Life after espresso…
4 Sep
I know it sounds like a craft project gone wrong but I have come across many elegant items made with coffee bags. The great thing about them is that you are repurposing material and…how can you not love the history of each bag carries. Each bag has traveled so far…most places are a mystery but there are some stamps for dates and different cities and countries on each one.
My first pursuit will be to create pillows, specifically pillows for my outdoor furniture. I might also create some indoor throw pillows. Later when I am feeling extremely adventurous I want to reupholster a chair. I have never upholstered a chair before so that will be a big accomplishment and one I am little scared to tackle.
My first inspiration for creating things with coffee bags came from a vendor I found at the Rose Bowl Flea Market. I don’t know if you have ever heard of this particular flea market but it has to be like no other. Located in the beautiful city of Pasadena, it is held at the Rose Bowl Stadium once a month – it is huge with over 2,500 vendors and loaded with so many unique items. I came across pillows and a chair and ottoman and was blown away.
Then a few weeks ago while traveling in Newport Beach I discovered an amazing store called Juxtaposition. If you are ever in the area, you have to check it out. Their logo is “Where vintage industrial, crisp linen, and found objects are not strange bed fellows.” When I read that phrase, I thought…hey, that’s me!!! The store was loaded with pillows, chairs and comforters made from coffee bags and other jute and burlap type industrial materials. (You can view more of their things on their website at: http://www.juxtapositionhome.com). I found these pillows and adore the way they mixed the coffee bag pillow with the striped chair. After seeing how they mixed the fabrics, I realized there are limitless possibilities with what can be done coffee bags!
I can’t wait to score some of these bags myself and start making things.
At this point I am still trying to figure out where to find them. I looked online and couldn’t find much that didn’t have outrageous shipping prices. I think I might ask some local coffee shops and coffee roasters next…
I found some coffee sacks from Etsy. They sent a note saying you cannot laundry them in a washer to hang them on a line in the rain but as dusty and smelly sorta as they are, I’m not sure how you would really get them clean enough to make pillows out of.
Lisa thanks for the information! My mom found some coffee bags for me on craigslist and she is shipping them to me. I can’t wait to get them! She said they were varied in texture. Some are harder than cardboard and others quite soft. If it’s not possible to wash them in a washer, treating and cleaning them will be quite a difficult undertaking! I’ll post about it and let you know how it goes!
Angie
Pretty nice post. I just stumbled upon your weblog and wished to say that I’ve truly enjoyed browsing your blog posts. After all I will be subscribing to your feed and I hope you write again soon!
How do you keep the coffee bags from shedding? I have a ton of them and haven’t used them because the fibers shed.
Where did you find this black and white fabric???! I cant find the thick stripes ANYWHERE!! And I am in nyc. Please email if you have any info
LOVE Your chair !
I found some really nice coffee bag designs at http://upcyclenw.com – they do have shipping minimums that are high (meant for wholesalers) but I’m going to email them and see if there’s any flexibility there. They have some really colorful stuff!
¡Rosie!
Since this area is not visible to the eye, chances are that you can rip off the wooden bottom of the
cushion and not worry about how it looks. To cut costs, start
with the rooms that need it most. Trim off excess fabrics.