Trashion team spotlight - Interview: eclectica

Shop name: eclectica

Shop address:
brick n mortar: 12286 SW 131 Avenue, Miami, FL 33186, USA
online: http://eclecticamiami.etsy.com/

In a nutshell:
salvaged furniture & accessories for the savvy decorator on a budget

Tell us a bit about yourself :
I run a small store in Miami called Eclectica. Received a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art from Florida International University in Miami in 2001 and recently completed an Interior Decorating program, so this business has allowed me to combine my 2 favorite things: Art/Creativity & Thrift Shopping! Fortunately I’ve been able to dedicate myself to revamping all of these great secondhand treasures.

Basically the shop is chocked full of cool vintage and secondhand stuff that people might like for their homes. But please don’t confuse it with a thrift store! I revamp the furniture to make it new and hopefully better than it was to begin with. I also make other items in the store using almost exclusively vintage/recycled materials: collages, fabric wall art, throw pillows, mosaics and more. If you’re ever in Miami, come see me!

Trashion materials:
Anything that inspires me. Why do you think I named my company Eclectica?
Vintage fabric, actually most things vintage, mid-century style, animal print, kitsch, old encyclopedia, and the list goes on and on…

I transform them into:
Fun home décor items.

How do you do it?
The store is in a warehouse district and my studio is next door. I know, occasionally I have to pinch myself! In my studio I can usually work on everything except complicated upholstery, which I send to an upholsterer across the street. Yes, he’s across the street! Sometimes I even walk things over to him. Once in a while I’ll also need a carpenter to do some special cutting. But for the most part I paint, refinish, glue, grout, decoupage, cut, nail, screw, clamp, collage, punch, stamp, dye, staple, hang, assemble, redesign, & revamp!

What inspired you to do this and why are you involved in trashion?
I just see so much potential in things other people trash or donate. And it’s never been so much about recycling as much as about this object still having so much life in it. Or even just the satisfaction in using materials otherwise considered junk or outdated to create something totally new. I have a hard time throwing things away and an even harder time walking away from something when I can’t instantly figure out what I could possibly do with it. That’s the worst feeling, especially when an idea suddenly comes to me a few days too late.

Do you remember the first thing you made using the trashion concept?
Absolutely. It’s one of those stories my family tells over and over, when discussing my being destined to become an artist.

What was it?
I was 5 years old and my grandparents were fixing something in the house and left a large metal tin full of nuts and bolts just lying around on the ground. Naturally, I sat next to it, grabbed the top of a cardboard box nearby and proceeded to assemble what I can only describe as a face with appendages, i.e. arms, hands, feet. And before I knew it my grandmother was helping me glue the creature down and had me write my name and the date on the piece. In high school my mom had it professionally framed for me and it still hangs in the living room at home. Needless to say, this marked the beginning of my life in art and love of all things a little quirky.

What are your current projects and what is on the horizon?
Recently I started 2 series…One consists of salvaged wood balusters/table legs turned into candlesticks. I know, this sounds a bit like typical shabby chic stuff, but my twist is topping them with souvenir shot glasses and other small vessels….Instant Kitsch! The second series consists of funky vintage dessert plates and saucers made into wall art.

Why should people buy handmade, and buy from trashion?
Too many people discard things thinking that object has seen its last day. Wake up and smell the potential, people!