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Please invite all your friends, neighbors, listservs, and blogs -
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You're invited to a
Garden Party & Sale
This Saturday, March 26th
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Photo by Malek Naz Freidouni, from the 2010 Seersucker Social |
This weekend, we're having a big shindig at Community Forklift, the nonprofit thrift store for home improvement. You (and your pet) are invited to show off your best garden party style. Below are all the details about the food, the live music, the FREE seeds, and the Garden Attire Awards!
Rain or shine, we're celebrating spring - and the fact that the City Paper just named us DC's Best Home Goods Store! For more info, contact Ruthie at 301-904-7579.
The Goodies!
 Garden Items & Tools
9 am - 6pm
The Food!
Lemonade & Lunchtime Potluck
12 pm - 3 pm
Bring a dish, chow down, and get to know other Forklift Fans
"Grilling for the Building"
12 pm - 3 pm
We're still trying to buy our warehouse, so we'll be cooking hot dogs, burgers, & veggie burgers to raise money for our building fund.
The Animals!
Friendly, easy-going pets are encouraged to attend, as long as they're on leashes. They are, however, discouraged from jumping on the potluck table or each other.
Dress to Impress!
We know that some of you love vintage clothes as much as you love vintage homes. This is the perfect occasion to show off your garden party attire. Take your inspiration from the trend-setters at DC's 2010 Seersucker Social, below.
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Photo by Josh Yospyn |
Attire Awards for People & Pets
12 pm - 1:30 pm
 Please arrive to register by noon if you (or a four-legged friend) would like to compete for the Garden Attire Awards. Categories will include jauntiest hat, frilliest flourishes, best vintage ensemble, most elegant, most debonair, poshest preppy, charming big animals, and adorable little animals.
Don't worry if your hands are too calloused, or if your animal friend has too much dirt on his paws. We'll also be looking for the most authentic gardener, best garden digger, most creative use of repurposed materials, and demonstration of Community Forklift spirit.
Prizes donated by:
 Treasury: Located on 14th Street in NW DC, Treasury is a concept boutique melding an appreciation for the historical with the quest for modern beauty. Says owner Cathy Chung, "We consider our products to be artifacts of superior quality, to be reinterpreted and repurposed by the stylish and socially-conscious individual."
Goodwill of Greater Washington: Transforming lives and communities through the power of education and employment. Thrift stores located throughout the DC area.
The Big Bad Woof provides essentials for the socially conscious pet. They have a store in the Takoma Park area, and will soon open a location at The Shoppes at Arts District Hyattsville.
The Music!
 Put Some Pep In Your
Springtime Step
Community Forklift's resident DJ will be here! DJ One HeART Muzik, willl give away door prizes and take requests throughout the day.
Live Folk Music
11 am
Mary Gordon Hall began her songwriting career about 20 years ago writing songs for her first grade students. Her first recording of original and traditional songs (1991), I Just Can't Eat My Peas, is enjoyed by families around the world. Her most recent recording (2006) of "grownup" original songs, Wine Glasses & Wooden Spoons, is her richest expression of both voice and songwriting to date
Live Mandolin Music
1:30 pm
 Neil Gladd received his B.A. in Music from Virginia Tech, and has appeared as a mandolin soloist at Carnegie Recital Hall, Merkin Hall, the Kennedy Center, the Smithsonian Institution, at mandolin festivals in Germany, Sweden, Belgium and Japan, as well as in recital in Canada, England and France. He has been recycling, restoring and repurposing music and musical techniques for decades. After buying his first home in Hyattsville in 2009, he became a Forklift Fan and started doing to same to his house.
The Free Stuff!
 "Make It - Take It" Crafting Area
10 am - 2 pm
Volunteers from SCRAP DC will provide materials and inspiration to help folks make any number of things. The School and Community Reuse Action Project is a new organization that works to inspire creative reuse and environmentally sustainable behavior by providing educational programs and affordable art materials to the community (Simply put, they aim to be a Community Forklift for artists and artistic endeavors).
 FREE Seeds
& Planting Advice
2 pm - 5 pm
Provided by the Neighborhood Farm Initiative. NFI is a non-profit project of America the Beautiful Fund. They aim to improve underutilized public green spaces in the DC area by creating demonstration gardens for hands-on community-wide education, thereby increasing access to fresh vegetables for all members of our community, regardless of income.
 FREE Window Sashes
9 am - ?
During the party, we're giving away select window sashes while supplies last (limit 4 per customer). You can use several for a space divider. Crafters like to repurpose them for picture frames, wall art, and jewelry organizers. Gardeners know they are great for building cold frames to start your seeds. Ella, one of our Forklift Fans, makes mini-greenhouses - she donated a beautiful one to our last silent auction!
Learn About Local Currency:
Anacostia Hours provides the local currency in the Gateway Arts District that encourages buying locally and increases community economic self-reliance.  Forklift Fans and others can join the local currency system, and receive Anacostia Hours (notes) that can be used to purchase goods and services from anyone in the Hours directory. For more information, stop by their information table during the party, or contact Nick Williams at 443 722-0528, or visit the Anacostia Hours website.
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 Lend a hand at the 'Lift During the warm months, we always need a lot of Community Builders to help in the store (the time commitment is flexible, according to your schedule). We will also need Outreach Volunteers to staff our booth at local festivals - check our calendar, and you'll see that we need help with dozens of events! Please contact Ruthie to find out more.
