2025 Salvage showdown
November Artist Spotlight
This summer, we asked 14 local artists, builders, and makers what they could do with $100 of salvaged materials from the ReBuilding Center. They came to our store and sought inspiration from old-growth lumber, hardwood floors, and antique fixtures - all rescued from the landfill. And they created beautiful, functional, pieces of art.
We came together at the Salvage Showdown in September to celebrate reuse, and vote on the winner of the Scrappy Award. 8 of the amazing builds were sold at a live auction, raising thousands to support Portland’s heart of community-based reuse.
But we held back some of the best builds to raffle off to all of you!
Craft your cocktails in style by winning this ultra-cool bar cart. Raffle tickets are just $15 and raise funds for the ReBuilding Center - so we can continue to rescue materials like this from the landfill.
MICHAEL JENNINGS
Our November Artist Spotlight is shining on Michael Jennings! Michael let the materials he found guide his build - old Growth cedar, reclaimed decking, and cherry hardwood grew into this art-deco inspired bar cart.
The design came together when he found a beautiful piece of textured glass that was perfect for the upper shelf of his cart.
A $15 donation will earn you 1 entry, $30 will get you 2 entries, and so on. At the end of November, we will select one lucky winner to take home this build - and will introduce a new spotlight piece for December!
Winner must be able to pick up the winning build from the ReBuilding Center.
ABOUT THE ARTIST
When Michael and his wife moved to Portland almost two years ago, they bought a tiny house that was constructed almost entirely out of materials from the ReBuilding Center - introducing them immediately to our store as a hub for reused materials! As they continue to renovate their tiny home and make changes to it, they find themselves frequently returning to RBC.
Michael is an avid DIYer, and loves working with materials that you wouldn’t normally find at a big box store - pieces with a story. “I wasn't expecting to find an old cherry round table and a single long piece of Ipe decking that really helped guide my project. Of course the old-growth cedar lumber is always a joy to work with, but these other two unique finds really helped inspire me.”
Michael was drawn to participate in the Showdown because he values the positive environmental impact the ReBuilding Center has by giving materials a second life. “As someone who really believes in sustainability, the RBC mission really speaks to me.”