instead I decided to put it in my bathroom and make it into a new home for my nail polishes, creams and other random stuff that crams the medicine cabinet. Since it sits on casters, it will be fun rolling it into other rooms or wherever I decide that the "beautification" process should take place.

That is only one of the possibilities, it could also serve as a fabulous jewelry box.

If my bed was any closer to the ground, it would function as a miniature night stand, as this is one of the things I am in desperate need of, but due to space constraints I still live without one.

You will likely be able to see it first hand at one of the craft shows that Freedom will be attending this year where it will serve as one of the display props.
It just crossed my mind that it would also make a great accessory to your coffee table. At this point you are probably wondering how. If you are like me and dealing with 1001 remote controls you can easily shove them inside the cabinet, or bring it closer to the couch when you are nicely nested in the pillows and rest your wonderful choice of beverage on it.

If I was a tea aficionado, I would use it on the kitchen counter (sans the wheels of course) and display all the wonderful tea selection as well as tea making accessories.

So there you have it. The title says endless possibilities and I have listed a few. If you have an idea of an alternative use potential for this thing, please do email or comment on this post. We would love to know what your thoughts are on this.

Happy Earth Day, Earthlings

By following our blog and other online activities you surely know that we are big on the sustainability factor in everything we do - from the way we live, to the way we run and promote our business. We are constantly on the lookout for new upcycled products and stories of people who make them.
(For all of you who are unsure of the meaning behind term upcycling here is the definition as per Wikipedia: Upcycling is the process of converting waste materials or useless products into new materials or products of better quality or a higher environmental value.) You have probably already seen the Freedom Reconstructed upcycled line of products that Freedom has recently launched as our house brand. Under the Reconstructed label we are currently offering mini wallets and make-up pouches made from leftover fabric from other projects, clocks made from unwanted plates and chalkboards nested into vintage picture frames.

Just recently we have introduced refurbished lamps into our portfolio. To maximize on the green factor, we are reusing as much of the original hardware as possible, but for safety reasons, we outfit each and every one of them with a brand new electric cord.

Our pillows are made from sample fabric swatches like the ones you would find in upholstery shops. And the little dresser is actually a jewelry box that we are hoping to bring in more of those. And (below) these awesome hangers came about by pairing a beautiful piece of wood with some random drawer pulls that were left over from some past projects.

In case you are not into sewing and drilling and would much rather celebrate the Earth in an alternative way, how about by doing some gardening. We are now also selling organic seeds by Cubit's Organic Living. If you check their website, you will see that Laura is also sharing a ton of tips on growing and caring for vegetable plants and is also posting cooking recipes to offer some incentives for the patient growers.

Our friend Kate from Kate Made This  is showing her love for Mother Earth with a giant crochet hook. If you read her story you will learn that she repurposes old sheets and makes them into these soft, colourful and cozy one of a kind area rugs.

If you haven't heard, Ecoholic Body, third book by Adria Vasil  launched just in time for Earth Day and you have a chance to win a copy here.

Adria is the author of two other books, Ecoholic  and Ecoholic home. In her books she provides you with insights and tips on how to live the most environmentally sustainable life.

For ever more tips on green and eco living check out this webiste and learn about adopting new habits that will make a positive impact on the environment.

Green Living Show 2012

One more week till the Green Living show! 

Jelena and I have been hard at work making some really cute up-cycled pieces especially for this show. The wonderful thing about the Green Living show is that you can get free admission by saving garbage from the landfill. Just bring old electronic waste to be recycled... so easy!

Some of our fantastic designers will be showcased, like: 

Rae Designs - recycled felt necklace below

The Woodlot - products made from naturally fallen trees, Priya - mostly organic all natural body products, Textile Platypus - hand felted and dyed mini toy marvels, and Maggie an assortment of goods from recycled glass and china!

Major Deals on our Red Package!

We've teamed up with Project Salvage Earth which is a great online directory for fantastic green businesses in Canada. They promote those who encourage green lifestyles.

Our Red Package is a little collection of up-cycled house wares. Each piece has been carefully selected and designed to bring beauty and usefulness to your home decor.

and what's even better?

This little package is going to be on super special! So you can save the planet and your wallet.

This is a sneak peek, it's not up yet but we'll give you a heads up when it is :)

Scrap Fabric Donations

We are sure that by now you are all well aware of the fact that we love turning perceived "nothings" into beautiful "somethings". We are now looking for your unwanted fabric, random scraps from your past projects, no matter the size, we can work with it all. Upholstery grade fabric or other durable varieties are actually what we are most in need of, and if you think that you may be able to part with yours, we would be delighted to offer them a new lease of life.

Donations can be made in our store at 939 Bloor street West.

We thank you kindly in advance

Karen, Marsya and Jelena

Short but killer sweet Clock Video

Freedom Reconstructed from Freedom Clothing Collective on Vimeo.

Custom Wall Organizer / Cardholder / Letterholder DIY

fabric chosen for a custom piece - Arctic Animals

Life in the city often means limited living space, so here is a great project that will help you utilize your vertical wall space to its fullest potential. This tutorial will teach you how to make a fabric card or letter organizer that hangs on your wall to keep you organized.

