October 2015 Customer Creations Gallery Jacksonville, FL

January is national hobby month, a time to acknowledge our interests that fall outside of our professions. Leisure time was once the exclusive province of the upper class after the Industrial Revolution, clock time, and electric lights dramatically changed most people’s relationship with work. For over a century laborers fought to reduce the length of their workday, which could range…

The folks at Eco Relics architectural salvage company want you to know!  The City of Jacksonville is now reusing and recycling its household hazardous waste! Leftover paint is applied to city buildings and distributed to non-profits, chlorine is used in city pools, and other city departments make use of any usable materials that the city collects. Fertilizer, motor oil, appliances,…

A Very Short History of Signage Merchants and tradespeople have used signs to advertise their services for at least 5,000 years. Symbols, rather than writing, was the preferred method to communicate to potential buyers before widespread literacy. In ancient Rome, a bush of ivy and vines engraved in stone or terra cotta indicated a tavern. Besides directing thirsty patrons to…

The Bostwick building, at the corner of Ocean and Bay, is one of downtown Jacksonville, Florida’s most visible historic buildings. It was constructed in 1902, one of the first permitted structures built after the Great Fire. Sporting typical “big bank” architecture, it hosted a succession of failed banks through the boom and bust cycles of the early 20th century. A…

At long last, the Eco Relics shop is operational! Doug “the Termite” has moved in and is now constructing custom builds on-site rather than at his home shop. The sawdust is flying, but many details are still sorting themselves out. The Termite says, “It’s not down to a science yet.” The final layout of tools and work stations will be…

Thanks to our custom wood shop, Eco Relics gets to work with some of Jacksonville’s greatest small businesses. The sawdust is flying, but many details are still sorting themselves out. The Termite says, “It’s not down to a science yet.” The final layout of tools and work stations will be determined as he gets a better idea of work flow on…

How deep are the roots of the ubiquitous Christmas album? Well, that depends on how deep you want to dig. Carols written in the vernacular date back to the 13th century in England but singing them was banned by an Act of Parliament in 1647. The act was rescinded by the royal restoration of the Stuarts in 1660, when King…

It’s time for Spring projects! We didn’t have to wait for the snow to melt, but Spring still inspires the creator in all of us. Azaleas are blooming, bees are buzzing, and everywhere you look, nature’s busy builders are collecting raw materials and fashioning them into something they can use. Here’s a couple of recent projects, one from our wood…

by Eddy Cotton “heirloom noun /ˈeər·lum/ a valuable object that has been given by an older member of a family to a younger member of the same family, esp. one given several times in this way.” The holidays have come and gone, the new year is off and running. Let me tell you about a project I completed (with help…

When we first started out with the concept of Eco Relics, we expected to mainly carry salvage lumber. We do have aisles and aisles of salvage building materials. Much more unexpectedly, however, is our collection of antique lighting, antique light bulbs, and other relics that have come along. We have been so surprised at the turn of events of bringing…

   Hi everyone, Doug (aka “Termite”) here along with Billy (aka “Woodchuck”) to tell you about what’s new in the wood/tool/and hardware sections here at Eco Relics. Leading off, a few weeks ago, we salvaged a huge load of heart pine beams from the historic Dyal-Upchurch building in downtown Jacksonville. Constructed in 1904, and is the first skyscraper built in Jacksonville…

*This article originally appeared in August 2016 and contains updated material. You know the old saying, “One person’s trash is another person’s treasure.” It might as well be the Code of Hammurabi at Eco Relics. If it can be reused, recycled, or repurposed, it’s not trash! The crew takes great pride in the length of time between visits from the…

On March 6th, Eco Relics hosted  a fundraising event to benefit Waste Not Want Not and their mission to fight hunger and poverty by rescuing food that would otherwise go to waste. We raised enough money to collect and distribute over 9,000 lbs. of food! The nonprofit Berry Good Farms food truck was also in the house. Here’s a song from their set:…

Richard Bilyard’s Epoxy River Table Each item that comes into Eco Relics has a story. Every piece of lumber was once a tree. Once materials leave the store, they embark on another journey, a new chapter to its story. The Eco Relics DIY Customer Creations Facebook page is full of wonderful creations and this month we spoke with Richard Bilyard…

Music fans rejoice! Did you know that there are vinyl records in the Eco Relics architectural salvage warehouse? Even if you don’t have a record player (for shame!), there are plenty of things you can do with our records. If it is unlikely that your old Johnny Mathis platter will ever spin again, consider repurposing it. A little heat will soften up…