Building a Better Block
Join the Neighborhood Design Center, Community Forklift, and hundreds of community members & partners as we transform a half-vacant commercial block in nearby Mount Rainier into a vibrant "Main Street" with outdoor cafes, performers, local vendors, and art installations. We are looking for volunteers, vendors, artists, and performers for the event.
The goal of the project is to show the economic potential of 34th Street while energizing the community (it's modeled on an event in Oak Cliff, Texas, which was so successful that just a month later, their abandoned strip was completely leased and full of new businesses).
April 1: To prepare, we promised to find some Forklift Fans willing to operate a power-washer.
April 2 & 3: Elbow Grease Weekend: we especially need need DIY-ers and laborers who can operate simple power tools.
April 9 (Rain date April 10): The day of the Better Block Party!! We need general volunteers to help with the event, and creative folks to help with kids' crafts at Community Forklift's booth.
Christmas in April needs you (especially if you're a carpenter)
 On Saturday, April 30th, 2011, with the help of approximately 3,000 volunteers, Christmas in April * Prince George's County will be repairing more than 80 houses. Since 1989, this fabulous organization has been repairing the homes and spirits of local seniors, folks with disabilities, and our neighbors in need.
Community Forklift is providing some building materials, but what they REALLY need are helping hands. They have an urgent need for skilled tradespeople (including carpenters, painters, plumbers, and contractors). If you can help, please contact Mary Kucharski, Executive Director of Christmas in April * Prince George's County, at 301-868-0937 or email them.
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Just a week left for March Sales!
Here they are, in case you missed the last newsletter...
10-cent Granite
This month, pay just a dime for granite counter scraps that are one square foot or less. Yes, only 10 cents each!! Sale does not apply to granite tile.
The scraps make great edgers for your garden beds or walkways, or can be used for coasters or cheese platters. This Garden Web discussion more good ideas.
Salvaged Doors
Take 30% off all salvaged doors marked at $34 or less. This includes modern, vintage, solid, hollow, louvered, and bifold doors (Sale does not apply to surplus/new doors, doors in frames, or doors without orange price tags).
Apartment Therapy has some great suggestions for repurposing doors, like the weekly calendar board above.
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Missing feet? Just build a cradle from reclaimed wood. Photo from the NYT, Photo credit by Ira Lippke |
Bathtubs
Take 30% all modern & vintage tubs priced at $100 or less, including jet tubs. Sale does not apply to tubs without price tags. You'll save more than money - according to this article, choosing a repurposed bathtub instead of a new one saves the equivalent of 450 pounds of averted carbon dioxide, 789 days of lighting a fluorescent bulb, and 312 miles of driving an SUV.
You don't need a tub? Maybe you need a colorful sofa like the Etsy one below!
Or, you can create a garden bed for flowers or water plants. First, take a look at these useful tips. Then, check out what the smart kids at Bancroft Elementary did with an assortment of pink, blue, and white tubs (this happens to be the same school that has been helping Mrs. Obama with the White House kitchen garden)
What about a worm composting container? "ProfessrPatPending" has a series of YouTube videos about how his bathtub worm farm, and the WSU Extension Service has great step-by-step instructions to get those worms wiggling.
$1 Pallets
Pay just a buck each for wood pallet. Limit 5 per customer. If you have a damp basement, they are nice for elevating your stuff so air can circulate. Pallets are also great for building compost bins. Blogger ThisGardenIsIllegal lists detailed instructions on how to build one. You could probably find all the other parts you need here at Community Forklift!
Bathroom & Kitchen Sinks
Take 30% all modern & vintage sinks priced at $100 or less, including stainless, cast iron, pedestal, and cement cultured marble. Sale does not apply kitchen cabinet sets that include sinks, bathroom cabinet vanity sets, or sinks without price tags.
  
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MarchCoupon |
COUPON: Take $5 off any Community Forklift purchase over $20. Limit one coupon per household per month. Expires March 31, 2011. |
Coupon cannot be applied to items from our consigment partners. Offer Expires: March 31, 2011. |
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We now have more evening hours.
We're open: Wed & Th 10-8 Fri, Sat, & Sun 9-6
(We will remain closed on Mondays & Tuesdays)
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Is your shed overflowing?
Every spring, we get lots of requests from folks who need low-cost materials to spruce up yards & community gardens.
We accept:
* sturdy pots
* patio furniture
* brick & pavers
* garden tools
* birdhouses
* bags of soil & seed
* gates & fencing
*lawnmowers in good working order
* other landscaping materials
Unfortunately, we are not able to accept thin plastic pots and planting trays (the disposable kind that live plants are sold in). For more info, visit our donations page.
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Community Forklift "Classifieds"
Help Wanted
Green Home has a Construction Sales position open.
Green Home
is a small but growing green remodeling and solar heating company located in Edmonston, with offices right next to the Community Forklift.
Local Author Seeks Creaky Old Houses
Help a local author illustrate her novel! Share a unique view of your home - the more rotten and run-down, the better!
Forklift Fan Juliana Barnet needs several close-up photos of old houses to create illustrations for her forthcoming novel Rainwood House Sings. The book is set in a run-down house in a fictionalized town which happens to resemble several older neighborhoods in this area.
Intrigued? See our blog for details!
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