Turning Beach Rubbish into Xmas Trees, 100% recycled

[Earthgirl]

Hi Folks I haven't been on here for a while, a few that met me at the Bushmoot know that my other little passion has been beach cleaning this year

Appalled at the state of our local beaches after the winter storms and the sheer amount of plastic that washed up, waist high in places, left me 'gobsmacked' to put it politely so I started cleaning regularly one of our local beaches

Now when you start picking up the rubbish regularly, you start noticing 'stuff' regularly washing in and then you start to wonder where it all comes from, so I set up a small page on Facebook to connect with others that were also finding the same things and to try and find out where some of it at least comes from

It's been an 'edumacation' to say the least

Anyway I'm always trying to find a use for some of the 'stuff' that washes up....

So take a washed up oyster breeding bag

A crate of old bits of washed up rope

Make a Xmas Tree of course

This was my first attempt using lots of toys, bits and beads that are always washing up ...

So I refined the pattern a little, changed the shape slightly, injected some colour and I've been really pleased with the results

Happy to share the pattern with anyone who'd like to have a go themselves.

Thanks for looking

 

[John Fenna]

Those are really cool!

 

[whale_omelette]

looking good! be interested in that facebook page for curiositys sake, living on the coast so I find all kinds.

 

[Toddy]

Very good
I do like re-purposing ideas

I have a friend who looks after a beach down the river Clyde. Normal litter she recycles and disposes in Council centres, but she has problems though because folks who scatter the ashes of loved ones in the water don't know what to do with the plastic urns they come in, and all too often just chuck them in after the ceremony is by. It seems rather too cold and a bit off to just dump them in with the plastic bottles and detritus.
So Karen, good Pagan that she is, has to dispose of a collection of urns every year. I heard that she has a contemplative ceremony, one where she hopes for love and all good things, and then has an almighty bonfire.
Now she's crusading for dissolvable urns or for folks to use ceramic ones and shatter them so they break down into sand with the wave action.

See the things that you don't think of that end up washed up on beaches ? human ingenuity and waste never fails to astonish me.

M

 

[Earthgirl]

Those are really cool!

Thanks John I've been amazed at the response from the beach combing community to them

 

[Earthgirl]

looking good! be interested in that facebook page for curiositys sake, living on the coast so I find all kinds.

Thanks whale-omelette Sure it's Beachcombing Freshwater West ...

I'd love to know what type of 'stuff' you find

I discovered so much my friends now say I'm a walking beach rubbish encyclopaedia lol... Although there is still so much to learn

 

[Earthgirl]

Very good
I do like re-purposing ideas

I have a friend who looks after a beach down the river Clyde. Normal litter she recycles and disposes in Council centres, but she has problems though because folks who scatter the ashes of loved ones in the water don't know what to do with the plastic urns they come in, and all too often just chuck them in after the ceremony is by. It seems rather too cold and a bit off to just dump them in with the plastic bottles and detritus.
So Karen, good Pagan that she is, has to dispose of a collection of urns every year. I heard that she has a contemplative ceremony, one where she hopes for love and all good things, and then has an almighty bonfire.
Now she's crusading for dissolvable urns or for folks to use ceramic ones and shatter them so they break down into sand with the wave action.

See the things that you don't think of that end up washed up on beaches ? human ingenuity and waste never fails to astonish me.

M

Thanks Toddy and believe it or not I have found an Urn complete with ashes !!!!
I left it where it was as it was high up the beach and no harm for now.

I bet she find the remains of plastic flower wreaths as well, although after posting about what I find I have been pleasantly surprised twice in the last couple of weeks to just find bunches of fresh flowers...

I totally agree with Karen, I find octopus pots used for catching octopus. Years ago they were all made of pottery but nowadays there are all made of plastic as it's so convenient. These aren't local to our shores though they originate mainly from Mexico or West Africa although there is a smaller fishing industry for them in the Mediterranean ...

 

[mountainm]

Love them! Great job.

 

[Robson Valley]

Great applause for your efforts not only to clean up but to make something from it.
I hope that you can find a welcoming market for those things (rather nicely made!)

You should see the variety of crud that has been coming to Canada, across the Pacific from the Japanese tsunami.
We get entire boat piers, a big motorcycle packed in styrofoam, and the fear is that some of it will glow
in the dark from the Fukishima reactor failure.

 

[Whittler Kev]

go on share that pattern

 

[Earthgirl]

Love them! Great job.

Thanks mountainm

 

[Earthgirl]

Great applause for your efforts not only to clean up but to make something from it.
I hope that you can find a welcoming market for those things (rather nicely made!)

You should see the variety of crud that has been coming to Canada, across the Pacific from the Japanese tsunami.
We get entire boat piers, a big motorcycle packed in styrofoam, and the fear is that some of it will glow
in the dark from the Fukishima reactor failure.

I've seen the pics Robson Valley, there is even a chap whose page I follow that has set up a museum for the amount and variety of stuff that he finds, soooo amazing and yet so sad....

Sadly the beaches can't clean themselves, so every bag full that you remove you hope will make a difference to something

Yikes!!!! to the radiation though all I find are glow in the dark fishing beads which make rather interesting bracelets...lol...

 

[Earthgirl]

go on share that pattern

No problem at all Whittler Kev

This pattern will make a tree 6"x6" and if you want to thread it with one continuous piece of rope you will need approx 3.5metres
I hope this helps

 

[Toddy]

Years ago we had a wombling thread....this would make a very good addition to a re-started one

Thank you for sharing your pattern

M

 

[Earthgirl]

Years ago we had a wombling thread....this would make a very good addition to a re-started one

Thank you for sharing your pattern

M

I am that beach womble Toddy as I refer to what I do as bimbling...

 

[Robson Valley]

Thanks for the pattern. this needs to be hard core trendy.

For centuries, the Japanese have been making and using glass ball fishing net floats, usually with a net-like woven covering.
Those are the #1, absolute, top prize, beach combing find on British Columbia's coast.
From grapefruit to baskeball sizes I have seen.

 

[whale_omelette]

thanks.
haha, interesting subject to be a specialist in, can't be many of you about!
Next time I'm on the beach i'll get lots of photos for you.

 

[Earthgirl]

Thanks for the pattern. this needs to be hard core trendy.

For centuries, the Japanese have been making and using glass ball fishing net floats, usually with a net-like woven covering.
Those are the #1, absolute, top prize, beach combing find on British Columbia's coast.
From grapefruit to baskeball sizes I have seen.

Don't go there I am so aware of the ultimate beach combing treasure in glass floats... lol...

But do you have any Lego from the 1997 container spill that contained aqua themed lego ???? lol...

from the top left a Lego flipper, Lego flowers, a Lego spear gun, a Lego life preserver, a Lego aqua lung and Lego seaweed...

 

[Earthgirl]

thanks.
haha, interesting subject to be a specialist in, can't be many of you about!
Next time I'm on the beach i'll get lots of photos for you.

Oh yes please Love pics of other peoples finds

 

[Dreadhead]

superb bit of upcycling!