We're back this year for our popular Christmas Wreath Workshop! Get in the holiday spirit by joining us at Birdsong Brewing to make your very own wreath. Have the coolest door on the block by making your own signature wreath with any of our upcycled materials. This workshop will be $10 with all supplies included!

Keep Charlotte Beautiful and Upcycle Arts are collaborating to celebrate America Recycles Day by diverting art supplies from landfills, and upcycling them into crafts that you can take home! Come join us in learning how we can practice effective recycling habits and reduce our waste, while also having fun and getting crafty! Click HERE to register.

All ages are welcome. Please forward any questions or concerns to Tanya Balaji (tanya.balaji@charlottenc.gov).

Join us and CLT is Creative in Ballantyne's Backyard for a Halloween event for the whole family! Ballantyne's Backyard will be decked fun Halloween decorations with lots of activities for the family. And of course, we'll be there with a spooky upcycled art supplies for all!

The annual Festival In the Heights is an outdoor gathering put on by the Country Club Heights Neighborhood Association in partnership with our community sponsors. There will be family friendly activities, food trucks, local music, vendors and good ol’ neighborly fun! It serves as a backdrop for their local school support fund-raising efforts. We will be hosting an upcycled craft table from 12pm - 6pm.

Corridors Connect is a new series of six events spread over three Sundays in October 2023. The event series features shorter routes – and more of them – for even more opportunities to discover and connect.

On the 15th, we will be at Anita Stroud Park.

Corridors Connect is for everyone! Car-free streets, if only for the afternoon, give us all an opportunity to enjoy the connectivity that roads provide, but in a more healthful, carefree, and social atmosphere.

Join us at Birdsong Brewing on October 11th as we kick off spooky season by making these adorable Halloween softies! Make a mini felt version of your favorite spooky characters. Whether you love ghosts, black cats, or pumpkins, there is a softie for each one of you out there! You can use these as decor, party favors, or key chains. Make 3 for only $10! All supplies included, sew and no-sew options are available!

Environmental sustainability can sound like a complex global problem, and it is - but there are innovative local nonprofits working to make Charlotte a leading-edge city in environmental sustainability.

Attendees will have the chance to meet and network with nonprofits who are working to create a zero-waste, low-carbon future and ensuring that our surrounding rivers, land, and wildlife are being protected. Learn about ways all Charlotteans can go green, support theses nonprofits and create a more sustainable future. Get your tickets here.

We'll be having open studios on September 2nd at the VAPA Center! Feel free to stop by, say hi, and meet us and other artists in the building. Stop by and shop with us from 12pm - 4pm without an appointment!

As a heads up, the parking entrances on Tryon St and College St are blocked off, so make sure you turn into the lot from Montford Point.

We're looking forward to seeing you all!

We'll be having open studios this month at the VAPA Center! Feel free to stop by, say hi, and meet us and other artists in the building. Stop by and shop with us from 12pm - 6pm without an appointment!

As a heads up, the parking entrances on Tryon St and College St are blocked off, so make sure you turn into the lot from Montford Point.

We're looking forward to seeing you all!

We are back, back, back again with our friends at Birdsong Brewing! Make your own yarn art with this playful, but super easy to make, Rainbow Wall Hanging! Add an adorable touch to any room! Customize your colors, add fun embellishments, and make it yours. Workshop is $5 with all materials included. Grab a beer and come craft with us on Wed, July 19th. Drop by anytime between 4pm & 9pm.

It's time for the annual Charlotte Edge Fest! A festival of the arts, filled with music, dance, local artists, and food. Join the fun with us at Upcycle Arts, where we'll be doing a FREE Make & Take activity! With any of the upcycled materials we'll bring you can let your creativity shine and create whatever your heart desires, and bring it home! It's taking place on July 15th at the Charlotte Art League, so mark your calendars! For more information on the festival, click here.

IT’S FINALLY HERE! Alright everyone, the Leather Hide Sale will be on Sunday, June 11th at @thevapacenter 10am - 2pm. THEY ALL GOTTA GO! Only $50 per hide, bring whatever containers, wagons, whatever you need to transport them. We’ll be in the Multipurpose Room (we’ll have signs and volunteers there), not in our regular space. This will be the last one. TELL YOUR FRIENDS!

Shop with us THIS SATURDAY during @thevapacenter ‘s Open Studios! From 1pm - 6pm you do not need an appointment to shop for your favorite upcycled goodies.

VAPA’s Concert Series will be happening in the parking lot, so listen to some music to get the creative juices flowing before you stop in and see us! There will also be overflow parking across College Street if you need a spot.

We’re partnering up with Springclean to bring you a Mother’s Day Card Workshop! This Saturday, show mom your appreciation by making her a handmade card! Join us in using fabric scraps to make a super unique, super adorable card. Sew and no-sew options available. Click here to register or drop in from 1pm - 4pm at the Innovation Barn.

We are so excited to be hosting a workshop at Birdsong Brewing for Earth Day! We know that you all love music, and Birdsong Brewing is a fantastic place to grab a beer and listen to vinyls. Show people your love of music and the environment by joining us for our Vinyl Record Wall Decor Workshop! We will provide all the materials, or you can bring your old vinyls that are in rough shape and use them for decoration. We’ll have templates for butterflies, flowers, leaves, bees, or you can freestyle your vinyl record shapes. Workshop is $10 per 3 wall hangings. What a way to celebrate Earth Day!

Ballantyne Movie Night is back at Ballantyne's Backyard! Catch Finding Nemo on the big screen on Friday evening.

Ballantyne's Backyard opens at 5 p.m. We’ll be hosting a free sustainable craft making Fish Windsocks from billboard vinyl. Craft with us to make your own fish in preparation for the movie!

