Save Green......By Going Green

For the first time in human history the concentration of carbon dioxide in our atmosphere reached 400 parts per million.  Global warming is a real thing and our consumption of fossil fuels is one of the main reasons this is happening. There seems to be an attitude these days that if a solution doesn't completely fix a problem, then it's not worth doing, but the fact of the matter is that most problems have multiple solutions and small steps add up to big journeys.

There are a lot of simple things we can do to help reduce our carbon footprint.  Today I am talking about one of my favorites, shopping at thrift stores. Balancing a full-time job with my art and writing is not easy, and I am not exactly rolling in dough. I have found thrift stores to be a great resource.

I have been pretty impressed by what people donate to these places.  Not only have I found some name brand clothing for pennies on the dollar (I am particularly fond of the Columbia rain jacket I got for $6.99), but I have outfitted my kitchen with some great appliances and cookware.

One day at a thrift store I happened to noticed a juicer that retails for around $100, priced at under $15. It looked complete and the motor ran when I tested it, so I decided to give it a try. As it turns out it was missing two pieces:  a tool to remove the filter assembly and the container to collect the waste pulp. The only piece I really needed was the tool to remove the filter (my mixing bowl, lined with a grocery bag collected the pulp just fine). The missing piece was under $10 (including shipping), so I was still ahead by more than $75.

Once I realized that I could order replacement parts fairly easily and cheaply, I started keeping my eyes out for other bargains.  I have a couple of really nice food processors now (I found two of one model, so now I have spare parts for even less than it costs to order replacements).

Not only can you find better quality items but you can often find vintage appliances that look way cooler and are built much better than their modern counterparts.  I have a couple of vintage blenders from the 1960s.  The motors are quieter (and probably better made) than the one in my more modern blender, and each one was well under $10. The best part is, the design for Oster blenders is virtually unchanged, so the gaskets, blades, and pitchers for their modern blenders fit my vintage beauties!

Lady Kenmore, my first vintage blender. 

Hint: Sears/Kenmore appliances are usually made

by name brand companies. I knew from the blade

assembly that this one was made by Oster.

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige, All Rights Reserved

Lady Kenmore meets 'Lord Oster'.  Bonus: the pitcher from

my more modern Osterizer will work on either of these.

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige, All Rights Reserved

My dining room table top I salvaged from a $6.99 coffee table I found at Goodwill (click here to see how I did it).  In my studio, I combined an old trellis with a clock I found at a thrift store to make a modern take on the classic grandfather clock (click here). I have also gotten quite a bit of lighting at thrift stores, see Affordable Lighting...With Just A Few Brushstrokes for more information.

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige, All Rights Reserved)

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige, All Rights Reserved)

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige, All Rights Reserved)

I've also gotten some great books and even found art supplies and items I can re-purpose in an art piece.  The three pieces featured in my post A Trio of Trees...What's New In The Studio were all done on surfaces that I bought at thrift stores.

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige, All Rights Reserved

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige, All Rights Reserved

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige, All Rights Reserved

I've even been able to increase my storage space in the studio thanks to thrift stores. Storage containers can get pretty pricey, but I was able to buy and retrofit a rack with bins for under $10. Get the full story at I Can Always Use More Storage Space....

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige, All Rights Reserved

The benefits of buying thrift are multifold. Not only are you keeping stuff out of the landfills, but most of these stores are either raising money for a charity or are owned by a small, independent business person.  Sometimes what you buy is better made than something you buy new. If you find something you like better, you can either re-donate or sell the the old item and still come out ahead of the game.

Obviously, shopping thrift is a bit different.  You can't 'order' exactly what you want, so it may take a few trips before you find what your looking for.  These items aren't new, so inspect them carefully for things like frayed cords and missing safety features.  Check the store's return policy. My local Goodwill stores, for example, have a 10 day window and will only give you store credit (no cash refunds).

No, buying a used item won't instantly reverse global warming, but it will help get us there and you will be keeping something out the landfill and helping to support a charity or local businessperson, and you might even find something much better than new.

