Visit our Seattle Pop-Up Shop

Pop-up shops have become increasingly popular and we’ve decided to give it try. We partnered with like-minded brands and designed a shopping experience that inspires your everyday lifestyle in sustainability and bikes. Add the Pike Place Market and you have a little bit of everything.

The store is located at 1528 1st Ave, Seattle, WA, across from Pike Place Market and will be open until the end of July and possibly longer. Come in and check out our latest Ag designs, bike gear from Green Guru, and clothing and accessories by Endurance Conspiracy. We are open 7 days a week from 12-8pm. We are very excited to be in this location to share the upcycling experience with even more people. You can even drop off your old climbing rope, bike tubes, and camping tents to be upcycled into new products. The perfect time to take advantage of getting rid some of those items sitting around the garage. Keep posted on upcoming events through our blog and

Keep posted on upcoming events through our blog and Facebook page and we hope to see you soon!

Alchemy Goods Winter Reading List: 4 Books to Make You Rethink the Way You Think

These dreary, rainy days of midwinter might not be ideal for any outdoor activities, but they’re perfect for curling up with a good book. If you want to read something that will challenge your preconceptions, light a fire in your imagination, and keep you turning the pages with rabid interest, we recommend any of the following four Alchemy Goods favorites.

Cradle to Cradle, by Michael Braungart and William McDonough

This amazing 2002 collaboration between Braungart, a German chemist, and McDonough, and American architect, asks people to take nature as their model for industry. As you might deduce from its title, Cradle to Cradle urges the construction and manufacturing industry to consider the afterlife of the things they’re building, most of which are not usable for anything after their finite lifespan is over. From bridges to carpeting to automobiles, 90 percent of manufactured materials become waste, but what if there was a plan for creating new life. Fun fact: the book itself is made from a special up-cycled material.

The Art of the Common-Place, by Wendell Berry

Wendell Berry is one of America’s most cherished voices of the agrarian community. A novelist, poet, essayist, environmental activist, and farmer, Berry has been bringing national attention to the local and personal for decades with a voice full of wisdom, art, and insight. The Art of the Common-Place is a collection of 21 essays on agrarianism, agriculture, and community, but also a meditation on how to live. If you’re wondering if it’s for you, check out his thoughtful, heartbreaking essay for The Atlantic, Farmland Without Farmers, regarding the American loss of a way of life and the land that made it possible.

Overdressed: The Shockingly High Cost of Cheap Fashion, by Elizabeth L. Cline

If you’ve ever wondered how it is you can buy a T-shirt for $5, when you imagine the process of harvesting cotton, which is then made into fabric, then sewn into a garment, then shipped from overseas and then shipped again to your store, with a price mark-up at each point along the way—then this book is for you. (And so is the infographic from Adbusters below!) Cline examines the industry of cheap clothing, sold ubiquitously in America at places like Forever 21, H&M, and Target, and the human and economical cost of clothing that is, in so many senses, worthless.

Tomatoland: How Modern Industrial Agriculture Destroyed Our Most Alluring Fruit, by Barry Estabrook

TomatolandPPBCover This New York Times best-seller tells the story of a vegetable—or, if we’re being technical, a fruit. The year-round appearance of those bright red, globe-like tomatoes on the shelves of every grocery store in America are taking a horrible toll on the environment, from the dozens of herbicides and pesticides they require to the yields the land cannot naturally support. You’ll also learn things that will probably make you just want to grow your own, like the fact that most tomatoes are picked hard and green and then gassed until they turn red enough to sell.

Keep up-cycling, rethinking, and reading, Alchemists! Awareness is the only way we’re going to make a dent or a difference. And please, if you’re going to buy a book, buy it from a local bookstore!

Your Guide to Riding in the Rain

For some US cities, winter cycling is simply not an option—the bike lanes are covered in drifted snow, the plows are tearing up the road, black ice is lurking, your visibility is terrible, and cars are swerving everywhere. But if you live somewhere like the Pacific Northwest, winter usually just means rain—a lot of rain. If you want to keep up your commute through the rainy season, it’s probably a lot more accessible (and enjoyable) than you might imagine! In fall and winter, many annual cycling events arise all over the Pacific Northwest to keep your stamina up to par!

