THE CARDBOARD COLLECTIVE

Banana Box Pull-out Drawers

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Posted on May 17, 2013 by adohrenwend

Do you have a drawer that always stays organized, and another that does not?

I do….. and I spend a lot of time thinking about how to make the drawer (or ahem drawers) that do not stay organized behave themselves.

So with many a pre-sleep meditation on a solution, I tackled my cardboard storage (and have many times re-tackled it) to this point of civilization. No stacking and re-stacking, no lids, No plastic, just banana boxes and binder clips.

I had to know my cardboard sources well to find 2 different boxes that would nest inside one another, but once I found the winning combination I was set. I used the top and bottom of a large banana box with one end removed and the bottom of a smaller box for the drawer. No glue, just a few clips to keep the edges in place. The best part is that I can use these on the back of my bike trailer for Cardboard Play Days, and recycle or reuse at the end of the event….. Banana Box, you are a loyal friend.

Cardboard Souls (and Insoles)

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Posted on May 7, 2013 by adohrenwend

You can use cereal boxes if you don’t have this kind of cardboard on hand.

I’m not quite sure how this Mother’s Day or Father’s Day project will find it’s audience; (unless I’ve gained a tween readership I’m unaware of) maybe it would be a more likely graduation or wedding project. I’m just putting this idea out there in the hope that at least one set of cardboard insoles will find it’s way into a pair of sassy mom pumps, or groovy dad shoes that are out dancing the night away, celebrating how awesome it is to be a parent.

…and Mom, I really wanted to make these for you, but I don’t have a pair of your shoes here in Tokyo to make the pattern from, so sorry about that. I hope you like the Mother’s Day present I did send you. It’s not made of cardboard.

A Month of Making

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Posted on May 1, 2013 by adohrenwend

I’m feeling a little out of practice posting to the blog, but also so excited to get back in the groove. April has been a wonderfully busy month! I sent my daughter to Japanese preschool for the first time, and have been commuting for about 45 minutes a day, 5 days a week by bicycle to do the pick ups and drop offs. The weather has been beautiful and I’ve loved it, but I do find myself wondering about those cold wet rainy days to come? Hot, hot August in Tokyo?

Taking the opportunity to be with my family and just be a “maker” for the month was deeply exhilarating. At times I filled every unused corner of our living room with towers of boxes, and bags of cut cardboard scraps. My family never flinched; a true testament of their unfailing love and support.

So many new ideas were born out of my sabbatical, that I’m planning to observe two cardboard sabbaticals every year. I can’t recommend them enough, and if you’ve ever felt that you needed a break from blogging, take one! and don’t apologize. Let’s keep blogging humane. We all need a break sometimes, particularly when we are working to bring something thoughtful and creative into the world on a regular basis.

One thing I thought about this month while I was hacking away at boxes, is what do all of you want to see more of? I’ve put together a quick survey so I can actually find out what you think instead of just imagine….and I would be really appreciative if you could take the time to fill it out!

It’s a painless 3 question survey: Click here to take survey

And yes, I didn’t forget about that big project I promised to tell you about! It’s a pattern and video tutorial I’ll be releasing very very soon for sale in my Etsy shop. It’s the first pattern in a series of cardboard furniture pieces that I’ve been designing over the past 6 months. I’m sure I’m being way too secretive about it all, but I’ve got lots of great posts coming up in the mean time and hopefully a few sneak peaks of the pattern too.

It’s good to be back.

A Cardboard Sabbatical

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Posted on March 31, 2013 by adohrenwend

Hi!

Just a note to let you know I’m going on a little cardboard sabbatical for the month of April. I’ve got some surprises in store for you at the end of the month and I’ll be devoting all my time to getting them ready. I’ll also be sending my daughter off to preschool for the first time, catching tadpoles in the river with the girls every day I can and sewing my heart out for Elsie Marley’s KCW…. it’s bound to be a heart pumping, joy filled month, and I can’t wait to get started! See you May 1!

Yours in Cardboard,

Amber

Woven Cardboard Vase

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Posted on March 29, 2013 by adohrenwend

I’m so excited about Spring’s arrival in Tokyo. Cherry blossoms are in full swing and Forsythia, Snow Drops, Grape Hyacinth and Narcissus are popping up all over our neighborhood.

Inspired by a post on Supercyclers, (Clink on Plastic Fantastic, and then at the end of the post More Plastic Fantastic) I made this long cardboard vase for our Easter Brunch. It’s an easy and unexpected way to showcase single stems and spring greenery. I used some plastic drinking straws left over from our fantastic lunch and bike trip to Ishikawa Brewery yesterday as well as a few plastic bags that some birthday cards came in.

