See the SCRAPpy Artists at Artomatic 2012

Artomatic is back in DC!

Have you been? This time around, over 1000 artists occupy 10 floors of a former office building in Crystal City, VA -- open and FREE Wednesdays through Sundays until June 23. Artists who replied to our e-mail seeking SCRAPpy works have our logo to display, and any one of them will gladly talk with you about why "reuse" beats "recycling." We're posting their booth numbers and web links so that you can take yourself on a "SCRAP tour" of Artomatic. We're likely missing some -- please make us aware if you catch more!

We're also offering a few workshops of our own, with guest instructors presenting a range of activities. See our events calendar for those details.

floor-booth name/Artomatic page - website

1-168 Theresa Wells Stifel - Stifel & Capra

1-198 Kathy Turner - Arlington Arts Directory

2-122 J.L. Hussey
3-106 Adam Chamy - Art Adam Chamy

3-148 Jessica Toga - JessicaToga Photography

3-235 Barbara Bitondo - Pythagoras' Daughter

3-317 Marcia Fry

4-110 Laurie Brown - Antelope Glass

4-126 Linda Elliff - Linda Let Designs
4-191 Chuck Baxter - at Mid City Artists

4-376 Q - at Family Art Cafe

7-267 Tommy Urbans - Tommy Urbans
7-281 Judith K Claire

8-136 Nire Nah - The Ice Cream Truck

8-217 Katy Kincade - etsy shop

9-108 Forrest McCluer - 30 computers

9-0147 Lunsford Graphics - etsy shop

9-187 Dorothy Hickson - Extinct Flightless Arts Collective on Flickr

9-0191 Michele Late

9-236 Lisa Schumaier - Keen Things
10-1154 T'kes Guerilla Art Foundation

11-0262 Mishka Jaeger - Mishka Jaeger
11-295 Thalia Doukas - Thalia Doukas on Zenfolio

11-366 Caitlin Phillips - Rebound Designs
11-391 Brendan L. Smith - DC Mixed Media

11-1170 Alayna Rasile - Alayna Rasile 
11-500 Alex Bako

We'll try to have more about these artists shortly, maybe even some interviews. In the meantime, go check them out, and please tell them SCRAP-DC sent you!

One of our recent shoppers, Valerie T., e-mailed ahead of her trip to verify that we'd have what she wanted to find: items that could become a photo-hanging "clothesline." Yep, we assured her, we have quite a few "scraps" that could be used in this way. For under $2, she bought a piece of rope, some large safety pins, and -- for backgrounds under each photo -- a couple of maps and some paper.

The finished product looks great and was enjoyed by those who attended the baby shower where they were displayed. The best part? When the event was over, this arrangement could be broken down for the safety pins and rope to be used again.

Buying the same items new might not cost much more than that $2 pricetag, but in many cases, you'd have to purchase more of each. By coming to us to shop, you can buy only what you need and give existing supplies a longer life.

Thanks for sharing, Valerie!

Julie gets SCRAPpy again

Julie H., who shared her previous projects with us in an earlier post, was kind enough to repeat this favor. She also lent us these objects to display at our recent event with Benevolent Media, the Eco Art + Design Depot, for Earth Day. Thanks, Julie! This stuff is even more fun than the last!

Corks Clock
I am always looking for new and fun ways to use wine corks and considering I can never drink as much wine as corks that I use, SCRAP-DC is the perfect place to pick up a handful (or three) [25¢/handful]. I found this wooden circle at a local thrift store (St. Albans on Wisconsin) for a few bucks and used some leftover paint, which was previously used to paint some furniture. The cool orange clock [hands] came from an old clock I had in college, which I completely forgot about until I was back home for a weekend and looking in my parents’ attic for fun things to fiddle with! After disassembly, something was needed to cover the clock machinery and luckily I found a circular cardboard box top that fit perfectly. I used a sharp razor blade (carefully) to cut the corks that were used for the Roman numerals X and V and used a hot glue gun for application. It is my new favorite wall décor!

Button Lamp! 
I am addicted to buttons. To me, they are not just the forgotten things on the underside of a shirt, but an important resource for arts and crafts! This project was so quick and simple! All you need is a handful of buttons [about 50¢ at Scrap-DC] and a lamp with lampshade (I found these at the Good Will, but there are always good finds on craigslist and at garage sales). I used white spray paint to give the buttons all the same look, but this is not a necessary step, especially if you have some really great colors you want to showcase! Use a hot glue gun and disperse buttons as you wish over the shade.

Jewelry Rack
Another thing I love to do with buttons is make earrings, and after I accrued 20 pairs of these, I needed something to hang them all on! I was inspired by my father’s key collection; he has kept every key he has had since he was a kid. No, I didn’t use his key collection. The base of the jewelry stand came from a hanger that I found in my closet, which was used to hold skirts and pants with those little hanger grip clips. I didn’t really use it anymore so I took the clips off and glued the keys to the hanger using a metal to metal epoxy. Lastly, a little white spray paint for the final touch!

Place Mat
Want another reason to lose a few pounds, you can use your old belts for arts and crafts! This project required a sewing machine, but only [used] simple stitches. The belts were all cut in half and then cut to be the same size. Make sure to sew up the edges because they will fray easily if not. Next, all the belts were sewn together using a wide stitch to make sure they are secured together. If you feel like you haven’t used all of the belt that you could have, you can use the belt buckle as a napkin ring as shown here!

Happy Birthday
In my last SCRAP-DC visit I found so much great fabric! Using the fabric and a hot glue gun I covered pieces of cardboard that were also purchased from SCRAP ("purchased" is a strong word, I feel like everything you can get there comes in at next to nothing!)


A little magic marker and a few kind words, you got yourself a card! 

Awesome stuff, Julie. We hope to see you again soon!