Monday, August 22, 2011

Upcycled Yoga Bracelets and a Giveaway!

Practicing yoga with jewelery can be a tricky endeavour. I am a little embarrassed to admit that I still do. I may not be that lady with a zillion rings, ready to take out an eye, or with the dangly earrings clonking her in the face, but I most certainly have my 'yoga jewelery' on the ready.

Little earrings that don't move, my wedding band that barely can be felt and my favourite- my arm band hand crafted from environmentally tanned Alberta leather (I never said I was vegan). Being an environmentally friendly sparkle-obsessed yogini, that means I can justify spending a bit more on locally handcrafted jewelery... which can get dangerous for my budget. (But it's ART!).
After seeing a beautiful wrap bracelet on Etsy, followed by this amazing 'T-shirt Necklace' tutorial on My So Called Green Life, I decided that I would make my own version of a wrap bracelet. At least, I'd try!

 (This used to be a wrap- until I cut ALL the wrap parts out...)

I have a bunch of stretchy shirts that I knew I would never wear again, but I love the colour and the fabric was still good. Kellie on My So Called Green Life made the cutting look so easy, because she has a fancy fabric cutter dealy AND a measuring cutting board. To which I do not. 

Therefore a long time of cutting was involved, including fixing of the crappy cutting job afterwards. My first necklace attempt was pretty darn sad, but I gotta say my second attempt is fantabulous! As I also don't have a sewing machine, but got this little sewing kit from my Tante B a few Yules ago, I decided that I would give hand stitching a try. 

 (My impromptu messy craft table, supervised by Atreyu himself)

Wouldn't you know I can sorta rock the stitching?? YES!

Follow this up with the discovery of some runes I had bought for a former friend. Since runes really aren't my thing (Tarot is), I wasn't sure what to do with these beautiful, hand carved runes. Until now! After I do a cleansing and Blessing ritual, they will be perfect for little wrap bracelets that I can pick and choose depending on my day and the rune. I made a lovely test-run bracelet for my friend Alli's birthday and it worked beautifully. I even had time to do a quick cleansing and grounding before gifting it to her.

I also happened to have an old 'Foxy' bracelet that I no longer ever wear. After a bit of awkward sewing and threading... it is the perfect wrapped bracelet with a pretty metal sparkle. 

 (My 'Foxy' upcycled bracelet. Pretty but not as cool as the rune bracelet!)

All upcycled, all hand made by yours truly. And all (well except the necklace) perfect for an Eco Yoga Asana practice. 

Just goes to show that even the most uncrafty of us out there are completely capable of DIY-ing it. 

 (The fruits of my labour- a fabric necklace that isn't quite complete, the Foxy bracelet and a few runes!)
GIVEAWAY!
In Celebration of Eco Yoginis and my new crafty self, I would love to give away one special Rune stretchy bracelet. I have two options for fabric- the lavender purple you see here in the picture and white. 

How to win:



Leave a comment (with your email address pls) telling me what you'd like to welcome into your life right now. For example: Balance, prosperity, change, creativity, new beginnings (this is so I can pick and Bless a Rune just for you!) and of course the colour of fabric you'd like. 

I'll be choosing someone Wednesday, August 24th at 8pm Atlantic Time. WEEE!!!

Many Blessings and Good Luck!

article and photograph of EcoYogini at ecoyogini.blogspot.com

21 comments:

  1. balance for sure! i love the purple. callah.yogalife (at) gmail (dot) com

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  2. What a great idea and it looks amazing! I love freebies and I definitely would wear it ;) I'd go for the white and can I only pick a word from those you offered? If not then my word would either be restore or creation as I feel like in multiple avenues of life I'm trying to get back to my values of who I wanted to be while believing in what's to come ahead. Lots of new opportunities arriving now allowing me to have the opportunity to reconnect but also expand. What a great idea EcoY! ;)

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  3. @Simply A: thank you :) You can choose any word you want- i was just giving examples :)

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  4. come borrow my fabric scissors next time - it will make your cutting much easier!

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  5. New is the word for me - new level of relationship, new career direction, new university course, new spiritual practice, new creative outlet.

    Blimey - there's a lot of new stuff going on for me!

    I'd go for purple - obviously!

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  6. Very crafty! Right now in my like I am seeking peace (on many levels). I love that purple!

    And I love Cdn giveaways!

    nicolebolyea@gmail.com

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  7. Wow that is so beautiful Lisa!

    Right now I am welcoming renewed prosperity into my life as I take the next step into expanding my business. Eek!

    And I love lilac!

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  8. This article reminded me about an article that I had written in my
    Yoga Etiquette series.

    I really liked how you made your own jewellery that would not cause you any injury during a yoga practice.

    I am not into Jewellery but my wife would like a bracelet. Harmony is the word.

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  9. Girl, you are so crafty!!! This is beautiful!

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  10. I would say balance is the word I need most at the moment. Everything else would fall into place with a little bit of balance. I'd love to have a bracelet in white. thimbleluvr (at) hotmail (dot) com.

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  11. Beautiful....and no better time than the present to reconnect with one of my all-time favourite bloggers!
    Finally back on line - and will be back to visit!

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  12. oh right....my word.
    ahem* fresh start...resuming yoga practice,meditation, veganism, buddhism, and living frugally. So done with suffering through poverty... I'm making healthy meal plans and finding a way to make it all work and live simply and purely.
    :)

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  13. Lovely job! As for what I'd like to welcome into my life...fertility. If that's not in the stars (hell, it may not be!), I'll take balance. Or acceptance. :)

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  14. Little confession: I'm actually a long time (lurking) Eco Yogini reader! Oh how the internet is a funny, funny place & Canada smaller than we expect at times!

    Love the crafty adventures & can very much relate to the back burner comment. There was something about merging spirit and creativity that helped bring it back to life for me.

    For the draw: I love Purple & inspiration.

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  15. Wow, what an amazing and wonderful gift! You are truly inspiring. I definitely need some clarity in my life right now. I am writing a thesis, and my head is spinning with my thoughts and by second guessing myself. I have faith that the universe is working to bring it all together, but the clarity would also be useful. And I love purple. My email is through Google, and my name is rmstahl.

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  16. so cute! i love the new crafty you!

    i'd like to welcome abundance into my life, as i take on a new project and try to make a living doing what i love.

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  17. I am absolutely OBSESSED with that idea!! Love it :)

    Right now, I need to welcome unselfishness into my life. Yesterday was a prime example when I had to forego my good run for a run to train my dogs on leash. I was upset because I didn't end up getting in a good workout, but I need to let go of that selfishness!!

    my email is peacelovebagels@gmail.com, and I'm loving the lavender color!!

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  18. I would like to welcome new beginnings and balance as I am entereing a transitional phase on my journey through life :) I love the bracelets, and if I won I think the lavender purple would do nicely.
    lisa.sandercock@gmail.com

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  19. Great job!! It looks awesome :) I've seen wrap bracelets on etsy before and have always wanted one. So count me in on the draw! Lavender and courage if there is a ruin for that. Might have to try making my own if I don't win.

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  20. I love my bracelet! Thanks again! :)

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  21. I could always use a little prosperity :) (bmd0006 at gmail dot com)

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