Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose

Do you find yourself “making do” with objects, because it is too much trouble to replace them?

For six months I have been thinking about getting more hangers. I need them. A wire coat hanger in my closet has “One Hour Martinizing” paper on it.

I used to go to the One Hour Martinizing cleaner when I lived in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, back in the 80s. Let’s see―that coat hanger is over thirty years old. The paper is torn and who uses wire hangers anymore? Can’t believe I have moved that hanger three times.

This week I bought a pack of twenty hangers. Such a small thing, and yet they have brought comfort―I’ll even say “joy”―into my life.

It is a kind of “self-care” to have items around us that aren’t broken, chipped, or just plain worn out.

My thirty-some-year-old aluminum pasta pot was not bringing me joy. It was pitted, the surface was rough. It was just unattractive.

I bought a new stainless steel pasta pot that brings me joy. However, I was reluctant to discard my old one, or see it wind up in a landfill.

A friend invited me to bring a project to Art Day at her house, a morning of doing art, chatting, and then ending with lunch together. Fun!

I looked at that aluminum pot and decided it would be a great art project!

This was the first time I ever spray-painted anything. That brought joy, too, with the sweeping motions that changed a dull pot to a sky-blue canvas.

I was a bit giddy with excitement, as I carried my pot to Jennie’s house, along with six new 2 oz. bottles of Patio Paint from Michael’s.

What a great way to spend a morning: adding flowers, butterflies, a climbing clematis, and a little girl smelling a bloom to my pasta pot.

Along the colander section, I painted, “Welcome to My Porch.”

Here is a picture of my new planter!

Full disclosure: I kept the old One Hour Martinizing wire hanger. I might need it for a craft project.

How about you? Is there something in your home that needs to be replaced or repurposed? What are you waiting for?

More photos of the finished product: