Fleet Week 2012

This morning we took a walk down to Piers 7 and 8 off of Columbia Street. For reference, Pier 1 is just south of the Brooklyn Bridge. We strolled on and off of a handful of beautiful ships both sail and military: ETOILE (France), CUAUHTEMOC (Mexico), JUAN SEBASTIAN de EL CANO (Spain) and JS Shirane (Japan), FNS Pohjanmaa (Finland) plus several Coast Guard ships.

All of the ships are open for tours (some guided) from 8 - 5 today and 8-4 tomorrow. Then they start to head out of town up the East River on Tuesday and Wednesday morning. Full schedule and more info here.

I couldn't help looking at all the sail material and thinking about all the upcycling potential!

Enjoy the long weekend!

The Perfect Beach Bag

The Perfect Beach Bag? Really? Well, yes! That's what people say over and over when they see this roomy light weight durable tote.




Bonus: Not only is it eco friendly for the outside material: upcycled dacron sailboat sails. But the inside, too! A lovely combo of hemp and organic cotton muslin blend with a wave pattern.



Available exclusively here

Reclaimed and Upcycled

Here's another 'new' tote.





The handle material was reclaimed form a local belt factory that went out of business. The same place where the red patent leather bands on the 'Look at Me' tote came from in the previous post. Both totes are available here.

Good news, the old belt factory building was reclaimed and upcycled, too. It's been restored and revamped into The Invisible Dog Art Center. They always have interesting events going on: art openings, plays, open studios. Definitely worth a visit if your in the neighborhood.

Have a great weekend!

Thank You Totes

I'm often asked 'Where do you get your sails?' I have a donation program. When someone donates their sail, they get a tote or a pair of pillows upcycled from their sail in return.

Here are the latest 'Thank You' bags from a recent donation. I love how worn the logo is - crisp blue weathered to a perfect crackle!

Sunshine Harnessed

Today is about as grey as it gets.

But, remember those fantastic bright sunshiny spinnaker sails that I posted about last week? Well, here is the sail upcycled and transformed into accent throw pillows. They are light and fun. Flip them over and you've got a different color combo.
Available in my Etsy shop.

Sunshine Delivered

I received a donation of several sails recently and this gem was in the bottom of the bag.
It instantly made me smile. This spinnaker is going to make great sunshiney pillows.
(I love the rope, too.)

Spinnaker Chair

Spinnaker, a Norwegian company has incorporated new and recycled sail material into it's modern furniture line. Constructed to allow your body to rest in a natural position which promotes circulation, this chair is made for comfort.

'A cruising sailboat is a spectacular sight and confirms that mankind
is subject to the laws of nature. This was our design team’s source
of inspiration when creating the SPINNAKER chair.
'

These chairs are made to order with lots of color and material options. You can even choose the text and symbol for the back of the chair.
Pretty cool.

Sunfish Sail

This wonderful red and white stripe Sunfish sail was recently donated and the above tote resulted as a thank you.

I learned to sail on a Sunfish while vacationing year after year on Cape Cod when I was a kid. Seeing this type of sail again brought back many happy, salty memories.

The sail is silky soft and wonderfully worn. I'm looking forward to working with it this week and creating some fun pillows from the remainder.

Did you know that if your donate a sail you will receive a tote (or set of pillows) made from your sail that will feature the sail insignia? It's a great way for you to continue to enjoy your sail and keep it out of the landfill. If you're interested in donating a sail that is not longer of use to you, please email me at info@reiter8.com for mailing instructions Be sure to include your sail weight, folded dims and address.

Nautical Wedding

I was recently contacted by a bride-to-be looking to add nautical details to her Newport, RI wedding in July. After discussing several options, she decided on a ring pillow made from upcycled sailcloth.

I had a sail with a 'reefing' grommet that was perfect to secure the rope to hold the wedding rings. I customized it with the date embroidered on the royal blue stripe that matches her bridesmaid dresses. It was a fun project I loved creating something truly unique and special for her wedding day.

WIP - Recycled Sail Luggage Tag

Recently, I received a special request to customize a luggage tag with a number two for a second anniversary gift. Cotton is the traditional gift for a second anniversary and they are celebrating with a trip to the Bahamas. One hitch, my regular luggage tags have only a stitch of cotton - meaning the only cotton in them is the stitching.

In response, I created a custom made luggage tag made of recycled sailcloth with a stripe of navy organic cotton canvas decorated with a machine stitched number 2. Happy anniversary!

I think I'm going to be making a lot more of these ...

The Plastiki Adventure

The Plastiki is David de Rothschild's mission, dream, expedition and boat made entirely from recycled plastic. Rothschild and crew have recently set sail on a 100 day, 10,000 mile journey from San Francisco to Sydney to raise world awareness to reduce, reuse, recycle and rethink more of the planets natural resources.

The mission's philosophy is:

"... about recognizing that waste is fundamentally a design flaw (it does not appear in nature) It’s about re-thinking waste as a resource. It’s about cyclical ‘cradle-to-cradle’ philosophies rather than linear thinking when it comes to how we design our world. It’s about a better understanding of the lifecycle’s and materials used in our everyday lives."