2013 Glenwood Avenue Art Fest......Only A Week Away!

Thankfully, art has been occupying a healthy portion of my time lately.  I am doing two art fairs this year and the first is only a week away!  The Glenwood Avenue Arts Fest is one of my favorite Chicago Street Fairs.  The Art Fest is easily accessible via the CTA Red Line (Morse Stop) and features three separate performance stages plus more than 100 artists and vendors. The Fest is August 17th and 18th and more info can be found here.

The week before is always hectic, finishing and touching up paintings. In addition to original paintings, I will also be offering photographs and cards, including photos featured in previous blog posts:  "I Didn't Find Any Eggs...But I Did Find This Gem!" and "The Baha'i Temple In Wilmette...An Architectural Treasure"

Art Deco Bowling Alley, Logan Square Neighborhood

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige

Baha'i Temple, Wilmette, Illinois

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige

I am rarely without my camera, so be sure to check here and my photography site for new additions.  My recent photo essay of Millennium Park can be found here.

Bridgeway Connecting Millenium Park to the 

Art Institute of Chicago (c)2013 Eric E. Paige

Lurie Garden, Millennium Park

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige

Well, it's back to work for me.  I have five paintings I am working on and hope to have them all completed in time for the Art Fest.

"Grove Series" in progress. (c)2013 Eric E. Paige

If you can't make this fair (or even if you can), I will also be exhibiting at The Edgewater Fall Art Fair on September 28th and 29th. Details here. You can also view my painting website.

Have a great day!

Sometimes When it Rains, It Pours...But Did It Have To Pour INSIDE?!

Like much of the United States, we have had our share of rainstorms in the Windy City this year. The morning after a particularly intense one, I walked out into the hallway to find that even though storm had ended, it was still raining inside. I had been wanting to take care of the peeling paint and wall cracks in the front hall since I moved in, but now, with the paint falling off the ceiling in big sheets, I had additional incentive....

As the ceiling dried, the paint started peeling and the minerals in the plaster
started forming yellow crystals. (c)2013 Eric E. Paige

After the roofing company fixed the problem and the ceiling and walls had dried, I got down to business, or I guess in this case, up to business. The first step was to scrape off the peeling paint and the efflorescence (mineral crystals that formed as the water evaporated).

Scraped, sanded, and washed. 

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige

I also found a couple spots of mildew where water had gotten trapped behind loose paint. I used a spray bleach cleaner from a dollar store, but you can also make your own solution; most brands of bleach have instructions on the label. I then wiped down the walls and ceiling with water to remove any residues (there were tannins that leached from the ceiling joists).

Once I had a clean, dry surface, repairs could start. There are a lot of options for filling cracks, and if you have only a small amount of repair, an inexpensive jar of lightweight spackle will work just fine, but as I had some large cracks to fill and a time limit (the owner of the building was in the midst of moving and we needed to get things done quickly so it didn't interfere with showing his unit), I chose to use a setting-type joint compound. Whereas regular joint compound dries and you can rework it by adding water, the setting type cures, like cement. You have to work quickly, but the trade off is less waiting time between coats. For more information on the subject, see my post: Reclaiming Space...Bringing A Sun Porch From the 70s Into The 21st Century.

Tools of the trade, taping knife, joint tape, and

joint compound. (c)2013 Eric E. Paige

There were three main types of repairs I had to do: filling holes, filling cracks, and skim coating. Filling small holes is a relatively simple repair: you fill the hole with the compound, level it off with your putty or taping knife, and sand it. Sometimes, the compound shrinks and you get a slight depression where the hole was, another coat of compound and some sanding will take care of this.

Filling cracks can be more difficult. They can be the result of the building settling, which is an ongoing process, so the cracks often reappear. The minor cracks, I did just spackle over, but for the major ones I filled and reinforced them. For some of the mid-sized cracks (up to about 1/8") I used joint tape, a paper tape used to cover the gap (aka 'joint') between two pieces of sheet rock. I bought the smallest roll they had, as I only needed a few feet of tape. There is also a mesh 'tape' that has a light coating of adhesive to hold it in place while you 'mud' over it with the compound, but I find the paper is cheaper and much easier to work with.

