the ReFab Diaries

Trimming my waste: Week 23 (Remix Chicago!)

in , by Candice

Goals - Week 23:

  • Support Remix Chicago
  • Be inspired by people who've turned upcycling into a fine art
  • Promote them in any way I can! 

 This is my third year documenting Remix Chicago. But this year I had my photographer friend Johnny with me. A photographer who works with (wait for it) cameras he rebuilds himself using classic lenses. In this case, he shot only with lenses from the mid 60's. So this might be my most "meta" blog post ever!
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Trimming my waste: Week 22 (quick refashion)

in , by Candice

Goals - Week 22:
  • Clear out closet clutter 
  • Repurpose what cannot be donated or easily recycled
  • Have a little more guts when it comes to "refashions"

I went to bed on Friday night with a head cold and woke up Saturday feeling dazed. You know when you feel too crappy to leave the house, but not so sick that you can't function? Yeah. That. Which means I made myself tackle one small task so I'd feel like I'd accomplished something. The task: put the heavy duvet cover away for the summer. 

This involved clearing out the bag I use to store it... and what did I find in there? Old clothes, most of which I dropped into a donation box on Sunday. And the two shirts that are the stars of this post. I've been storing them for over a year and as soon as I saw them, I remembered why! 
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Food for thought: Developmental milestones and hearing loss

in , , , , by Candice


I’m interrupting regular programming to publish something that I hope will reach and touch the people it needs to. First, here are some things you might not know about me that will explain why I care about this topic: when I’m not blogging about zero-waste and upcycling, I’m writing for a living and writing songs for fun. Words and music have always been central to my sense of who I am. I have a PhD in applied linguistics, I was a reading teacher for seven years and I spent two years writing marketing copy for educational toys, classroom and special-needs products. And, most importantly, I have an almost-6-year-old girl in my world. I'll call her Ms R.

So this topic is close to my heart. It’s about the importance of communication with children and the things that can get in the way. For example, what happens when hearing parents discover that their child can’t hear them? 

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Week 20 Giveaway winner!

in , by Candice


Time to send these goodies to a new home! As always, I used a randomizer to pick the winner and it chose entry #521 - that's Cheryl F. 

Cheryl, congrats! Expect an email from me to get your shipping details. Thanks to everyone who entered for your interest.

Here's to wasting less :) 
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Trimming my waste: Week 21 (bottle borders)

in , by Candice


Goals - Week 21:
  • Never stop being inspired by what I see around me 
  • Pause. Notice. Share.
  • But be real about upcycling. Most ideas have their pros and cons.

This past weekend was a long, sunny one. Four days off work... and Chicago was celebrating the beginning of summer and Memorial Day. On Saturday afternoon, I still had no idea what this week's post would be about. I really didn't want to be inside making, or photographing, something. I certainly didn't want to be staring at a screen doing research. And then, wondering down an alley behind a residential condo building, I happened upon this vegetable garden. And because I was with a pro photographer, I have beautiful pictures to share with you! 
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Trimming my waste: Week 20 Giveaway!

in , by Candice



Goals - Week 20:

  • Reduce reliance on paper towel 
  • Spread the love and help you do the same
  • Tell you about a company I really like

In January, I committed to Be Zero's #MakeLessTrash2016 challenge. I'm 20 weeks in and I find that I've joined an amazing community. People all over the planet who get up every day and try. Try to do a little better. Try to resist convenience. Try to live mindfully. People who remind me every day that "zero-waste" is not about showing off how you crammed a year's worth of trash into a mason jar. It's about living mindfully. Here's something BeZeroWasteGirl posted to Instagram this week:

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Broken toys raise awareness about organ transplant needs

in , by Candice

Apparently organ transplant in Japan is an issue that doesn’t get a lot of press, but the current situation is dire. Each year, about 300 people out of a total of 14,000 on waiting lists actually get the replacement organs they need; a percentage far lower than the rest of the world.

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Trimming my waste: Week 19 (declutter)

in , by Candice


Goals - Week 19:
  • Declutter
  • Turn unwanted stuff into money
  • Get creative with how to rid myself of the stuff

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