Saturday, November 29, 2014

Creativity Isn't Limited to Art Work.



Turkey Project
Turkey Project
This is a fun turkey art project for the whole family.

Art Projects are a fun part of the holidays. Yet, creativity isn't limited to just the arts. If one thinks about it then one would see that it's much broader than that. Old adages like "Necessity is the mother of all invention." & "Waste not, want not." have come back to life in amazing new ways. With the economy being a bit tighter than it was even a decade ago, those adages are ringing true now more than ever. New generations are relearning some of the creative practices of generations past. Around the start of the baby boomer generation, craftsmanship started being replaced with convenience and frugality started being associated with the lower classes.
Now the art of using what was once wasted by the masses is now chic and trendy. It has even been given some fun names like recycling, repurposing, upcycling and post consumer products. The words are different in cooking too. This is a recount of a Thanksgiving conversation between my oldest daughter (who just entered her 30's) and my mom (who is in her late 70's) as told to me by my mom.
AK:       Grandma I'm going to make skeleton soup out of the turkey part.
Gma:     Skeleton soup sounds interesting. How do you make it?
AK:       You boil the bones & skin from the cooked turkey in water to make a yummy broth.
Gma:     Oh Yes, that's how you make stock for soup.


Then mom says to me, "but I don't like the name Skeleton soup, because it sounds creepy."
I had to laugh because a practice that my mom has done for years is now becoming trendy, so much so that it has a creepy new name. LOL
Mom has been saying for so long that she can't understand why people routinely dump nutritious liquids down the drain or throw away elements that can be boiled to make broths. She's right, why buy cans of broth or vegetable stock at the store when you can easily make your own?!
It's understandable that she would wonder why others are wasteful when she grew up with resourceful parents and also knew of her Granddad Rev. E.W. Olson's creative solutions to everyday problems. As the story goes, E.W. would use the rubber from the blown tires of his Model T to resole the shoes of the children in the communities that he ministered to. He took what could have been a great aggravation to him and his tight budget and turned it around to be a blessing for others. I've started reading his journals and it does seem that he practiced a lot of frugality in his life. I think that if he were around today he would be one of those making "How To" videos for YouTube. He would be in great company because YouTube is bursting at the seams with creative people sharing ideas.
So what can be make out of old tin cans or glass bottles? How do they make easy Red Velvet cake or even fresh butter? Is there a way to make things out of all of those plastic bags under the sink or from the sawdust from cutting wood? Let your imagination flow. Look around your home and see what gets "tossed out" then figure out a way to repurpose it. I'll keep you up dated on some of my repurposed projects.


Mmmm something smells good in the kitchen. Skeleton soup any one?  LOL