It’s Not That Bad

Riding in the Rain, Portland Zine

In fact, biking in the rain can be downright pleasant. The sound of rushing water, the quiet that falls across the city, and the fresh, wet smell of the air are their own reward—not to mention the feeling of pride you’ll have after a grisly ride. Riding in the rain is a rite of passage for cyclists. If you’ve ever slogged through a morning commute during a downpour, you’ve probably gotten at least one reaffirming head nod from a fellow biker passing by. That tip of the hat (or rather, helmet) is an expression of solidarity—“I see you, you’ve got this, right on.” And though many cyclists might scoff at those “fair weather cyclists” who keep their bikes in the garage from November to March, anyone can be a year-round biker with the right gear.

What to Wear

BikingToWork02_e_1008 You don’t have to be in head-to-toe lycra to stay dry. In fact, wool is a great naturally-water-repellant material that’s easy to find secondhand if it’s not in your closet already. There’s a reason the navy gave its sailors heavy wool peacoats—wool can keep you warm and dry in a storm. If wool pants sound either too constricting or too difficult to find, try nylon rain pants. If you can’t afford to splurge on a pair specifically designed for cycling, you can often find perfectly adequate rain-proof pants or snow pants at an army surplus store or even your local thrift shop. With waterproof shoes—or even just plastic bags over normal shoes—you’ll be arriving at your destination clean and dry!

And perhaps most importantly, stay visible! Rain and condensation decrease visibility enormously, on top of the fact that the daylight hours are already reduced during the winter months. You can get a reflective safety vest for less than $10 online, and throwing it over your coat before you leave might save you from serious injury.

Fenders are Your Best Friend

Bike with Full Fenders–and Waterproof Alchemy Goods Bag!

Fenders are the best thing you can do to make riding in the rain more bearable for both you and your bike. Fenders are cheap (usually under $50 for a pair), easily found used, and easy to install. They’ll protect your pants from getting coated in the water your wheels kick up, and also from the muck, grime, and oil on the road that comes with that water. Your fenders also protect your bicycle from the road sludge—though the clean water falling from the sky might not present any danger to your bicycle, the sand, mud, and gasoline residue that will otherwise be sprayed all over your chain, detailers, and brakes will damage the machinery. We recommend full-length fenders, but if your bike wasn’t built to accommodate these (as many racing or dual-suspension bikes were not) you may have to settle for clip-on fenders.

And Buddy Flaps Are a Friendly Courtesy

Most fenders are long enough to protect both your body and your bicycle from the water and sludge that you’ll stir up from the road, but they’re probably not quite long enough to stop you from spraying a stream of dirty water onto anyone riding behind you. If you regularly ride in popular bike lanes or commuter trails, install a DIY, up-cycled “buddy flap.” You can make a buddy flap from pretty much any material that’s sturdy enough to bend a little but not snap, like an old water bottle or plastic container. Check out these instructions for creating a buddy flap from Portland’s Riding in the Rain zine by Ira Ryan (Breadwinner Cycles) and Matt Hall.

For more information, we recommend checking out the whole zine at TravelPortland.com. Keep dry this winter, Alchemists—I see you, you’ve got this, right on.

Photo Credit

4 Gorgeous, Sustainable Gift Wrap Ideas

Most people know they should try to find sustainable or up-cycled alternatives to gift wrap for holiday presents, but sometimes it can be hard to give up on the idea of bright, beautiful packages and use drab newsprint instead. Here are a few ideas for wrapping green gifts that will be even lovelier than anything you might buy at the store.

1.) Calendar Pages

This is the perfect wrapping paper solution for this time of year because your old calendars are all about to be outdated! If you have a 2015 calendar—or any other old calendars laying around—use them to wrap gifts. You can have the date side out to circle someone’s special day (or for Christmas, the 25th!) or use the pictured page for glossy imagery.

2.) Marbled Paper

This is one of the most beautiful techniques for creating one-of-a-kind wrapping sheets, and it’s nowhere near as hard as it looks! You create this paper by filling a pan with a shallow layer of cooking oil, drizzling colors over it (you can use anything from food coloring to oil paint) and then setting a piece of paper against the surface carefully, removing it, and allowing it to dry. You can also run a toothpick through the color to create designs. We recommend using scrap paper from your home or office and coloring the white side.

