DIY Extraordinaire!

One of FBR’s DIY upcyclers extraordinaire, Courtney Wagner, crafted this incredible Victrola side table for the RE-Gallery.

This table was made from an old Victrola lid, the piece itself was most likely used as a prop.  As Courtney deconstructed the object, she discovered different pieces of mismatched wood holding the piece together.

After doing away with some of the excess wood, Courtney sanded and restained the base flipping the Victrola label right-side-up, creating the top for this delightful side table.

After reattaching the cover, she stained the piece and added a shiny new finish.

This one’s got great legs!

Film Biz Recycling’s Eco-Expo 2012

Film Biz Recycling’s first, annual Eco-Expo was a huge success!  The event brought together creative minds and entrepreneurs throughout the production and sustainability fields.  In attendance were representatives from Earth Angel Catering, Sip N’ Go, Susty Party, Sunbeam Rentals, Vokashi, Green Product Placement, EcoSet, Soda Stream, Canal Creatures & Rock and Wrap It Up! presenting sustainable wares and services for the production industry.  The event was generously sponsored by LeNoble Lumber and Brooklyn Brewery.  We were so thrilled to play host to such an amazing group of individuals; a great time was had by all and we learned a lot!  Can’t wait for next year!

If you couldn’t make the event, take a peek at more pics and green vendor info.

‘One Day on Earth’ Screening to Support Film Biz Recycling

One Day on Earth Screening

Proceeds Benefit Film Biz Recycling

“One Day on Earth is the first film made in every country of the world on the same day. We see both the challenges and hopes of humanity from a diverse group of volunteer filmmakers assembled by an participatory media experiment. The world is greatly interconnected, enormous, perilous, and wonderful.”

Sounds incredible, right?  But it gets better…. The proceeds of two upcoming One Day on Earth screenings will be donated directly to Film Biz Recycling!  Catch the show on on Tuesday, June 5th at 6:10PM and Thursday, June 7th at 8:40PM and your ticket sales will be donated to Film Biz after the show!

PS 321 Spring Dance & Auction

Recognize these disco panels?

Film Biz Recycling is proud to have sponsored the decor for Park Slope’s PS 321’s Spring Dance & Auction on May 16th.

Lookin’ good!

Green, Healthy & Connected at MS51

In honor of Earth Day, the MS51 Parent Association Green Committee in Park Slope sponsored a Cafeteria Environmental Experiment & Contest.  Students and their families were asked to sign a Sustainability Pledge (printed paper from FBR - free office supplies, everybody!) & track their trash, recycling and composting waste.  The experiment tracked the school’s cafeteria waste for the month of April.  Students watched their waste system transform from this:

(everything going to the landfill, no separation between what can be recycled & composted)

…to this:

Awesome!

Check out Vokashi composting!  We use Vokashi here at FBR to compost our kitchen scraps.

Throughout the month, students weighed and measured the different types of waste to track what was going where.

The pilot project was such a success that MS51 has decided to institute a recycling/composting policy in their school cafeteria full-time.

Recently, a representative from the MS51 Green Committee popped into Film Biz Recycling looking for some supplies to create a moveable recycling/compost/trash station.  She found the perfect solution!  One of our wardrobe racks (generously donated from ABC) & wheeled it over to the school.  FBR has got it again!

You can check out MS51’s progress on their website: Green, Healthy & Connected.

FBR’s Favorite Customer

 This is a picture of Beans, Beans the Hot Dog is one of FBR’s favorite customers!  He visits (with his mom/owner of course!) so often, we even made some Beans-sized FBR swag!

So bring your pups & pooches, we always love a visit from furry friends!

Hmmm…that TV wall looks familiar!

You might recognize Film Biz Recycling’s wall of t.v.’s in SNL’s milestone 100th Digital Short, celebrating all of their classics.  The short features an all-star cast: Justin Bieber, Will Farrell, Usher, Natalie Portman, Jon Hamm & Michael Bolton. FBR was so happy to have our props featured in the project!

Here are some pics of the wall itself…

MS 88 Visit!

MS 88 from Park Slope had a great time on their recent school field trip to Film Biz Recycling & sent us this incredible thank you note.

We had a great time and we’re glad you did too!  Come and visit soon!

Spring Civic Sweep

Taken a stroll down Fourth Ave lately?  You’ll be pleasantly surprised by the small, but noticeable addition of tree guards and flowers all along the Avenue.  These green improvements are thanks to the Park Slope Civic Council’s Spring Civic Sweep on April 21st.  Brian Vines, producer of Brooklyn Independent Television’s show Brooklyn Review, stepped out of the studio and and took the show to Fourth Avenue on Earth Day.  Check out their hard work in the video below:

Looks beautiful, great work!

RE-Stitch welcomes Katie Calcaterra

RE-Stitch welcomes Katie Calcaterra, FBR’s newest team member and Resident Fabric Artist.  Feel free to ask Katie about custom orders for costumes, clothing, uniforms or soft goods.  She’s whipped the RE-Stitch workshop into great shape and is busy, busy, busy working on an incredible collection of aprons hand-crafted from FBR’s stockpile of materials (check out pics here!)

Katie graduated from Stephens College in Columbia, MO with a degree in Fashion Design.  She brings with her 6 years of experience working as a costume designer for tv shows (Late Night with Jimmy Fallon - not bad!), commercials and films all throughout NYC.  She started her company, Mary Jane Lane , about a year ago when she began to take her fashion design and business aspirations seriously.

Descended from a family of seamstresses, Katie started sewing at 8 years old.  Katie’s grandmother - the original Mary Jane Lane and an accomplished seamstress in her day - passed on the family wisdom and Katie’s mother instructed her  daughter on the in’s and out’s of the craft.  While rummaging through her grandmother’s sewing library (buttons, trim and patterns galore), Katie came across some old labels that Mary Jane Lane had once used to identify her handiwork.   It was serendipitous and Katie knew at once that this was the name for her business and a statement to her aesthetic.

Katie started out with children’s wear, using her attention to detail and whimsical creativity to inspire the imagination.  She first began designing men’s accessories - suspenders and ties - for her boyfriend; she is inspired by classic looks that have a modern flair and loves to go people-watching in Williamsburg to get ideas.  Her style is classically inspired, silhouettes from an eras past that have been updated and reimagined.

How does Katie fit into FBR?  She used to source Salvation Army and other thrift stores, using oversized men’s shirts as fabric to make smaller items.  She’s had a long-stading interest in doing the “green thing” and is excited by the idea of fabrics and materials whose original purpose is unrelated to their end product.  Needless to say, the FBR staff is tickled pink to have her on board.  Make sure to stop by the Shop and check out her incredible hand-crafted designs in the RE-Gallery!

Welcome to FBR Mary Jane Lane!