Reverse Garbage Co-op

I miss being a uni student and having an excuse to wander through the mindless objects on display at Reverse Garbage. For the creative type it is a treasure trove of odds and bobs, useful for homemade projects or the like. You can find anything from office chairs, standalone cupboards, foam in all shapes and sizes, fabric offcuts and any other random thing you might think of.
And while I have never actually purchased anything from here, I feel good knowing a shop like this exists if I ever needed one.

As we walk into Reverse Garbage in Marrickville we are met with gigantic paint brushes and pencils. The exterior of this recycling warehouse is almost an art installation more so than a shop.
«You can’t look for something here. You just have to look and hope you find something.» I am told when I ask what we are looking for. The answer to my innocent question both profound and vague.
We scour the aisles looking for props and set pieces for the music video we’ve been hired to make. The gigantic dinosaur head is no good, nor are the various blow up hippopotami with back packs on.
There are buckets full of circuit boards and shelves full of old digitised and erased film and audio reels. It would seem that everything you could ever imagine would be, at one point or another, housed within these walls.
There’s a book section out back and I sneak in to have a look, I should be looking for music video props but can’t help myself and scour the children’s section looking for Seuss. No such luck, there never is. I find ‘The Little Match Girl’ by Hans Christian Anderson and being that it is in great condition and only $ 1 I decide to buy it, even though I know that it will make me depressed.
A warehouse full of everything you need as long as you don’t know what you need.

Reverse Garbage is a warehouse crammed with all sorts of oddities from oversized Christmas Baubles that could of been part of a Christmas display in a large shopping mall to a large robotic Dinosaur head which looks strangely like the head of the mechanical dinosaur that was doing laps at this year’s Royal Easter Show.
In any case its fun because it’s like a big treasure hunt for grown ups. We are told that that the warehouse established by teachers who were looking for materials to assist them with in lessons and also to divert the industrial waste that was being used in landfills which explains why a large part of the stock which is industrial of off cuts.
There is lots of items that catch my eye including costume jewellery, Christmas cards ($ 2 for 12) and lots of Christmas decorations for a fraction of the price you see in retail stores. And imagine your kids next school project. Monstrous potential literally here at Reverse Garbage.

If you love collecting random things and think a giant Sphinx head or mannequin would look great in your living room, hire a trailer and get yourself to Reverse Garbage on Addison Road.
This is a not-​for-​profit co-​operative that sells offcuts, overruns and discarded goods to prevent it going to landfill. It really is the oddest collection — but a pretty fun afternoon of fossicking. Kids would probably love going through it all for dress-​up costumes or project ideas too. It’s especially great for crafting or home reno.
You’ll find plastic pipes, Perspex, foam tiles, bubble wrap, leather, carpet offcuts, fabric, books, records, cardboard, frames, jars, vases, computer parts and more. Lots of the products are sold by volume at $ 20 per 1000 mm x 580 mm bag full, while others are individually priced. It’s a huge shed packed full of stuff, including two designated rooms for books, videos (yes, VHS!) and records.
Bring your wallet and your creativity.

Studying Architecture? Interior Design? Industrial maybe? Well, this will be your best friends, your saviour for projects that just need that extra piece of plastic, strangely shaped, with groves in just the right place.
Reverse Garbage is amazing, it’s a hoarders wet dream, and a neat freaks hell, it’s the place hospitals dispose of strange utensils (clean) theatre productions sell their used sets, and aeroplanes dispose of real cockpit seats (yes I’ve seen that there) It’s a lovely place to imagine making some weird and wonderful, maybe even scary robotic toys.
Not everything is in working order, and you have to go to see (although they have a website, it’s not updated often) — for online use, try their Facebook page for upcoming goodies. Or just give them a call before you go, and see if there’s what you’re looking for.
Don’t worry if you don’t have anything in mind, just bring a van, or a massive bag to carry most of your purchases back home. I’m sure you’ll find some treats to make your weekend more productive.

This place is simultaneously the biggest hoarder of crap and a gold-​mine. Depending on what you’re after.
If you’re after 20 of the same birthday card, 100m long reams of paper, a never ending supply of pipe cleaners, rolls of carpet and maroon velvet or manikin feet and arms, then you may just be in luck. Or, rather, if you’re not exactly sure what you’re after then you may be in luck here too.
I’m a bigger fan of The Bower, a similar joint next door with a tad more class, but a trip to Reverse Garbage can be rewarding — we bought 50 cardboard drums from Reverse Garbage which we used as seating for a performance and then recycled into punch bowls, a fortress and super-​sized bowling pins in the future. Perfect for a themed party, you can pretty much base your theme on whatever you find the most of at Reverse Garbage.
NB: Specified items may or may not actually be stocked by Reverse Garbage. But rest assured that similar such crap will be.

They say one man’s trash is another man’s treasure. Well, you may not find too much treasure here, but there’s a good chance you’ll find something useful (but that saying’s not quite as catchy)! This place is a goldmine if you’re after props or set-​dressings for a play or film. If you need something specific, give them a call first and they should be able to help you, or at least let you know if they have your desired item hiding somewhere in their warehouse.
Although, this place is not just limited to creative-​types who are looking for cheap props, if you’re a collector of old computers and their parts, you’re in luck too! Same goes for old electrical equipment — not sure if it all works, but it’ll certainly be cheap!
Check out their website, or give them a call, if there’s something specific you need, but chances are, they’ll have something that you can use!