GREEN HEART FAIR: UPCYCLING TEACUPS

I wouldn't have even been able to tell you what upcycling was before volunteering at the Green Heart Fair.  But let me enlighten you - upcycling, also known as creative reuse, is the reusing and transforming of unwanted, useless and old waste materials into new products of better value for money as well as the environment! Cool, uh?

The Green Heart Fair is Brisbane's biggest community and sustainability festival that promotes innovative green living.  The Fair brings together several sustainability organisations, community groups, artists, foodies, conservationists, businesses and eco-experts to share information and knowledge on how to live more sustainably.  I was so surprised to see events like this even existed, especially so close to home.  It was also incredible to see so many people enthusiastic about making a positive change.  Oh, and the free stuff was great too!

I volunteered at the Green Heart Fair and was lucky enough to help out on the Upcycle Garden Tent.  I worked along side Annette and Grant, who were knew everything you needed to know about gardening and plants.  But not only that, they were also extremely environmentally aware.  I spent the day encouraging people to reuse vegetable cans and upcycle their old crockery including old dishes and mugs.  I  assisted in stepping visitors through the process of planting succulents in teacups and promoting Annettee and Grant's must-do message of drilling of holes in the bottom of the cups for drainage - something people often forget.  I will share with you the how-to and attempt my own DIY teacup planter in a later post!

If you're local to Brisbane, you can check out Green Heart Fair on their website.  You can also find gardening tips on Annette's website or listen to her on ABC Gardening Talkback!