Belt Art by Leslie is Greenspiration Home American Made “Pick-of-the-Week!”
Recycled Belts Make Colorful (and even SENTIMENTAL!) Seating
(3BL Media / theCSRfeed) January 26, 2012 - “First, I confess, I’m obsessed with belts. Everyone around me knows it, so it’s no secret.”
These were the first words out of Leslie Dickinson’s mouth when we called to tell her that we wanted to feature her repurposed “belt furniture” as the Greenspiration Home American Made Pick-of-the-Week.
Leslie has turned her obsession in a unique business, using old belts to form the woven seats of barstools, chairs, and footstools. The wooden frames are frequently repurposed finds from places like eBay and Craigslist, although another artisan does make a few new frames for Leslie – all American made of course in Kentucky. The belts? Well, they come from anywhere and everywhere including yard sales, Goodwill, eBay, Craigslist, friends and clients.
The furniture is not only uniquely stylish, it’s often quite sentimental. Leslie frequently receives special orders from customers wishing to incorporate belts belonging to family members into her designs. The results are family heirlooms, weighted with memories far too precious to be discarded into a landfill. In fact, Leslie gets many of her referrals from funeral homes, whose clients are struggling with what to do with the clothes and accessories left behind when a loved one passes away! Incorporating the family member’s belts into a new piece of furniture quite literally weaves the memories of the past into a functional future.
Leslie markets her creations via her website at www.crazybeltlady.com and http://BeltArt.etsy.com. She maintains a small inventory of chairs and stools, but a large part of her work is custom order. The crazy belt business is home based (for now) but Leslie is anticipating a move to a nearby workshop to keep up with the growing demand from designers who love her work.
Greenspiration Home LLC is an online resource dedicated to helping homeowners build, renovate, and decorate green. The Greenspiration Home American Made “Pick-of-the-Week” campaign is part of the publication’s initiative to educate consumers about domestically made home décor options.
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