This sustainable gift idea beats all!

My sister-in-law gives the best presents. One year she gave me a milk frother and I’ve used it practically every day since.

This year she told me about the gift she gave her husband and I’m telling you — we all need to steal this idea! 📚

Her husband, my brother-in-law, is an architect and designer. He has a great minimalist sensibility. Below is a photo of the backyard of their home that he remodeled. Notice the footrest in front of the butterfly chair. It’s a used fireplace grate with a block of wood on top. I love that upcycled detail! You can learn more about him and his projects at Big Fish Design. He doesn’t have an Instagram account unfortunately but I hear his daughters are working on him to create one. 😉

So anyway my sister-in-law knows her husband well. She knows what he likes and what he doesn’t like. Her first thought was to buy him some gorgeous design books — but he’s a minimalist kinda guy. If she got a book he didn’t love he might feel obliged to keep it. What she decided to do instead was to borrow a pile of books from the public library and give it to him as a gift!

She curated a stack of hard-to-find architecture and design books (some through Interlibrary loan), then she wrapped them up and included the due date on the card. She arranged it so he got plenty of quiet time to enjoy them before they needed to be returned.

I mean … Genius, right?! Can we all do this for Christmas 2020?!

Think about roaming the stacks of your local library with a loved one in mind. It’s such a great exercise to think of a person you love and what they might like and then create a stack of library books that you think they might appreciate. And to take it one step further and get hard to find books from a college library through interlibrary loan is genius!

The only thing this idea needs is a good hashtag. Any suggestions? How about #libraryxmas or #checkoutxmas 🎄📚

Thanks for the inspiration Emily!

Random Link Pack – 8-23-18

We are hoping we can screen this Vivienne Westwood documentary next Spring before the 10th Annual Clothing Swap!!! Stay tuned and fingers crossed.

My bestie cousin, Sarah, introduced me to Yacht Rock. It’s lots of Steely Dan, George Benson, and Doobie Brothers type stuff and I’m totally obsessed.

Beware of this Instagram account. Once you see it you will want to get bangs. I did.

I’m curious about Port City. I want to buy this hat for my son for X-mas.

Do you follow Erin Little on Instagram? She was asked to photograph the home of a woman who was in her 90s. The woman passed away and her family wanted photos of the house before it was emptied and sold. Such a beautiful and precious place.

My friend posted this on Facebook — ” I just want an organic cotton tampon with a cardboard applicator wrapped in paper – I just don’t understand why this is so difficult to find! After 48 comments she got the answer !!!

Star Island is a great place to go for the day. My sister and I, and my two boys are going tomorrow. We are packing a lunch and planning to go for a swim.

TeePearls are necklaces made from upcycled t-shirts. Handmade in Somerville, MA. Cute.

Sometimes I daydream about moving to Rockland, Maine. I dream of working at the art museum or the library. I could live here.

Next month we have our first meeting to start planning the next Project Upcycle which will take place in March 2019. Designers, start working on your portfolios!

xo jam

9th Annual Clothing Swap

9th Annual Clothing Swap
Saturday, May 12 | 10 AM to 2 PM
Connie Bean Center
155 Parrott Avenue (Next to the Library)

Goodwill Industries of Northern New England and the Portsmouth Public Library are proud to host the 9th Annual Clothing Swap on Saturday, May 12, from 10 AM to 2 PM.

Bring Men’s and Women’s Clothing. Don’t forget footwear and accessories. All seasons welcome. Bring winter coats and summer dresses.

This year, the SWAP will be held across the parking lot in the gym at the Connie Bean Center!

Participants are asked to bring a bag of gently used, clean clothing, shoes, and accessories, and leave with a bag of “new-to-you” items. In the spirit of giving, participants are asked to give more than they get. Remaining clothing and accessories will be donated to Goodwill.

This is a clothing drive. Please give more than you take.

 

 

The swap is a fun, social event helping people see fashion as an opportunity to give back to society. Donating unwanted clothing saves it from landfills, and a donation becomes an exciting addition to another’s wardrobe.

Bring a friend and a cloth bag to the swap.

The swap benefits Goodwill Industries of Northern New England, whose retail stores help to keep usable goods out of the landfill. Last year, more than 300 people participated in the swap, donating over 1,800 pounds of clothing. The sales of all un-swapped donations help fund Goodwill programs in the Seacoast area and throughout New Hampshire.

Goodwill Industries of Northern New England enables individuals with diverse challenges to achieve personal stability and community engagement. A social enterprise for over 100 years, Goodwill reflects the integration of economic, social and environmental sustainability, with a focus on connecting people to marketplace employment. Services are funded by revenue from retail and recycling operations, grants, fees, and philanthropic investments and gifts.