This deep crack is caused by the building settling. If I just

filled it with joint compound, the crack would come back.

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige

I filled the cracks with the joint compound, spreading it out a bit wider than the tape. I then put a very light coat of the compound on the back of the tape (this helps ensure it all adheres to the surface and that you don't get air bubbles -- trust me, taking your time here will save you headaches later!). I then pressed the tape against the wall, carefully smoothing it with my taping knife to ensure it was well adhered and carefully applied a very thin coat over the top of the tape. Once the compound was dried, I applied a second coat which I feathered out well past the edge of the tape. If you look at a piece of sheetrock you will notice that the long edges are indented slightly, this is to accommodate the thickness of the tape and the joint compound. Since I was repairing a crack, there was no recessed area, so the next best thing is to cover the tape completely, gradually reducing the thickness of the coat as you get further from the tape. If you are using a taping knife rather than a putty knife and look down the edge of the blade, you will see that it has a slight bend in the middle. The high spot in the center helps ensure that more mud gets put over the taped area.

To repair the deep crack by the door way, I wanted something a little heavier duty, so I used some scraps of khaki I cut from a pair of ripped pants. I wet the fabric first, to ensure it gripped evenly to the mud.  If you want to go a little more high-tech, your home-improvement or hardware store sells various patching materials in metal or fiberglass, to cover  large holes and cracks. The procedure is basically the same, only if you have a self-adhesive patch, you only put mud on top of the patch, not underneath.

A layer of mud fills the crack and makes a base for the patch

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige

Scraps of khaki will reinforce the joint.

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige

The khaki, covered with more mud.  The

high spots left by the taping knife will sand

off pretty easily. (c)2013 Eric E. Paige

The final type of repair was skim coating. Since only some of the paint peeled, had I just painted over everything, you'd see a line where the paint chipped. To remedy this, I simply applied a thin layer of compound to even out the thickness. I didn't have to cover every square inch that had lost paint, but merely applied the compound over the uneven area and pulled from the paint (the high spot) to the plaster (the low spot) gradually tapering off (feathering), the amount of compound, just like I had done to cover the tape.

Skim coated, mud feathered out past the sharp

edges where the paint peeled. 

(c)2013 Eric E. Paige

A second coat fills any spots that were missed 

and any low spots that formed after the 

compound set.(c)2013 Eric E. Paige

Once all of the joint compound had cured I sanded  it smooth, taking care not too sand too hard and expose the tape. For the walls, I used a fine grit sanding sponge. The sponges last a long time and can be rinsed out, dried, and used again. On the ceiling I used a pole sander to knock off the real high spots and then feathered things out using a sanding sponge.  After the first sanding, there were some some spots that weren't even.  Since they were relatively shallow and would dry quickly, I used a premixed, lightweight joint compound to fill them. Sanding is a messy business, so a dropcloth, mask, and goggles, are must.

Sanded, primed, and ready for paint! 

(c)2013 Eric E Paige

I know a lot of paints say they are self priming, but stain-blocking primer is relatively inexpensive and dries in an hour.  My walls and ceiling were a flat finish, so I only primed over the patches and exposed plaster.  If I were using a glossier finish, I would of painted over the whole surface to ensure that the new paint doesn't 'flash' (variances in sheen because of the way the finish adheres to different surfaces). The stain blocking primer I used does a good job for most applications and is a waterborne product, so clean up is a breeze and the odor is low. There were a couple of spots where more tannin leached through the paint, causing the primer to yellow slightly in some spots.  Before coating with the final paint (in the Fall, when it is cooler, and I want to be inside), I will spot prime them with an oil or shellac based stain blocking primer, and then probably go over that with a bit of the waterborne primer, just to make sure the color takes evenly.