Second to None Flea Market, Bangalore.

I have long nurtured a child-like dream, to save the world.

...but how? The answer remained ambiguous.

Strong emotions surged in my throat when I heard casual remarks like, "Look at that road so dirty! There is garbage everywhere, why isn't someone doing something about it."

Last summer those emotions got channelized into a tiny endeavor when a friend gently nudged me towards the idea of composting at home. Composting one's own kitchen waste and converting it into a soil enricher for one's own garden and thereby reducing the garbage that goes out of house completely appealed to me.

I wanted to be that someone doing something about it.

Composting gradually changed my perspective on waste management specifically and life in general. It made me alive to simple facts of living. Living a more meaningful life by going natural, going organic, evaluating eco-friendly options, reducing what goes out of the house, recycling and reusing.

When I first heard about Second to None {220} in June last year, it completely echoed with the ideals I believed in.

Second to None {220} is an initiative started in the form of a Facebook group by Anu Gummaraju, Reena Chengappa and Shilpa Kamath Prabhu. A platform to promote the idea of recycling, a space for like-minded people to interact, share recycling ideas, buy and sell used goods.

The online initiative soon took the form of Second to None Flea Markets at Jaaga (a space which lends itself perfectly to the cause.)

A green wall at Jaaga.

(L) Reena Chengappa, (C) Shilpa Kamath Prabhu and (R) Anu Gummaraju.

Last Sunday I visited the 3rd Second to None Flea Market to meet the inspiring trio and experience the market that buzzed with innovative recycling ideas, fresh organic produces, delicious treats from home kitchens and products that remind us to reduce and reuse.

Old computer keyboards converted into finger accessories! By the creative guys at Pink Nation.

Upcycled eco-friendly earring by Sejals Handcrafted Jewellery.

Deepika Rathnakar's jewellery made from couch cover material.

Tanushree Nair of Karaashilp with her upcycled home decor products. The old CDs get a new lease of life as coasters.

Madhavi Rongala-Pavuluri of Yellow Button with Sanchali range of products.

These are handcrafted earrings made using silk scraps by rural women as part of Sanchali Women Empowerment project.

Up-cycled Linen Pin-up boards from Enthucutlets.

From Hema Mahesh's kitchen comes Nature In A Bottle range of gourmet jams. A wide range of jams using fresh ingredients and spices with no artificial preservatives.

Handcrafted flowers made using old wedding invitation cards, plastic bags, cartons etc.

Upcycled wine bottles converted into 'Message on a bottle' and frames by Anokhi Planet

I picked up one of those bottles indulging in my love for messages on mini chalkboard:-) On our kitchen counter.

Super delicious home-baked cinnamon rolls and cupcakes from Sin-a-Mon.

Monika Manchanda of Sin-a-Mon with her old books and delicious baked goodies.

Mouth-watering cupcakes by Cup-a-cake.

The ladies behind Cup-a-Cake, delightful cupcakes.

Paper Mache lamps made from newspaper and the lampshade using plastic take-away containers by Refresh Studio's Rabindranath Rathnakar

Bombaat Items, a range of up cycled wine bottles by Athreya Cidambi.

Pramila Balachandran with her upcycled, self-watering containers and decoupaged products.

Jaaga with it's green plants in reused plastic water tank containers.

Bum Bags, old denim jeans converted into bags by A Hundred Hands in collaboration with NIMHANS Psychiatric Rehab Centre.

There was something to enjoy for everyone who came...

.....and something to learn.

I picked up few lovely things from the Flea Market for my home but most of all I came back energized by the fact that there were so many individuals who believed in recycling and reusing and were doing their bit for the world.

Let's all become that someone doing something about our world in our own unique way!

You can see a slideshow of rest of the photographs from the Second to None Flea Market here.

Check out my Composting & Recycling Diary here:-)

(images by Arch)