Upcycling Furniture @ The Upcycle Project

When you purchase a second-hand piece of furniture, or an upcycled craft, do you ever think about the story behind them?  Where was it made and bought? What has it "witnessed" and why is it now being sold to someone else? Participate in Design (P!D) launched The Upcycle Project in Jan this year and one of their aims was to engage the community at MacPherson and get them to realise their own capacity for contributing to their neighbourhood. Through upcycling, P!D could interconnect individuals (such as the residents of MacPherson, artists, designers) through harnessing the power of stories and ideas.  

They collected many items of furniture from the neighbourhood. Some were upcycled and put on display at The UpcycleArt Village last Saturday.  I was there to give one of my workshops and had a chance to meet one of the founders, Mizah Rahman.  Mizah told me that they are now on Phase 2 which will involve inviting various designers, artists, local craftsmen and students to redesign / upcycle one item so that it best meets the needs of the intended recipient. They should be ready by July!

P!D founders (in yellow, L to R), Jan Lim and Mizah Rahman

Getting the community involved in upcycling through activities.

Some of the upcycled items to inspire others. There was a flower pot holder converted into a stool and a metal office desk turned into a dim sum / tea trolley!

I liked this idea by P!D - a magazine stool. They even shared how it was done at the Village - will put photos and a mini-tute up later.  They also had some donated perfume drums which were upcycled into stools.

MacPherson is considered one of the older residential areas of Singapore, and so I had to cut down on the sewing bit of the workshop!  The majority of participants were over 40 (except for two) and some of the ladies were approaching 80. It was an enjoyable experience!

This is Mallika and her creation. :-)