It's decorative, easy, useful and sustainable!

this wood is from a badly stickered up wine crate that we took apart, rearranged glued and screwed into place.

stretched and stapled to board

What you will need:

- a piece of found or left-over wood (ask your friends; someone will have something)
- a piece of fabric larger then the piece of wood
- some ribbon or twill tape or rope or anything you could find
- batting
- staples and staple gun
- a helper (not necessary but it makes things easier and more fun! Mine is the furry little cutie in the pic above; can you spot her?)
- upholstery thumb tacks
- a picture hanger

If you can or are able to find someone that would cut the piece of wood to your desired size, than do so. Cut the batting to the same size as the wood.  If you are stapling it by yourself it's a good idea to glue the batting to the wood so it doesn't move around on you. Place the fabric over batting and wood and flip to the opposite side and stretch/staple fabric like you would a canvas. Check out this YouTube Video tutorial (of course, this is showing you the trick on a frame but the same principles apply when stretching). Flip it right side up and place ribbon any way that sparks your fancy, have them criss cross once in a while so you can tack them down with the thumb tacks. Pin them in place and flip over to staple them down, remove pins. If you want a very finessed look on the backside you can mod-podge some beautiful paper or some pretty fabric. Nail in the picture hanger, hang and love it. (For more intense instructions please email us or call us, this is a quick and rough run through.)
If you would like a one-on-one onsite workshop or a custom piece, please contact us!
Some other styles are here >> Etsy

Finished! It doesn't always have to be for letters and cards.

You did a good job! 

It's a tough one, but definitely worthwhile. Now, you deserve a good siesta!

Lampshade DIY

I (Jelena) have wanted to learn to make a lamp shade for a long time, I have followed blogs, online tutorials, talked to people who are really good at it, but every time I got to it, something went wrong and I ended up abandoning the project. As a spirited crafter I found it really annoying that there was a seemingly easy project out there that I was not able to master. So I started looking for ways to make a lampshade and that will guarantee success. And I found it. I armed myself with a pair of scissors, jute twine, and old lampshade and lot of patience.



To start I removed the fabric from the shade and tied a knot at the top of the structure where one of the vertical bars connected with the top ring and started wrapping it with twine as tightly as possible making sure that the metal ring was not showing through. And then continued on to the body. As I reached each one of the spokes I wrapped the twine once around it and proceeded to the next. This way I made sure that each of the spokes was neatly wrapped and that the twine was secure in place without worrying that it will start sliding down.

I was quite happy with the outcome, but thought that some decor would be a welcome addition. So I asked Karen for some left-over fabric and buttons from her sewing projects and little abstract flowers/starbursts were created.
The only remaining thing was to pair the shade up with an equally quirky lamp base.

And there you have it. The lamp is available for purchase at  our store or online via Etsy.

If you find this entry inspiring enough to attempt to make your own shade, send us some photos of your work, we will be delighted to share it on our blog.

Upcycled Candle Holders

I love browsing through AAnthropologie catalogues and looking for inspirations. These guys do things so well. So, browsing through the most recent catalogue I came across these gorgeous candle holders named Trinkets and Treasures, but at the sticker price of $398 per stick you better treasure them for life.
As a maker of things, I studied the picture a bit and decided to make my own version of these lovelies so I headed out and sourced all the goodness that I could find to make an awesome candle stick. I decided that starting off with an old lamp base would be a good way to go, as the middle rod that would normally house the electric cord would offer good support for the body and would allow me to turn it into a lamp should I choose to do so.

I, of course, bought more trinkets than I could use, but building a stand like this is a creative process that takes time, each one of them went through several iterations before I landed on the final concept. Having a few extras helps as drilling through some of them is a tedious task, and they do tend to break from time to time.

So here is the end result - three candle sticks that I am quite proud off and some left over material for the next one. They may not look exactly like the starting point, but that was never the goal. The idea was to give them my own spin and make them unique in their own way. Oh, and the fact that they are made from locally sourced goodness makes them a bit extra special in my mind too. Let me know what you think, would love to hear from you!!

BEER! .... up-cycled fridge on tap

Anyone drink beer?

Check out this bad-boy-tapped-fridge! With a couple of drill bits, tubing, taps, an old fridge ... and a bunch of other "technical brewing equipment", yes, you too can have your own home made brews on tap.

Brian moved into his new house last year and it was crowded with a bunch of old duds. One such thing was an old fridge that badly needed a cleaning and had several things broken inside. Instead of tossing it he incorporated it into his new home-brewing stash and now it's the envy of all his guests. Perfectly chilled  beer all the time whenever you are ready for it.

The basic ingredients necessary to make beer is water, malt, hops and yeast. Experimentation with amounts and flavours allows you to make brews specially suited to your individual taste buds. If you look closely at the first picture you can see that he reused Maple sugar containers for storing different flavour mixtures.

One of his favorite stores to get pre-made mixes at is cachettedubootlegger.ca just on the outskirts of Montreal. He has a couple of favorites from here including Belgian Triple and Irish Cream Ale.


His latest experiment is Cider with Ontario apples that he hand picked himself. Yum!

FYI - Cider doesn't have to be only apples, you can use plums, peaches, pears and many other fruits.


Happy Brewing!