Painting Vinyl with CrankyPickle

Etsy Trashion Materials Focus: Vinyl

Trashion team member Jessica of CrankyPickle gives Vinyl records an artistic new face! We asked her a few questions about re-visioning vinyl and here is what she had to say:

What do you make from vinyl?

I take 12"s and create art work on them. I also use them to make painted dishes. I'm also trying to find a use for the sleeves.

What do you love about vinyl?

I like the shape of them. Also the center label area and how that looks even tho when I paint them I cover it up. I like that fact that when you hang it you don't need to do any extra work you can just stick the nail through the hole and your good to go.


What's the largest challenge in reutalizing vinyl?

The hardest thing I think was when I started. trying to figuring out how to get the paint to stick to the vinyl. I haven't found vinyl to be that hard to work with other then that.

How long have you been working in this medium?

I've been working with it for about 2 years now.

Where do you find inspiration?

I get inspiration from music, dreams, patterns, nature and the background pattern it self that I start out with. Some times I make a background and then the painting waits for days till the image just pops into my head of what I want to go with it. Most times I don't have a set design in mind when starting.

Thank you for sharing your beautiful art with us!

Interested in discovering more about Jessica and her work? Want to have some of her awesome paintings for your very own? Go to her Etsy shop!

Not feeling creative? Recycle that old vinyl!

The Vinyl Institute website (www.vinylinfo.org) offers a comprehensive databases about vinyl and recycling.
* Database of vinyl recycling companies
http://www.vinylinfo.org/Recycling/VinylRecyclingDirectory.aspx

The Recyclers Exchange on Recycle.net provides a list of folks exchanging Vinyl in various grades!
http://www.recycle.net/Plastic/PVC/index.html

Freecycle is always a great way! Send your old Vinyl to someone in your area who can upcycle it!

JenellsRevenge Twisting Vinyl

Etsy Trashion Materials Focus: Vinyl

Trashion team member Jennifer Ellison of JenEll'sRevenge gives Vinyl records some fresh functional art! We asked her a few questions about re-visioning vinyl and here is what she had to say:

What do you make from vinyl?

Currently, I have vinyl record cuffs/bracelets in my shop.

You can get them plain or painted. I am also in the process of making and adding bowls, earring and necklaces as well as finding new ways to customize and decorate it.

What do you love about vinyl?

It's so versatile, with a little creativity and some elbow grease you can come up with some cool wearables and decor. besides it just looks cool people are always puzzled when you tell them that something is made out of a vinyl record.

What's the largest challenge in reutalizing vinyl?

Not burning myself!!!! Seriously...it can get very hot...eventually my finger tips will become immune.

How long have you been working in this medium?

I have only been doing it for about 6 months...but with any project I hit the ground running. I am always thinking of and trying new ways to make it better and more unique.

Where do you find inspiration?

Honestly, everywhere. I love vintage, retro, pin-ups, old school tattoos, Hindu, oriental and I’m sure I'm leaving some things out...oh skulls....so you typically see those things reflected in my work.


Thank you for sharing your heart and creativity with us!


Interested in discovering more about Jennifer Ellison and her work? Want to have some of her lovely cuffs for your very own? Go to her Etsy shop!

Get Creating with Vinyl!

Feel like getting your Trashion on? Here are a couple fun projects for upcycling the vinyl laying around your house!

Rob and Corinne of Threadbanger put together a nifty Instructable on How to Make a Rain Poncho out of a Vinyl Shower Curtain.

We all still love getting snail mail. What about making a postcard out of a 33?
This Instructable by fungus amungus will teach you how to Mail at 33 1/3 RPM. Not to mention Record Etch!

Do you have an old banner that doesn't work for craft shows anymore? How about making a bg out of it! Recycled banner golden mean messenger bags

Tresijas Dreams Up New Uses for Vinyl

Etsy Trashion Materials Focus: Vinyl

Trashion team member Kelly Wakefield-Beytia of Tresijas gives fresh twists to Vinyl records! We asked her a few questions about upcycling vinyl and here is what she had to say:

What do you make from vinyl?

