School Auction

A closed school in Southwest Detroit recently had an auction to get rid of its contents and I was able to go scour the school and find some really cool stuff. While it’s sad to have another school closing in the area, I can’t deny how fun it was to search an old, four-story school building full of treasures.

green steel box
One of my favorite finds were these steel, green drawers. I’m not sure exactly how I’m going to use it yet, but I have plans to build a desk in the near future, and I’m sure this will become part of it.

stools
You can tell the seats on these stools are in pretty bad shape, but I’m hoping to replace them with some nicer, salvaged wood.

glass jar and bird
The bird is from an antique store I went to with Mary (mentioned here), but now I found this cool science bottle to accompany it. No idea what’s actually inside of it.

books
I love all these books, but the “Let’s Explore the Great Lakes” one specifically has some amazing illustrations inside.

school map

 

My other favorite find was this school map. Unfortunately, this will have to go into storage until the day I finally have that dream home.

school map - rolled up

 

school map - bottom

 

Trevor

More Rulers – Hometown Style

I liked the way my Detroit rulers turned out well enough that I decided to make another set to represent my hometown of Ypsilanti, Michigan, along with the town’s slogan “Pride. Diversity. Heritage.” Also, it will make a good belated Mother’s Day gift.

Ypsilanti Ruler 1

Ypsilanti Ruler 2

If you’d like a ruler with your own hometown, feel free to request one as a custom order in our Etsy store!

Trevor

Transformation Cards

One of my first projects in school this semester is to design a transformation card. A transformation card is one where the designer has incorporated the suit into an illustration. Traditionally, the suits had to stay in their normal position, but some artist have strayed from this guideline. I was browsing through some examples to inspire my own card and I thought I’d share my favorites here.

Jack of Hearts
Jack of Hearts by Emmanuel

LA-TEE-DA Transformation Playing Cards. 2004
LA-TEE-Da Transformation Playing Cards via odessa

Seven 001
Seven of Diamonds Print by CMYKelsey

cat transformation deck
Cat Transformation Deck by John Littleboy via The World of Playing Cards

Mary

Detroit Rulers

I completed my first project at Tech Shop this past weekend and I made these Detroit-themed rulers you can now find in our Etsy store. I was really happy with the way they turned out, and it’s only the beginning of many new projects to come!

ruler 1

ruler 2

We’re also starting to apply to some of the spring/summer Craft Faires, which means ramping up production along with it. I’m excited to get back into the swing of things after the post-holiday lull.

Trevor

The Attention of the Class

I’ve been seeing a lot of old educational charts repurposed as home decor lately. I’m a big fan of this look for an office or studio. Beyond looking awesome, there’s huge design inspiration potential in these charts as well. I feel a project coming on…

yellow flower educational chart
from Three Potato Four

Ttime zone educational chart
from twentytimesi

botany chart
from The Abandoned School

jellyfish chart
from Empirical Style Auction

Mary

Monday Photo Safari: School

It’s back-to-school time, so our photo theme for this week was “School.”

Old School
Trevor’s photo from Chicago, Illinois

School Books
Mary’s photo from Chicago, Illinois

Next week’s theme is “Your Shoes.” If you want your photo included, please send it to whatgoodcrafts@gmail.com along with your name and the location of where it was taken.

Trevor