As we get ready to renovate our new home, my husband and I are spending more and more time trawling around reclamation yards looking for materials for our green masterpiece, and getting really excited about reclaimed and recycled products available for both the building work, and the work of decorating and furnishing our house.

This reclaimed wine rack caught my eye, I think it’s pretty groovy, quite unusual in the way it holds the bottles, and just the perfect place to store our organic wine collection.   It’s double sided, taking 30 bottles, and made from recycled reclaimed wood.  It stores the bottles at a slight upturn to ensure corks are kept wet for good keeping.  It’s 70cm high x 40cm x 15cm deep when closed.

In Africa, it’s commonplace to see footballs like the one above, they’re made by children out of plastic bags.  Instead of recycling, these kids are reusing what’s available to make objects to play with.  A sort of bricolage.

Britain has embraced recycling and none of us really has an excuse not to do it anymore.  Glass, paper, tins and plastic are collected from doorsteps and there are recycling points in most supermarket car parks.  This is great, and the way it should be.  But have you thought about taking it further?  About learning to reuse and recycle other things?  Up for a challenge?

1. Mail

Open your mail carefully and save the envelopes.  They can be reused by putting a label over the address.   Envelope reuse labels can be ordered from charities, or you could use a simple address label if you have those available.  A nice idea I recently read about is to write at the bottom of your envelope “I am reusing this to help the environment”, as this may encourage others to do the same.   Reuse junk mail as scrap paper.  Bind loose bits of junk mail/scrap paper with a bulldog clip and keep it at the phone, or use for shopping lists.

2. Newspaper

Newspaper is an incredibly useful stuff.  Keep a few old newspapers around for using to protect the table while children are doing art work, fold them into firelighters and keep next to the fireplace, or scrunch up and use for protecting items that you’re mailing.  You can also rip newspaper up and add it to your composter.

3.  Tin foil

Instead of throwing it away, wash used tin foil for reuse.  You can reuse it to cover food, or you can put it behind your radiators to reflect the heat back into the room.

Keep your recycling organised by labelling used cardboard boxes for glass, plastics, paper and metal.  If you prefer your recycling to look a little neater, try buying a recycling system like this one from a janatorial company.

Photo credit: whiteafrican

One for the boys.  Here’s a man bag that you can be proud of.  Rugged yet handsome, burly but stylish.  The Colombian Recycled Tyre Bag is made from rubber sourced from old inner tubes and combined with mesh webbing in the form of an adjustable shoulder strap and quick-release security fastening on the front strap.  Inside are a mobile phone holder and two other pockets.

These eco-friendly bags are being produced in Colombia where this pioneering design label is using inner tubes as an alternative to leather.  True bricoleurs.
Innovative and forward-thinking style defines the collection, and promotes Colombian ethical and eco products to the world.

£49.95