3.) Plantable Paper

This technique takes a little more work, but it’s one of the greenest payoffs possible! We love the idea of making your own paper from up-cycled sources, and when you add a handful of seeds, this couldn’t be better! You can make your own paper from discarded newspaper, tissues, printer paper, or construction paper by softening the scraps in water, blending the pulp with a little more water, adding some wildflower or herb seeds, and then spreading the pulp on a screen to dry. You now have lovely handmade paper that can be put right into the ground after use!

4.) Found Paper

You can up-cycle paper materials to use as wrapping paper without making your gift look like a pile of trash. For example, we love the idea of using brown paper bags as a base layer and decorating the surface of the bag with colorful found materials, like the package above that uses magazine clippings, wrappers, and a flower bow made from a toilet paper roll.

We hope this list gives you a little inspiration for this season’s gift giving, Alchemists! Of course, if you want to put your present inside some especially cool upcycled wrapping, maybe you should hide it in an Alchemy bag!

How to Be a Conscious Consumer During the Holidays

The holidays are the perfect opportunity to celebrate your loved ones with thoughtful gifts, but we want to encourage all you Alchemists to take a conscientious approach to consumerism this season. Knowing that many of the gifts we give don’t come from sustainable or fair trade sources, how does one participate in the gift-giving ritual of the holidays while remaining mindful of the human and environmental costs that come with so many products?

Take heart, you do have options. While we think our products are worth considering as a great solution, even if Alchemy Goods isn’t on your shopping list, we hope you’ll consider some of these suggestions for how you can shop more sustainably this season.

Gift the Gift of Donation

Photo by Oxfam

If you’re not sure what to get someone, maybe the best gift is a charitable donation in their name. You might not know what your coworker, white elephant match-up, distant relative, or son’s girlfriend need or want, but there are a lot of other people in the world who are only too easy to shop for. Why not send aid to the refugees in Syria, give livestock or valuable supplies to an international family living in poverty through a site like Oxfam, or make a donation to a homeless shelter in your gift recipient’s community? A charitable gift isn’t a cop-out, and can still be personal—think of a cause that the recipient of the gift is likely to support (are they an animal lover? environmentalist? a mother who might care deeply about shelters specifically for women and children?) and you might be surprised how much it will mean to them.

Keep It Local

If you do want to give a physical present, try to choose something locally-made. The working conditions of the overseas factories producing so many of our holiday purchases
can be very hard on the factory workers. Low retail prices are often achieved by lowering standards for worker safety and comfort—if gift-giving is about thoughtfulness and kindness, ensuring that all the presents you buy were made fairly and willingly should be a priority. The easiest way to do this is to buy locally! You’re ensuring that 100 percent of the profits not only go back to your community, but are distributed fairly among the people who are actually making the products.

For example, we’ve talked about Community Supported Agriculture before, but it bears repeating—CSAs (weekly boxes of produce from a local farmer) are awesome, and make awesome gifts! Give someone on your list a share in a CSA, and they will get exciting new vegetables every week, which is practical, fun, and lasting, plus bears the peace of mind that comes with local, organic consumption.

Keep It Sustainable

Between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, Americans throw away 25 percent more trash than the rest of the year, amounting to 25 million tons of garbage. We hope that all you Alchemists look for sustainable alternatives to one-time-use packaging and also choose gifts that were made sustainably and will be enjoyed for a long time.
We love this article from the Seattle Times that contains a number of locals sustainable shopping ideas. For example, did you know that Seattle Seahawks jerseys are made from recycled plastic bottles? Giving your favorite Hawks fan an up-cycled jersey that they’ll proudly wear for years is a great way of putting your dollars towards a team that values the environment. (We also recommend the Seahawks totes from their partnership with Alchemy Goods that raise money for the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence!)

