Make Eco Art with 3 Supplies to Upcycle

There are many things I love about creating art. One: you can make art out of anything, (this of course can depend on where your definition of art lands on the snob scale). That is one of the wonderful things about being creative, exactly how far can you go with it?! How can you turn basically nothing into something beautiful? Upcycling things we may consider trash is a really great way to get creative juices flowing while also saving something from the landfill! And two: (although it may be redundant to say) you can make art for HELLA cheap. This is also a part of the creative process. Knowing where to be thrifty and where to invest in your supplies. Here I will show you 3 examples of supplies I regularly save from the trash or thrift so that you too can be a thrifty eco artist!

1. Fabric

I am not only a painter but a sewing enthusiast! so I always have a dragon’s hoard of extra fabric (and old clothes!) stashed away. I also keep small scraps, cut offs from previous projects. But I don’t only use it for sewing related things. Fabric of all kinds are so versatile and used to help create beautiful art. If you aren’t sewing savvy like me, head to the thrift store or raid your closets! Old t shirts, jeans, blankets, towels, sheets and pillowcases: any fabric item you like the pattern color and texture of!

I use Large pieces of fabric for:

I use small pieces of fabric for:

Most versatile fabrics to repurpose (including but not limited to)

• Canvas (obviously)
• denim
• cotton
• linen
• muslin
• burlap

unfun fact: About 11 million tons of fabric ends up in landfills every year!

2. Empty bottles

I try not to use plastic water bottles if I can help it, but there is just no getting around it sometimes. Plastic is a part of our modern world and while recycling it is not always a viable option, (staying as plastic free as you can is best!) repurposing your plastic bottles definitely can be!

use plastic bottles for:

• clean paintbrush water
• bottles with spray nozzles can be used to keep paints moist and useable
• paint pouring projects like this listed below
• keep excess paint in them (easy mixing and storing)
• make beautiful mosaics from bottle tops!
• create the structure for many types of sculptures and miniature projects

Unfun fact: in 2018, US landfills received 27 million tons of plastic!

3. Cardboard

With how the last two years has been, we all have been utilizing online shopping more than we used to. In 2020, amazon delivered over 4 billion packages in the U.S. alone! That means lots of cardboard boxes. Although a lot of cardboard is compostable (except for the shiny stuff!), it’s always good to give a second life to something rather than throwing it away. Especially when it is something as versatile as cardboard.

Use cardboard for:

• A pallet!
• use it as a surface to practice painting on (or use it to paint a final piece, like this)
• You can make a professional looking painting panel with framing from cardboard
• Add dimension to your piece. Create 3d wall art!
• By stacking layers of cardboard, you can create amazing sculptures
• cover surfaces before you paint
• use small cardboard boxes to organize your supplies

unfun fact: in 2018 landfills received 17 million tons of carboard!

Other materials to upcycle

Our powers of creative reuse are not limited to just the supplies mentioned above! You never know what materials will spark creativity. Some other supplies to upcycle are:

• coffee cans
• glass jars
• scrap wood and mdf board
• house paint
• scrap paper!!! (this may be its own article one day)
• broken and backless picture fames
• broken porcelain and ceramic
• tin foil
• plastic bags
• broken jewelry
• cheugy thrift store canvases (live laugh love, etc.)

What do you like to reuse in your art? PLEASE let me know in the comments below I would love to hear from you all.