Stop by the Trashy Market in Wrigley Ville and other locations this summer or a holiday weekend. This sustainable market takes your trash and turns it into art. Honestly, it is the best form of recycling because these items are needed. You can find local makers at booths ranging from jewelry to kitchen wear, all hand crafted. There’s about 20 booths, so not too many that it’s overwhelming but a good amount to have a variety of things for everyone.

Some of my favorite stations there were the jewelry ones. I actually bought a pair of earrings made out of recycled bike tires and golf leaf. I’ve never seen anything like this and they looked like real jewelry. I like those recycled pieces that still look normal but are secretly recycled. There were also some cool soap and candle booths that smelled amazing. The guy who was making wooden kitchenware like spoons and bowls, crafted them beautifully. There were so many utensils there I didn’t even know what some of them did. As well, there was a booth selling necklaces with pieces of plastics from Lake Michigan on the pendant. I thought this was cool because they made it look very beautiful even though it’s just trash. In terms of clothing, there were a couple booths with stamped designs, embroidery, repurposing, and crochet. They also had a couple composting and plant focused booths too. The terrariums were awesome and so intricately put together.

Trash Dumping

Bring your trash to a better home. You can find a list of items they are accepting here. The items they are looking for varies from time to time and by location, so be sure to double check before you go. We brought a Brita and a Brita filter. That Brita literally sat in our kitchen for a full year and we didn’t use it. I moved in with my boyfriend and we just used his. He has one that is like huge that sits in the fridge, not the pouring one. There was just a big tent to take your items to, or you could take them to the specific maker who was collecting them. The tent was more towards the back, but the makers put signs out in front of their tents listing off everything they take. The list of items is actually really cool because it made me think about everything that I use day to day. I learned that I don’t really use that much stuff and I can get rid of the things I really don’t need.

Steep Prices for Sustainability

Some of the prices at this market were surprising to me. I am starting to become a more conscious shopper, kind of thinking of everything as an investment. Before I would just by stuff for the memories or because I wanted to get it at the time. Those Lake Michigan necklaces I was talking about earlier, $52. Some of the clothing items were over $100. It was a very simple design, but maybe it took forever to find the pieces of trash and a lot of labor went into making them. The tire earrings I bought ranged from $50-$20 depending on size. She cut me a deal and I got them for $13, which I was super proud of. You can check out her Etsy site, Souky Suz, to see all of her other creations. The clothing was pretty steep price wise as well. I think I just wanted to support all of the artists and buy everything. So I wish that the prices were a little more affordable, but I appreciate all of the work that these makers have done and I believe they should be paid accordingly.

Vibes of the Market

Overall, this was a super fun event. There was live music and singers performing at Gallagher Way, where the Trashy Market was. It was right next to the Cubs Stadium too, so it was really in the hustle and bustle of everything. Great location, right off the Addison stop so you can take the Red Line to get there. I thought it was nice to see all of the creativity and see how people turn trash into something beautiful. I am a firm believer in repurposing items and saving the Earth. We got to do everything we can so our earth doesn’t get over taken by trash. That’s why I was drawn to this sustainable market, it helps the earth in so many ways and brings awareness to sustainability.

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