Upcycling 20 Creative Projects Made from Reclaimed Materials

by McMurdo, Max; Brown, Simon

• ISBN13: 9781910254479
• ISBN10: 1910254479
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2016-09-15
• Publisher: Jacqui Small

Summary

Ever thought about transforming that rusty old item in the garage into something awesome to impress your dinner guests, or fancied refurbishing the random old dining chair in the shed but don’t have the tools or know-how? Discover your inner design genius, find out where to find great scrap items and learn techniques on how to transform them into great designs with this stylish eco-friendly book by Dragon's Den entrepreneur and TV presenter Max McMurdo. Step away from the chipboard and venture out of your comfort zone into a glorious world of doodles, sanding, waxing, stunning colours and the satisfaction of telling people, "I made that!" You don’t have to own expensive tools or have any previous experience. Some of the projects involve only a few simple steps and can be completed within an hour, whereas others may take the best part of a weekend and combine several different materials, techniques and tools. Whichever project you choose the most important thing is to have fun and remember design is all about experimenting and learning – and not about always getting it right!

Author Biography

MAZ MCMURDO officially started his career turning junk into treasure as a child crafting washing up liquid bottles into spaceships! After graduating from Bournemouth University with a 2:1 in Product Design and Visualisation in 2000, Max fulfilled his boyhood dream and became a car designer in Cologne, Germany. In 2003 he established his business reestore ltd with the aim to design and create a range of upcycled furniture and accessories from objects destined for landfill. By 2007, reestore had won several design awards and featured in many galleries and exhibitions and Max decided to pitch it to BBC's Dragons Den for investment. After a successful pitch, he left with investment from Deborah Meaden and Theo Paphitis. With their input reestore grew from a hobby fuelled by passion to one of the UK's most respected and renowned designers and manufacturers of upcycled products. Reestore now has a client list that includes The Body Shop and has completed several installations for Google's head offices globally. In 2014 the company won gold at the Chelsea Flower show with Kate Gould Gardens. Max is also a TV presenter; after two series of George Clarke's Amazing Spaces, Fill Your House For Free and Channel 4's summer hit Shed of the Year he is now the go-to presenter for product design and repurposing.