Flower power
Recycle a magazine into a mosaic vase
By Justina Blakeney
Published: January 25th, 2008 | 12:00am
TOOLS & SUPPLIES
• One colorful glossy magazine
• One glass bottle (I used a Pellegrino bottle, but feel free to use an empty wine bottle, or any other clean glass bottle that you fancy.)
• transparent acrylic medium
• school glue
• water
• masking tape
HERE WE GO
1. Rip a couple of pages out of the magazine. Crumble them up and with the masking tape, tape the crumpled pages to the body of the bottle (avoid the neck of the bottle). Try to attach the pieces evenly on all sides until you achieve desired shape.
2. Rip a few magazine pages into strips, about 4 inches long, and 1 inch wide. Using the school glue, glue a first layer of magazine strips to the bottle, gluing the strips horizontally, from the bottom of the bottle, to the top. Repeat, only this time, glue the pieces down vertically, repeat until the body of the vase is smooth and even.
3. Set to dry.
4. Cut small pieces from the magazine. Choose the colors wisely, as this is the last coat, and the colors of the paper will determine the color of the vase. Cut out small squares, rectangles, or even circles.
5. Make a mixture of school glue and water (1 part water, 3 parts glue). Dip the small pieces into the mixture (front and back) and glue systematically onto the bottle. Cover even the mouth of the bottle with magazine strips to cover the bottle completely.
6. Set to dry.
7. Once dry, you may chose to cover the in an acrylic medium, or a lacquer, to make it water resistant on the outside. (Avoid washing the vase in water, even if you coat the vase—it is water resistant, not water proof.)
8. Set to dry overnight, and you‘ve got yourself a new vase made from items that were destined for the trash bin.
—
Venus Zine’s DIY Editor, Justina Blakeney, her sister Faith Blakeney, and Ellen Schultz are the designers behind Compai, a crafty design studio and eco-clothing label. With a focus on sustainable design and DIY, Compai has authored three books, collaborated with companies like Artemide and Elio Fiorucci, and has been seen on the pages of Vogue Italia, Adorn Magazine, Glamour Italia, The San Fransisco Chronicle, on The Today Show, and, of course, Venus Zine. Check out what all the fuss is about at compai.com. E-mail feedback to justina [at] venuszine.com.
View more of Justina Blakeney’s work at on venuszine.com here.
Issue #35
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