Good luck, Plastiki! Track progress and view video blog entries here. Additional videos and more on Plastiki's You Tube Channel.

photographs courtesy of Luca Babini, illustration by Andrew Rae

Cut It Out

Whoa.
Joe Bagley of Papercuts by Joe is a master papercutter. Originally attracted by the tall ship cut out (above) but blown away by the 18 x 24 photo realistic paper cut out of rope on a dock. Go ahead - take a peek - it's amazing! Additional projects, tips and advice abound on his blog.

Eco Friendly Holiday

Get ready, get set ... go?

I do like having Thanksgiving BEFORE Christmas, but there's a whiff of Christmas holiday in the air so I thought I'd get these upcycled sail stockings out there for you early birds. (OK the real early birds were shopping in August along side my mom.)

I had so much fun photographing them in Julia Mack's lovely home. Julia is an interior designer - be sure to check out her very friendly and tip filled kitchen redesign video. Her dog Trixi (aka The Trixinator) was a lovely assistant and once the lens was pointed her way, she knew exactly what to do.




Recycled sail stockings in two sizes with red stars or stripes currently available on Etsy.

Because She Can

Never underestimate a captain when there's the promise of warmer weather (tomorrow's Brooklyn forecast: Sunny and 69!) and fair winds. One more Brooklyn Public Sail has just been planned for the Sloop Clearwater on Wed, October 21st (yep, that's tomorrow!)

The sunset sail (last one out of Brooklyn this year) is planned to leave the Fairway ferry dock at 5:30.

Kids and adults can cast a net and catch fish in New York Harbor - yes, real live fish!

Are you weighing going to the gym vs. going on the sail? No worries! Enjoy both a light workout AND a sail: help set the 3000 sq. ft. Mainsail - Heave, Ho!

If you choose, bring a picnic and a bottle of wine.

Partake in everything or nothing at all. No matter what, you'll enjoy a peaceful evening on the water amid your busy week.

Because this sail is a little shorter than their normal sails, the prices have been adjusted: $40 for Adults, $30 if you're a CW member and $10 for kids under twelve!

Reserve your place by calling 1-800-67-SLOOP x107 or just stop by the boat at the Fairway ferry dock and speak to a crew member. To find out more about membership, programs and future events go to www.clearwater.org

Welcome Back!

Be a part of the official Welcome Back to Brooklyn for the Sloop Clearwater this Sat October 17th. There are a series of events planned that will appeal to all ages:

3-6 pm: The Sloop sets sail from Manhattan at 3pm and arrives in Brooklyn at 6pm. Pricing: $60/adults; $40/members; $20/kids. Reserve your spot and find more info at Clearwater.org.

5pm to 6pm: Start your evening off with a family-friendly rendez-vous aboard the Historic Waterfront Museum, a beautifully restored showboat barge and floating classroom. Catch great views of the historic tall ship Clearwater as she returns to the Brooklyn waterfront. Donations accepted; snacks, music and fun provided.

6pm-7:30pm: Welcome the Sloop to the dock (located behind Fairway), then hop aboard for a tour of the deck and meet n’ mingle with the Captain and crew!

8pm – 10pm: Head around the corner with the crew to Sunny’s Bar, a Red Hook mainstay for sailors for over one hundred years. A suggested donation of $5 or $10 gets you more great music, refreshments, and a warm mug of mulled cider.
Sunny’s weekly bluegrass jam follows close behind, so be sure and bring an instrument along!

See you there!

NY400 and Harbor Day

Spent a fantastic day on the Sloop Clearwater yesterday. Starting in Brooklyn, we sailed in the NY Harbor then up the Hudson River to the 79th street boat basin in a flotilla of historic and modern dutch and american ships. This sail was part of the NY400 Harbor Day celebration commemorating Henry Hudson's first sail up the Hudson 400 years ago.

The weather was outstanding and the water was sparkling. By the end of the day I'm sure I wasn't the only one fantasizing about living on a boat. Ah, the lure and romance of a sail!

More photos on flickr.

Recycled Sail Christmas Stockings

I've had a custom request for a pair of upcycled sail Christmas stockings and didn't want to send them off with out proper documentation. I was trying to wrap my head around feeling festive for Christmas and it was a little tough since the heat index was something like 126 degrees in my non air-conditioned home yesterday - and again today, thank you very much!

So here they are:




I know that last photo needs poinsettias around the base of the fireplace. They are a little scarce in Brooklyn in late August.

I'm pleased with how the stockings came out: sturdy, clean and bright. Ready and waiting for Santa ... only 125 days to go! (But don't get me wrong - I LOVE people who plan ahead.) I will be making more stockings like these (in two sizes) and they will be for sale online by late September. I'll keep you posted. If you can't wait and want to reserve, drop me an email.

And now we return to your regularly scheduled summer...

But, Wait! There's More!

The Sloop Clearwater has added an extra public sail to their schedule in Brooklyn! It's TONIGHT from 6-9. Bring a picnic and a bottle of wine and enjoy! Call 1-800-67-SLOOP x107 x107 or just stop by the boat at the Fairway ferry dock and ask a crew member. Check it out:


Happy Sailing!