Art of Recycle — Local services in Ephrata

I left this same review on Yelp because this place ia great! This isn't your typical craft store! Art of Recycle is a one of a kind, beautiful place where you can create on your own, or ask one of the creative and imaginative staff to help you. I took my sister and my nieces and Chelas spent more than an hour making amazing masquerade masks for the girls. She asked for no payment, but only asked that we make a donation. It was incredible. She used a variety of materials - the plastic face masks, leather, peacock feathers, beads, ribbon... And the masks are gorgeous and my nieces have them proudly displayed in their bedrooms. Chelas and Mr. Nobody Special are incredibly fun and genuinely care about the community. My sister is a teacher and I took her to the "teacher's only" area in the basement and she was overwhelmed at the deals she was able to find on supplies for her classroom. It's part thrift store, part wonderland. Expect to have fun and probably find things that you didn't know existed! They have a "Wishing Tree" where you write a wish, drop it in, and ring a bell - the kids love it. Chelas is an incredible artist and has even written and illustrated some kids books. I love this place and I'm so glad that I found it through my job (I support adults with intellectual disabilities) and Chelas and Mr Nobody always make all of us feel like...

Art of Recycle is a fabulous place for creative humans of all ages.

Kind of like Disneyland, though -- or any place on earth, including one's own home -- it's probably not the kind of place where one would plunk a one-year-old on the floor and leave them unattended, crossing one's fingers that the child doesn't swallow a marble or jab metal objects in outlets or run off and get its face tattooed or vote for Trump or that kind of thing.

So ignore the one star review -- an inattentive mom is having a hissy fit because she wasn't paying attention to her kid, and after said kid was prevented from causing harm to itself several times, she couldn't have the people who created Art of Recycle fired from Art of Recycle.

Better yet, don't take my word for it -- go check out Art of Recycle yourself, or any of the bajillion kid-friendly events they participate in, or talk to any of the parents there who know where their kids are and are paying the least bit of attention to what they're doing what they think of Art of Recycle.

Art of Recycle is doing good stuff in fun ways and is super inclusive. They're a six-star operation in a five-star world. If you are at all interested in art or recycling or community creativity, please check them out because you'll be happy you did.

(And give them a good rating...

I absolutely love the Art of Recycle in Ephrata, PA. Not only is it a positive store for the earth and environment, it is also a super fun shop for the young and old alike. Crafting can be an expensive hobby and stores like this one make crafting and trying new hobbies accessible to so many more people. Additionally, the store encourages creativity like no other. On several occasions, I’ve brought children of all ages to the store and we’ve spent hours upon hours looking around and crafting together. Even in the children who claim to hate arts and Crafts, it sparks so much creativity in them. In stores like this one, children are able to think about the world and their capabilities in ways that typical life doesn’t often offer. Here, their imaginations (and mine) can truly run wild. Not only do they create and therefore learn, they also have a sense of newfound pride in their creations and abilities; and sometimes a boost of self confidence too. The Art of Recycle is a store I will continuously return to time and time again, whether I am seeking out materials for projects of my own, just looking to kill time, or trying to give kids a fun and creative experience. Thank you for all that you do, Art...