Spinning round and round - Reuse some worn records

I hope in the six weeks since I wrote my first column you've checked out chairs at your local thrift store or hit a few garage sales. And I hope you've been able to clean up any unwise buys.

And I hope just a few of you have an unusable chair as a new eyesore in your home. Misery loves company.

Anyway, drape a cloth over it for now. I'll come back with some whiz-bang ways to use it later.

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A college friend once gave me this sage advice: Accessorize, accessorize, accessorize.

While her wisdom was imparted to improve my fashion sense, accessories are important in a house, too.

One of my favorite household accessories is a bowl made from a record.

It's an inexpensive and interesting piece to add to an end table, shelf or coffee table. Bonus: It can be utilitarian too, holding everything from car keys to chips to a plant.

This project begins with a search for the right record. Some of you may have an extensive collection waiting to be reused. Those of us who missed the final vinyl days will need to go on a scavenger hunt.

I've gotten most of my records at thrift stores for less than 50 cents. I've also purchased bulk at garage sales for less than a dime each.

CAVEAT: Some vinyl is precious and should not be used in a craft project. A few on my no list: Anything by the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, David Bowie or Pink Floyd. The Mamas and Papas and Dylan's "Blonde on Blonde" have also made my no list. My father told me I must also add Beach Boys albums. Rule of thumb: If you can and would listen to it, then it's better left untouched.

Once you've got your discs selected, it's time to create your first bowl. Gather a large metal mixing bowl, a cookie sheet and some good oven mitts and heat the oven to 200 degrees. Place the mixing bowl upside down on the cookie sheet and center the record on the bottom of the bowl. Slide all three into the oven for 3 minutes. For your first couple of tries I recommend staying close to the oven and watching your vinyl warm so you know the best time to pull it out.

When the record starts to sag, it's time to put on the oven mitts. Pull the stack out of the oven and as quickly as possible flip over the bowl and push your record down inside. The mixing bowl and cookie sheet will be hot, but the vinyl should be safe to manipulate with bare hands. The vinyl will harden extremely fast so speed is of the utmost importance.

When the vinyl has cooled, your bowl has been formed. If it's anything like my first attempt it, the term bowl will be loosely applied (mine looked more like a concave amoeba). But the funky shape just added to its appeal for me.

If you'd like to give yours another try, you can put the vinyl back in the oven for a few more minutes and attempt a second bend. The more you practice, the more creative your bowls will become.

Vanessa Cook is a copy editor at the Southeast Missourian who sometimes dabbles in decorating. If you have decorating ideas or questions, e-mail her at vcook@semissourian.com.

TO MAKE CD COASTERS

I use my first record bowl to hold a set of coasters made of old CDs. Most of these I've found on the side of the road or picked up as freebee Internet service CDs.

Supplies:

CDs

Cork (available in rolls at office supply stores)

Super glue

Scissors

Heavy books or weights

Directions:

Unroll the cork and flatten it with heavy books or weights. Liberally apply super glue to the reflective side of a CD. Place the CD near an edge of the unrolled cork and press firmly (I sometimes put the heavy books back on top). Give it a few minutes to dry and then cut around the circle with a pair of sharp scissors. Now you've got a coaster and the landfill's got one less piece of waste.

ADDED TOUCHES

* Vinyl comes in an assortment of colors. Be picky and find some in red, yellow or green.

* If the bowl is used as a catch-all, try to match the label with your interior colors. Alternatively, records come with all sorts of interesting labels. You could go psychedelic with Jefferson Airplane or soulful with a Motown press.

* If the bowl is intended for food or small objects, plug the hole in the middle. I've used electrical tape and duct tape cut in a circle as patches. Remember, though, use the bowl only for dry foods (like chips). Records don't hold up well in repeated washings.

* Using different sizes of mixing bowls and clips to shape the warm vinyl, you can create specific shapes.

* A variety of record sizes can be used, depending on what size bowl you want. Just make sure that you have a mixing bowl small enough that the record hangs over the edges.