Jewelry, combs, card holders, and whatever else I can dream up.

What do you love about vinyl?
What don’t I love about it?!
It’s incredibly forgiving. If I make a mistake or things don’t turn out how I thought they would, I just warm it up again and start over. It’s versatile, there’s not much that you can’t do with it. I love that I can walk into a thrift store and buy the records on the floor that are cracked or stepped on and make them into something useful.

What’s the largest challenge in reutalizing vinyl?

Not all records are fit for my artistic purposes, as a result my personal listening collection has almost tripled.


How long have you been working in this medium?

Almost one year.

Where do you find inspiration?

My biggest inspiration is nature and the infinite number of organic forms that she creates.


Delightful! Kelly your dreams of vinyl have brought whimsy and joy to us all! Thank you for sharing your talent and creativity with us!

Want to have some of her remastered LP creations for your very own? Go to her Etsy shop!

Happy Birthday Phonograph!!

Today is the 131st anniversary of the invention of the phonograph, also know as Vinyl Record Day. Which ultimately lead to the Vinyl record!
The phonograph was the first invention to bring Thomas Edison worldwide fame. At the time, he was 30 years old and nearly deaf. In later years when asked about the phonograph, Edison would say, "Of all my inventions, I liked the phonograph best."

The Edison Phonograph shown above is an exact replica of Edison's first phonograph with the exception of a slight modification made for its us in General Motors Corporation's educational outreach programs on technology. It was made from patterns and blueprints borrowed by General Motors from the Laboratory of Thomas A. Edison. The modification is the addition of a slot milled across the cylinder to permit securing the lead foil "record" to the cylinder by means of a spring clip instead of using shellac as Mr. Edison did.

The lead foil "record" is four-thousandths of an inch thick. To record, the recording sound box is moved towards the cylinder so that the stylus makes approximately one thousandth of an inch indentation into the lead foil. Coupling a speaking tube to the sound box and speaking into it while turning the cylinder records the voice. To play back the recording, the recording sound box is backed away from the cylinder, and the cylinder is turned back to its original starting position.

How to Participate in Vinyl Record Day:

August 12th get together with friends or family and have a Vinyl Record Day party. Everyone who has them brings two or three of their favorite albums. Have fun with it. If you want, have a Twist or Limbo contest for kids and adults Or have someone play DJ, perhaps have dedications, or tell why a certain song is important to the person who brought it, what are the memories (the secrets!), the people, the places associated with the music. You can decorate with a music theme, make it festive with balloons. Or you can just simply play the music, heck move the furniture and make room to dance. Whatever you do, make it a point to celebrate the music you and friends or family most enjoy. There is no other purpose except to have a good time and let our favorite music remind us regardless of national news or ecological challenges, life always has its goodness.

Above you see panoptica's personal tribute to the records birthday! She says "I made this B.J. Thomas fun wall art out of a vinyl record I bought on a thrift shop."
What an awesome way to celebrate!

Tell us how you are celebrating in the comments!

EyePopArt Upcycles Vinyl with Passionate Art

Etsy Trashion Materials Focus: Vinyl

Trashion team member Christine Claringbold of Eye Pop Art gives new life to Vinyl records with amazing talent! We asked her a few questions about reuseing vinyl and here is what she had to say:

What do you make from vinyl?

I create mandala art, home decor, and wearable accessories from upcycled vinyl records.

These include my Popsicle Clocks, Mandala Record Bowls, Feng Shui Mirrors, Roman Record Cuffs, and Eye Candy Cuffs.

What do you love about vinyl?

I love vinyl records because they are perfect circles with a perfectly defined center - perfect for creating mandalas!

I also love them for being flexible and easy to manipulate into other unexpected forms.

I love that they are so abundant - people give them to me all the time.

