Earth Week Day 1: The Tale of the Infamous L-Ville Couch

When Narla and I first started hanging out there was this couch. Live in any big city and late at night before trash pick up day (or before game days should you live in Morgantown WV) you may found furniture in alleys and by the side of the road. If you're lucky it's by the curb on trash day in the "rich part of town". You know of where I speak...where those of us who can sew and get our hands dirty could never afford to live. Beverly Hills, Grosse Point, Squirrel Hill, etc. For the best pickings, case the joint on the night of trash day in a part of town with lots of two car garages, BMWs, and where the cops are called when anybody who's not white is seen on the sidewalk. Use their racism to your advantage. NO rich douche-bag is going to tell this cut off jeans wearing person of unknown race to put down their trash side table or leave their brocade curtains in the trash. So...racist rich assholes aside, furniture/cool shit on the side of the road can be viewed thusly....

• REHOME ME!: Sometimes the item might be in great shape! A metal chair that has scraped paint? come on you've got rustolium! With the day of bed bugs being a serious issue, rehoming something upholstered into your house can be playing creepy crawly but metal tables, wooden chairs...hey if you're broke or low income, or both and a scavenger who loves DiY and adventure then give it a shot! Note: street furniture does have a risk of having bugs and mites but if you're really broke...or if it's un-upholstered..go for it. The more padding an item has the higher the risk. So a wooden chair or metal table is good to go vs a super plush couch. NOTE: I have a nice love seat and cushion scavenged in my neighborhood that has served me well. HOWEVER I knew of this family and they were a clean lot and I got it right when they were ditching it and dragged it home.  My aunt lives on the border of Grosse Point (rich asshole land) and inner city Detroit (suspect street furniture land). She has entire house of bad ass made from things she's scavenged and then refinished or done and a few things she got straight up at road side. Not a bed bug in sight! (13 cats,2 dogs and an engineer yes...but not bed bugs)
• I've got good bones UPCYCLE ME!: My aunt is infamous for this and so are many a person on Pinterest...rip it apart and reupholster the item....or in the case of this couch, had we been the savvy sewing scavengers that we are...Please note that these days, scavenging street furniture can be a little risky (bedbugs, scabies, MRSA) but stripping it down to bare bones where it stands and putting the rubbish in a bag to go where the item was originally going does limit that risk but that's only if you want the frame.
• OMG I'm made of leather and only one cushion is wee'd on...look TONS OF FREE LEATHER!: Yes, a smelly couch with broken legs and possible rats might fail the first two options, but if you're like me and always keep a shop knife if your car or on your person when going on a walk...In the case of this couch quite a bit of high quality leather could have been gotten from it to make bags, shoes, props etc. Then if the upcycle person comes along who would have just gutted it anyway you did part of the work. NOTE: this works best for leather/vinyl which are easier to clean as they are not so porous as fabric..and lets be honest, most street couches in fabric are ugly as all damn sin!

Should you chose to keep the couch/chair/table as is and aid it to your home, follow The 10 Commandments of Adopting Used Furniture and learn How to Avoid Bed Bugs

This all being said, if you're big into Mad Max style upcycling and the endless quest for being the cheapest cosplayer on the block with the sneakiest skills and most karma points...Here's a few quick tips!

1. Scavenge wisely!: OBVIOUSLY pay attention to where you are! You may find the best collection of tossed out ancient radio parts and hundreds of vacuum tubes (did it! GOod shit and worth the spilled blood but that's another story) but make sure that you aren't in a bad part of town alone. Bring a friend or a dog. After all with a friend you have double the hands to carry your new found goods and a second pair of eyes to watch your back. 
2. Have a scavenge kit: If you do this often, I've found having work gloves, trash bags, a tape measure, and a closable hobby knife are the best things to have in a bag if you know you'll be questing for loot. I keep that stuff in my car or go back to get later after i've spotted something. 
3. Dirty Loot? Clean it up!: Lysol (yeah I know it's not organic and it's kinda toxic but sometimes it takes a lot of kill the heebee jeebies) is your friend.  So is a black trash bag on the item, sealed with duct tape and left in the sun in summer heat for a couple days if you are worried about bugs.* Clean your loot well before reusing it. 

Be creative with your scavenging! Look at the item for what it can be not what it is. Some examples from the last couple trips:

• An old tire can make new treads or additionally thick treads for goth boots or shoes. In fact this is a common way to make simple shoes in other countries. Same tire can also be repainted and made into a planter if you're into redneck chic
• Broken slate stairs or tiles can be markers in your garden or a rest for your heat gun/hot knife/ hot glue gun that will NOT burn or melt! 
• Clean and dry wood scrap: instant clapper for hard pressing, or wrap with a towel if it's narrow enough and you have a sleeve board
• Broken window with screen: use the window screen like buckram
• Heavy old wine or liquor bottle: fill with pebbles or sand and top with a styrofoam head for a DiY wig/hat stand! Spray paint that sucker if you don't want the original look
• Old window with glass intact: Spray paint the back of the glass with Mirror Mirror paint for an instant mirror (I have one just like this in my livingroom)
• Tossed out old computers/speakers/ghetto blasters/radios: instant circuit boards for any cyborg looking project or maybe....

Make a bed for your pet!

 Be creative, enjoy your scavenging and have fun! Note that it's easier to scavenge for postapocolyptic/steampunk costumes and accessories and it does take some DiY skills but you can get there with work.

*This is in no way a guarantee that you won't get visitors of the six legged variety. scavenge at your own risk.