Super Cool Dumpster Diving

Haul Pass
Ref-use Recycled Home Furnishings

You carry a heavy load.

But nothing like the guys behind Ref-use home furnishings.

The Austin-based duo hawks over dumpsters to collect plywood waste destined for landfills from obliging cabinet and woodworking shops. Then they haul the scraps to their milling warehouse, where they sand and shape them into modern tables, chairs, and shelves.

The look is super basic (no curvy legs or fanciful accents), as are the finishes: four stains (i.e., smoky gray, dirty brown) and ten paint colors (bright orange and purple to dark blue and earthy green). All paints and clear coats are nontoxic and formaldehyde free.

Get a load of that.

Available at Dh Collection, 3320 West 7th Street, Fort Worth (817-877-1994). To see styles, go to ref-use.com.

Urban Farming Looks so Cool

So, in the Dallas, TX area the new fad is Urban Farming (keeping your own chickens and goats in the city limits). I myself grew up an urban farm and never realized it until recently. We had 12 acres in town (about one whole block) with a blackberry patch, cows, horses, honey bees, 3 orchards and a huge garden. We also had a windmill so we never paid a water bill. It really made me appreciate how things are grown, not to waste, and the value of knowing what goes into one's food.
After a year of composting and gardening I have been thinking of raising my own chickens. Once I found this it's on. Now the set up is a little pricey but organic eggs are totally worth it. My kids and I have decided to save our pennies for chickens.
Check this out:
Chicks Dig It
Eglu Modern Chicken Coop

They say you shouldn’t count your chickens before they hatch.

But bet on enjoying your own incredible, edible eggs with help from Omlet, whose new Eglu Cube makes it possible for city dwellers to own chickens.

Depending on your outdoor space, you can opt for a six-foot (for six chicks) or nine-foot (for up to ten) run. You’ll need to clean the roost once a week, but it’s easy with slide-out dropping trays and plastic surfaces you can hose down.

The party fowls will be warm in winter and cool in summer thanks to twin-walled insulation. The steel weldmesh run keeps out pesky rodents, and a skirt lies on the ground to prevent foxes and other predators from digging their way in.

Three hens can lay their goods in the secluded nesting booth, and an egg port makes collecting easy.

So you won’t have to scramble.

Available online at omlet.us.

Hens in your backyard and fresh eggs every morning!
If you have been thinking about keeping a couple of chickens for a while but just didn’t know where to start, or you have a small flock of faithful hens who you would like to reward with a new house then Omlet can help!

Using the experience of thousands of delighted customers we have developed the eglu and our personal service to offer you a truly innovative, practical and fun way of keeping chickens. Collecting fresh eggs from hens in your backyard not only ensures you get fantastic tasting eggs but you also get a good feeling inside from knowing exactly where your food comes from.

Tarts on DFW Around Town

Buy Indie Wednesday: Vinyl Keepsakes Rock With Texas Tarts, punk jewelry doesn't have to be disposable

By LYNDSAY KNECHT MILNE

Updated 7:45 AM CDT, Wed, Jun 3, 2009

Texas Tarts

A peek at the Burning Heart Black Vinyl earrings in Texas Tarts' shop tells you all you need to know about Jacky Sylvie's best pieces: they're slick, geometric, and true-hearted '80s punk.

Where does the insatiable vinyl collector go after their bins are full?

They could find a new supplier -- or an ideological opposite -- in Jacky Sylvie of Texas Tarts, who recycles old albums to make earrings, necklaces, cuffs and belt buckles that feature the addictive sheen of recorded history.

Concerned music fans uncomfortable with the warping of perfectly good wax should know up front that some works are spared by default. If Sylvie comes across records by the Beatles or Elvis on her Ebay and Craigslist hunts for specific colors, for instance, those finds will be purposed for listening only.

Our favs from Tarts' Etsy shop:

The deal: Come on Eileen Vinyl Necklace, $10. The most literal of TT's necklaces features a tiny plastic record charm against a clear vinyl pendant. A lightning bolt tops off the layer of goodies, sold on a tough black chord.

The splurge: Beat It Charm Bracelet, $30. Traditional wrist trinkets not your jingle? TT gives James Avery the finger with this piece, a bangle-style bracelet with hand-cut shapes in uniform black vinyl dangling from the round.

P.S. TT accessories were featured in the Futuretopia-themed photo shoot for the Dallas Observer's Best of 2008 issue.

And now, a few words with designer Jacky Sylvie:

AT: Name three records you recently used to make accessories out of.

JS: Ha, people always ask me that. My last three creations came from Good Old Country Gospel, The "B.S." Song [by] Cotton-Eyed Joe and Strawberry Shortcake's Country Jamboree. (Hmm, I'm sensing a country theme here.)

AT: What album could you never retire for use in a product? I.e., what good finds have you saved for the recycling pile?

JS: There are actually lots I wouldn't use. I would never use any Elvis (may he rest in peace), Beatles, Joan Jett or Shawn Cassidy (I covet my Hardy Boys record player.) I recently received two mint Prince LPs, Purple Rain and When Doves Cry, that will never be used.

AT: If you could get any rock star to wear your jewelry as a sponsor, who would it be and why?

JS: There are actually two that I would love to wear my goods. First, Joan Jett, because she is just pure, hardcore rock and roll and I love that she always wears black. And Gwen Stefani because she has such unique style, makes bold choices and yet is still feminine. .

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