I love that they are retro-cool and easily recognizable, and they make people feel a bit nostalgic. People are always amazed to flip over one of my bowls and read the original record label.

I also love the fact that they represent a hugely important part of my life, which is MUSIC! I love to listen to records, I grew up on records as did my husband, and we still love to spin discs, as do our kids. But there are so many old, crappy, scratchy, unplayable records out there that people can't seem to get rid of, and these are the ones to which I love giving new life.


What’s the largest challenge in re-utilizing vinyl?
Well, it was a big challenge to me to figure out how to cut them so I could start making cuffs. Now that I have that figured out, it's a breeze! I do prime all of my records before painting them and I guess that is the biggest pain of the process - it's not challenging, but I don't enjoy it that much so I tend to procrastinate on doing it.

How long have you been working in this medium?
I started painting records in 1997. 11 years!

Where do you find inspiration?
I have always been inspired by the psychedelic '60s. I love the mad patterns, bold colors, stylized florals and paisleys and weird motifs that characterized that era (including the music!). I have a really huge collection of vintage psychedelic coffee cups and the designs on them have inspired me a lot. I also get inspired by working with children. I teach art to kids and just love the beautiful works of art they create.

Wow! Christine you have certainly taken vinyl to a place of extraordinary beauty. Thank you for sharing your talent and creativity with us!

Interested in discovering more about Christine Claringbold and her work check out her blog, and website. Want to have some of her passionate creations for your very own? Go to her Etsy shop!

Materials focus: What is Vinyl anyway?

In August we will be focusing on vinyl and the trashion team members who revision it as an central part of their art. Which leads me to ask:

What is Vinyl anyway?

Vinyl is a synthetic man-made material. It is a type of plastic that is made from ethylene (found in crude oil) and chlorine (found in regular salt). When processed, both the substances are combined to form Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) resin, or as is commonly referred to - Vinyl.

The word comes from the Latin vinum = "wine", because of its relationship with alcohol (in its original sense of ethyl alcohol).

A vinyl compound is any organic compound that contains a vinyl group (also called ethenyl), -CH=CH2. These are derivatives of ethylene, CH2=CH2, with one hydrogen atom substituted with some other group.

Where have you seen vinyl?

When someone says vinyl, I immediately think of a gramophone record, or vinyl record. A vinyl record is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed modulated spiral groove usually starting near the periphery and ending near the center of the disc.

Vinyl has found many applications in the medical world because of its non-hazardous properties. Vinyl is commonly used for making the following medical products; Intravenous Fluid Bags and containers, bags, Goggles, Caps, Inhalation Masks, Mouthpieces, Dialysis Equipment, Medical Sealants, Ear Protectors, Thermal Blankets, Gloves, and Valves.

Look around your home, and the houses in your neighborhood you may be amazed to discover that almost 60% of all vinyl made in the United States is used in construction and furnishings.*
Here are some of the applications of vinyl in construction; Siding and window frames, Roofing, Gutters and down spouts, Coverings for walls and floors, Piping for water distribution, sewage, and irrigation systems, Fencing, railing, and decking, Insulation of wiring, Electrical conduit, and Fire sprinkler piping.

That's an enormous amount of material people could be adding to landfills, which by the way are commonly lined with Vinyl (as see in the image to the right, they are laying the vinyl to develop a landfill). Which is where the artisans of Trashion Street Team come in!

*Statistic quoted from http://www.whatisvinyl.com/

We are living in a material world

The artisans on the trashion team bring out beauty in unconventional objects and materials. We seek out materials others have might discard and revision them. We apply our skills and passion to recycling, giving unwanted supplies new purpose and charm.

This is the first post in a series about the materials we transform.

In August we will be focusing on vinyl. We will take a look at the material itself. Then we will feature vinyls transformations by the hands of members of the Etsy Trashion Street Team. We will hear first hand what they love about vinyl, as well as how they recreate it!

To get a peak at some things to come search Etsy with Trashion Team and Vinyl you will be delighted by what you find!