Items that are made from up-cycled materials are often as practical and pleasing as any comparable items you might buy, but allow you to make a difference by reducing waste instead of contributing another item to a future landfill. Another option is to buy pre-used items in the first place—finding a cool vintage sweater in a second-hand shop repurposes something that’s already been created and also winds up being a lot more unique and thoughtful than another sweater from Macy’s. We especially encourage jewelry shoppers to buy antiques or pre-owned pieces, given the painful human and environmental costs of most mining operations.

Happy Holidays, Alchemists! We hope you’re able to find conscientious gifts for everyone on your list this year. Even when the trees are bare, we want the season to be as green as possible.

Photo Credit; Photo Credit; Photo Credit

Seahawks Partner with Alchemy Goods to Upcycle Banners and Raise Money for Charity

All proceeds from tote bag sales will benefit Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence.

The Seattle Seahawks and Alchemy Goods announced yesterday one-of-a-kind Seahawks themed tote bags are now on sale at the team’s flagship retail store at CenturyLink Field. The eco-friendly bags were made from recycled stadium and event banners. All proceeds from the tote bag sales will be designated to the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence (WSCADV).

“We are excited to partner with Alchemy Goods, a local company, dedicated to recycling and providing a new function for these banners,” said Seahawks VP Community Outreach Mike Flood. “All proceeds will benefit WSCADV, who will utilize the funds to support their on-going work to prevent domestic violence, educate and engage communities across Washington State.”

The upcycled bags come in two sizes, a small lunch tote for $15 and a full-size grocery bag for $22. The bags are durable, strong and water resistant. Some of the bags were created from the two 50 by 25 foot banners that hung from the west side of the CenturyLink Field Event Center garage the past few years. The banners feature Seahawks S Earl Thomas and RB Marshawn Lynch.

“We are very grateful for this support from the Seattle Seahawks,” said Nan Stoops, Executive Director of the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence. “Domestic violence is 100% preventable and we are thrilled the 12s have an opportunity to join in and support our work to stop this violence before it starts.”

The upcycled tote bags will only be available at the team’s flagship store, The Pro Shop, located on the west side of CenturyLink Field in limited quantities.

“Alchemy Goods bags are, quite literally, recycled,” said founder Eli Reich. “We Seahawks fans will appreciate our efforts in transforming this reclaimed billboard. The 12’s can now own a piece of Seahawks history, help create a brighter future and limit the consumption of Earth’s natural resources.”

Visit Seahawks.com/community for more information.

About the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence (WSCADV)

Founded in 1990 by survivors of domestic violence and their allies, the Washington State Coalition Against Domestic Violence is a non-profit network of over 70 domestic violence advocacy programs across the state of Washington. They improve how communities respond to domestic violence and work to create a social intolerance for abuse. Their work includes research, training and technical assistance, producing educational tools, promoting domestic violence awareness, and public policy advocacy. To learn more, please visit wscadv.org.

Tube Recyling

Tube Recycling Hero:Christopher Czambel is the Operations Manager for Bike and Roll Chicago, a bicycle and Segway rental and tour company. Christopher started out his 2012 season as a member of the distribution team, which required him to move equipment and resources between all rental locations. With a fleet of over 300 bicycles, they go through a lot of tubes.

Why Chris Recycles: Christopher began to notice the amount of broken rims, bicycle parts, tires, and tubes that where simply being thrown out. He began to investigate into company’s who re-purpose these materials and found Alchemy.

After presenting companies to the head mechanic, he was told that if Bike and Roll had to pay for shipping, it wasn’t worth their time to spend the money. Determined to reuse these tubes, Christopher stored used tubes at his house and donated them to other bike shops around Chicago who where already sending to Alchemy. It was through these shops, he learned that being an authorized Trek dealer, which Bike and Roll is, SHIPPING IS FREE!

Christopher started the 2013 season, making tube recycling a number one priority. He installed a collection bin for members as well as a bin at each mechanic location. Using boxes from QBP orders, from April until the end of the Alchemy tube drive last week, Bike and Roll collected over 800 tubes. He also made friends with the local Bike Police Patrol Unit mechanics and got them to donate their used tubes to the cause.

But Christopher won’t stop there: his mission is to get bike tube recycling stations installed throughout Chicago, and he’s partnering with The Active Transportation Alliance to make it happen.

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