Last Spring we made tea cup arrangements and I have to say it’s hard not to be happy looking at spring flowers…this is my 3 year old daughter’s arrangement. I love seeing which flowers and greenery she chooses, always different than what I would think of and equally beautiful.

Honey Comb Cardboard

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Posted on March 21, 2013 by adohrenwend

The Cardboard Collective: Honey Comb Cardboard

A beautiful new cardboard find this week: Honey comb. I only have a few pieces dug out of a fruit vendors recycling pile.

We’ve come up with one way to use it so far…in our toolboxes.

Cardboard & Cap Peg Rack

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Posted on March 17, 2013 by adohrenwend

Now that my daughters are almost 2 and almost 4 they’ve started borrowing my jewelery. I’m not quite sure what that means about my taste in jewelery, but they are scaling my 4 foot high bookshelf to get to it. As a compromise, I’ve decided to sacrifice access to some of my sturdier, more sought after necklaces in the hopes of safeguarding some of the more fragile and precious stuff.

Contraband jewelery stuffed into little boxes, purses and paper bags was popping up all over the house…. as if a colony of Leprechauns had taken up residence. In an effort to deter further looting, I bargained that some kind of necklace depot would distract them….

I started with just one box, which gave me 6 lengths of cardboard approximately the same length. I then assembled my caps.

I had a variety of laundry soap and maple syrup caps and some of the caps magically fit together, but some did not. I ended up using Washi tape to secure them. I didn’t have enough caps, so I borrowed a cylindrical block from the block bin. You can use whatever you have on hand for this project, it doesn’t have to be plastic caps. Blocks, corks, tiny plastic or glass bottles; all can do the job.

Next step was arranging the caps and tracing around them. I used a box cutter to carefully cut around the circles on the top layer, and then a serrated knife for the layers below. It’s helpful to try and cut just inside the area that you traced for a snug fit.

Last step was gluing the layers together. I used one layer as a backing and didn’t cut any holes in that layer. I also spread a thin layer of glue slightly diluted with water over the top piece of cardboard to preserve it and keep it from showing dirt and fingerprints. To hang the rack I threaded paper cord through the corrugated channels and tied it off.

A truce? Only time will tell…..

Nest Building with Kraft Paper

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Posted on March 13, 2013 by adohrenwend

Spring is in the air here in Tokyo and we’ve been blessed with more than a week of beautiful 60 degree days. While out spotting Ume blossoms, we’ve been watching lots of birds, and talking a lot about nest building. I’m totally fascinated with all kinds of animal (and people) homes, so I’ve been thinking about how we could make a nest that the girls could build, add to, and alter.

Last week I did some Spring cardboard cleaning and stumbled across some Kraft paper that I had fished out of a neighbor’s recycling some time ago. Kraft paper (the base material for cardboard) works great for this project, but you could also use large sheets of newspaper, or if you’re a teacher try used, crumpled bulletin board paper.

I let the girls work with the Kraft paper to build the nest shape and showed them how to use the screwdriver to push the ribbon through the paper.

They were not strong enough to puncture the paper on their own, so in the end I had to help them secure the sides….maybe in a few years they’ll be independent young nest builders!

We watched a few BBC videos to show the girls how birds use different materials in their nests. They were inspired to add ribbons, play scarves, and lots of junky little things from around the house to the nest before they climbed in with a few good books.

I recommend building the nest on some kind of platform. We made ours from pineapple and banana boxes. There must be some kind of technical term for the fun factor that comes from elevating a play structure… the bird’s definitely know what I’m talking about.

Enjoy Mr. Attenborough with your cup of tea…….

Spring Planting in Cardboard

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Posted on March 7, 2013 by adohrenwend

Last year I started experimenting with planting in cardboard even though nearly everyone around thought I was crazy. Well, not one of them was shy when the time came to harvest our cherry tomatoes…

This fall I made a simpler kind of planter utilizing the planter hangers that I have, and torn pieces of scrap corrugated cardboard tucked and layered inside. They over-wintered well, and to freshen the boxes up in the Spring, I just added new cardboard to the outside edges and removed some of the inner layers.

Spinach, salad greens, cilantro and nasturtiums…we can’t wait for our little sprouts to start popping up! And we’re curious to see how our experiment with the glass case (Used for displaying traditional Japanese dolls- there are always tons of these at the recycling shop) works for our tomato starts. We’re hoping to transform it into a home for adopted caterpillars……

Fort Building with Banana Boxes

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Posted on February 28, 2013 by adohrenwend

I’ve been doing a lot of work with banana boxes recently and we’ve had so much fun building little places to hang out in….and then knocking them down!

