Where to Find Reusable Materials

If you live in Southwest Washington, there are several options for finding inexpensive or even free materials that you can use in your garden:

1. Yard sales--look in newspapers, newspapers online and Craig's List. I look for what is useful and inspires me. It could be most anything--sometimes you will even find plant containers and garden tools, or garden benches or tables, or even chairs that could work in an outdoor setting. Look for fabrics that could be used for making seat cushions for benches and chairs for your garden as well. Don't be afraid to make an offer--they might accept it, saving you even more money.

2. Thrift stores--There are many in the area, and may provide wonderful materials for garden decorations, and objects that can be repurposed for use in the garden.

3. The Rebuilding Center--This is one of my favorite stores in Portland. They offer everthing that you might need to build a home, and all of their products are recycled from old houses that they demolish themselves. I have found excellent 2x4s, 4x4s, and molding that we have reused in making arbors for our garden, for example. They also have interesting metal pieces and parts--go take a look, and you might be able to craft a one-of-a-kind table base that you can use in your patio area. You might find a metal gate that, with a new coat of paint, could be wonderful in your garden as a gate, or for vining plants to grow up. I have found a wonderful pair of hayrack-style metal planters that are attached to a fence here even! They have wonderful tiles sometimes in different colors that can be broken and used to decorate stepping stones. This store offers a lot of inspiration at very reasonable prices.

4. Hippo Hardware--Another wonderful store in Portland. If you are looking for cabinet knobs to reuse as garden art or objects, this is your store.

5. Rejuvenation--I also love this Portland store. Their store has gorgeous stuff, but is fairly expensive. Try the salvage yard area instead, and ask the people who work there what you are looking for and for what price. They know their inventory well and will do their best to help, and I have been very surprised at the beautiful things I have found there for little money when I told them what I was looking for. I also find I get a lot of inspiration by looking at the more expensive objects they sell, and then I come home and try to replicate it in some fashion myself for less cost.

6. Your local hardware store--You will spend some time here, so look for one with good customer service, because you will need it when you are searching for attachments and adhesives, concrete and other supplies to make your projects. Hardware stores also sometimes offer paints that have been mixed for other customers, but then returned, and may be available for reduced rates. Get creative and use these as a base to mix your own paints for decorating garden furniture and accessories, and save money.

7. Your storage closet or garage--Let's face it, we all tend to store away items for projects that we have been meaning to get around to. Now is the time to look at all of that stuff, and see what it inspires you to do. It might be to recycle it or give it away, or it might be to reuse it creatively in your garden for a useful purpose.

8. TooGood2Toss: This is a Washington statewide program that allows people to list free or for sale items on this website. Another super place to find free or inexpensive materials for use in the garden.

9. The Trash: This might be a little much for some people, but if someone has got a broom sticking out of their garbage can, grab it. If it makes you feel better, ask before you take it. You can cut off the old broom head, paint it, and you have a wonderful, strong plant stake for no cost. Not everyone is up for dumpster diving, but if you are, you might find some interesting, free materials.

10. Place a "Wanted" announcement online: Places like Craig's List and other online listing sites allow you to place a listing for things you want.

11. Street construction sites: Talk to the manager of the site if they are breaking up concrete used in making sidewalks, and see if they will drop it off at your home if you are looking for materials for building retaining walls, edging for garden beds or patios. This is to their advantage, because it saves them having to pay to dump it, but it works best if the site is near your home so they don't have far to travel.

12. Neighbors who are remodeling: People in your neighborhood might be taking out an old concrete patio; if you ask, you might be allowed to take the concrete for use in garden projects for no cost, and it saves them having to pay to dump it.

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