Finding Nemo begins after sunset.

The Family Celebration of Charlotte Earth Day is a theatrically oriented educationally interactive experience designed to engage participants creatively with the challenges facing our natural ecosystems.

Come decorate the International Space Station (ISS) with us, learn all about upcycling, and then walk the ISS through the Earth Day Parade!

We invite everyone to come out and celebrate with us as we mark the 1 year anniversary since The VAPA Center officially opened to the public!

There will be Art Demos, Workshops, Artist Markets, Live Performances, Food Trucks, Guided Tours, Artist Talks, and a VAPAlution panel discussion.

And as always, you can shop with us from 12pm - 5pm without an appointment.

LAST CHANCE for our small quantity Leather Scrap Pick-up! Saturday, February 18th from 10am-2pm will be your last chance to grab leather scraps. For a $25 donation to Upcycle Arts, you can take as much leather as you want!

The leather is pre-bagged (there is no picking through), into 35-50 lb bags. You can take as many bags as you want, but unfortunately there is no ramp for carts, so you will need to have someone to physically carry the bags. Leather pieces are varying sizes and colors. We will be clearing out this warehouse on this day, so once the last bag is gone, it’s done!

Want to be inspired? Join us at The VAPA Center Open Studios on the first Saturday of every month. You can shop our retail space without an appointment from 12pm - 5pm! Be sure to stop by the other artists’ studios for some inspiration and to see what’s happening here in Charlotte!

We are ready for small quantity leather scrap pick ups! This Fri, Jan 27th 10am-2pm will be the first of MANY leather scrap pick-ups. For a $25 donation to Upcycle Arts (cash, card, Venmo, CashApp are all accepted), you can take as much leather as you want!

The leather is pre-bagged (there is no picking through), into 35-50lb bags. You can take as many bags as you want, but unfortunately there is no ramp for carts, so you will need to have someone to physically carry the bags. Leather pieces are varying sizes and colors. We bagged about 18,000 lbs of leather, so there is plenty for this first round!

TELL YOUR FRIENDS AND TELL YOUR FRIENDS’ FRIENDS!

Join us at Petty Thieves Brewing while we make some cool ornaments out of leather scraps! Get creative with some leather, a hole punch, and ribbon. Workshop is $10 for a drop in.

Join us at the Innovation Barn with Springclean as we show you to add holiday dazzle to upcycled materials and make great holiday decorations. Click here to register.

We're back this year for our popular Christmas Wreath Workshop! Get in the holiday spirit by joining us at Birdsong Brewing to make your very own wreath. Have the coolest door on the block by making your own signature wreath with any of our upcycled materials. This workshop will be $10 with all supplies included!

We will be open for December’s Open Studios at The VAPA Center! Anytime between 12pm - 8pm, you can shop our creative reuse center without an appointment! Pick up one of our art kits to give as a gift, or pick up some materials to finish that craft project you haven’t gotten a chance to finish yet!

We will also have a gift wrapping station set up! We will wrap your presents with donated gift wrap materials. These can be items you purchase from us, something you purchased at The VAPA Center, or your presents from home.

Catch us the first week of November for our Beaded Corn Workshop at Birdsong Brewing! We’ll be learning how to make corn cobs out of beads! This unique and interesting fall craft will be perfect to add to your fall decor, or even to a table centerpiece for Thanksgiving. You can paint the beads to be corn colored, or have a funky corn cob on display! Drop in anytime between 4pm - 9pm to join. All supplies included for only $5.

The vision of the Uptown Farmer’s Market is to create a strong and diverse uptown community that knows one another and improves access to healthy food, while ensuring the sustainability of locally produced food for the region. We will be located at the kid’s table providing a free spooky craft, just in time for Halloween!

Goblins and Ghouls, join us for a FREE, family-friendly, Halloween-inspired CANDY CRAWL on Friday, October 28th! Come dressed in your best costume and ready to collect all your favorite treats.

Local Volunteers and Local Merchants will provide trick-or-treating. Also family-friendly entertainment in Plaza-Midwood

🎶Music by Funk n Fashion

Proceeds to Benefit Upcycle Arts

Upcycle Arts will be here providing a fun, upcycle activity!

Axe Throwing

Children must be accompanied by an adult and candy and treats will be available while supply lasts.

Monster Market

Shop from 10+ local vendors while your kids enjoy safe trick or treating! Come and get a jump start on your Christmas shopping!

We are excited to be a part of Charlotte Is Creative and @goballantyne ‘s family-friendly, creative Halloween experience in Ballantyne’s Backyard from 4 to 9:30 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 28.⁣

We will be providing a creative craft for this evening. There will also be food trucks and local craft beer, Namaste CLT artists, as well as face painting, pet caricatures and (of course) candy for the kids. ⁣

The main events are the Boneyard, a costume catwalk (bonus points for homemade costumes) with prizes, short silent movies accompanied by live pianist and an outdoor showing of "Hocus Pocus" after dark. ⁣

This is a ticketed event with space for 1,000 people. Admission is $10 per person. Kids under 5 are free. Click here to get your tickets!

𝘈 𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘢𝘥𝘮𝘪𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘧𝘪𝘵𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘺𝘯𝘦 𝘝𝘪𝘳𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘍𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘋𝘳𝘪𝘷𝘦. 𝘕𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘩𝘸𝘰𝘰𝘥 𝘖𝘧𝘧𝘪𝘤𝘦’𝘴 𝘱𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘰𝘵𝘵𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘊𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘊𝘙𝘌𝘈𝘛𝘌 𝘉𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘺𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘵 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘨𝘳𝘢𝘮.