FLOW=VERALLS

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Posted on February 27, 2013 by adohrenwend

The other day I had a friend ask me how I’m able to get so many cardboard projects done with two little girls running around.

I told her about my loving and helpful husband and play-focused kids, but I forgot to mention what has previously been a kind of trade secret here at The Cardboard Collective:

FLOW=VERALLS.

Not actually a word, but an equilateral MATH equation whereby overalls = a state of flow.

Here’s how it works.

Find an amazing pair of overalls at your nearest charity, recycling or vintage/thrift shop. Mine are light weight so I can wear them in summer and fit over all my clothes including jeans.
Find a special storage place for your Flow=veralls, (a special box in your drawer, a hook in your mudroom, or the trap door space under your kitchen floor are all good.)
Take your Flow=veralls out ONLY when you have time and space cleared to do your work, and by work I really mean Play.
When you’re done (or your time is up) immediately remove your Flow=veralls and put them back in their special, designated storage place.

One thing I realized about Flow=veralls early on is that they send a clear signal of intention. “Hey! I’m ready to work on a project….here I go!” Everyone in your family instantly picks up on this signal and is able to do something that doesn’t require your attention for a while, which feels pretty amazing.

Working from home, there are no shirts and ties, no flight attendant blazers and pill box hats…there are only stretchy pants, jeans, plaid flannels, and the plain colored T-shirts that you try to keep from getting stained.

These clothing items basically only communicate the fact that you exist…

Flow=veralls on the other hand, have kinship with a kind of ancient knowing. Uniforms, monk’s robes, turbans, aprons, house dresses, smocks, scout kerchiefs… These are all costumes that we wear to prepare for the work that we do, and to signal our belonging within a group or our commitment to an idea. That idea could be a clean house, or peace within a spiritual one.

…..so in effect, I’m letting you in on my secret. I’m also inviting you to join a group of people that love to do work that is actually play, who can’t help but do something that they feel passion about, but are not always clear on where they will find the time to pursue that passion.

Whether you are knitting an afghan, tying fishing fly, or hauling cardboard by bike, Flow=veralls are ready to escort you to that time and space where you can make it happen.

I hope you do.

Brighten up Your Cardboard

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Posted on February 21, 2013 by adohrenwend

Winter is grey and cardboard is brown! I’ve been feeling the need to share some of my favorite ideas for bringing energizing color into your cardboard projects…

Layered columns of boldly colored Origami paper…

What I call Amazon Chevron. (Textured cardboard that requires a coat of decoupage glue.)

Coloring book pages, kids can decorate them with marker after you’ve decoupaged them. These are from Tokyo Street Art Coloring book by my friend Chris B of a Small Lab. https://gumroad.com/l/tokyo-colour-in

Water colors: Add a coat of decoupage glue to preserve the intensity of color.

Tiled Chiyogami papers

Spliced album covers.

Cheerful graphics from the Produce Department.

And don’t forget all the good old decoupage ideas from around the web!

Grocery Bag Business Cards

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Posted on February 6, 2013 by adohrenwend

Meeting new people here in Japan involves developing more formalized graces. As a farm girl from the Midwest, this is always an area of improvement for me.

One artifact of the Japanese getting to know you ritual is the business card and/or name card. When you meet someone new in Japan it’s considered polite to exchange your contact information in this tangible, well organized way.

I for one love the practice, as it’s elevated me from the frantic find a pen and write your name and phone number on an old receipt routine to a calmer more professional approach. Proper procedure involves offering your name card with both hands (as shown above) with a little bow of the head.

Now that the blog is becoming more of it’s own entity, I put together a name card using some brown Kraft paper grocery bags that I found in someone’s recycling the other day. It’s not as heavy as a traditional business card, but I think it’s really nice, and still very durable. If you have a business card template on your word-processing software it’s a very easy process.

I originally wanted to print onto post-consumer cardboard, but my ideal specimen would be a cereal box, and unfortunately we’re an oatmeal and eggs family. Cereal is not widely eaten for breakfast in Japan, so it’s also been hard to find used cereal boxes. I’d love to hear if anyone has tried printing on cereal boxes, did your printer take them?

I also wanted to share this great link with you, showcasing a letterpress printer that prints business cards onto old cereal boxes. (If I ever get a business info stamp, this could be a possible approach for my old tea boxes.) They are BEauTiful! Lots of other great ideas there too…

So hey, even if you’re business-less, how about a name-card or blog-card to step up your game? Why not?