Posted on: July 3, 2008
Beyond the Countertop
From tables to tumblers, recycled glass can transform your kitchen - and the rest of your the home, inside and out
By Margraret Littman
CTW Features
When it comes to building, renovating or redecorating green, many issues are murky. Trying to figure out what labels like "repurposed" and "reused" really mean can be confusing and time-consuming. But, when it comes to recycled glass, the answers are transparent.
It's clear to see why architects, designers and eco-conscious consumers pick glass as their favorite sustainable material. According to the Solid Waste District of LaPorte County, Ind., soft drink, beer, food, wine and liquor containers comprise the largest source of glass for recycling. Unlike other materials that may lose some quality after multiple uses, glass is great over and over. It does not deteriorate when reprocessed, so it can be recycled again and again. How much more green can you get?
Plus, when used on a surface, such as a countertop, it is durable, maintenance is minimal and it comes in many colors. And these surfaces have a built-in bonus - they're non-absorptive, so they don't stain. Eco-icon Ed Begley, Jr. even touts his Vetrazzo kitchen countertops on his HGTV series "Living with Ed."
Despite the fact that glass has been recycled for commercial uses for a century - think of that spaghetti sauce jar in your pantry - recycled glass is now the "it" material for residential designers.
And it isn't just for countertops. It is used in everything from tile backsplashes and furniture and new glassware to landscaping gravel and home insulation. And, unlike some other recycled products, recycled glass tile tends to be comprised of 80 percent to 100 percent recycled materials, rather than a mere small fraction, so it really is green. The only downsides are that recycled glass tiles can cost more than ceramic tiles and they can scratch more easily.
Because of its weight, it can be cost-prohibitive to ship glass, so if you want a home décor item with a touch of glass, you may want to look for local artisans who are making goods with glass in your area. That's how Sherri James started out. She was carrying an armload of wine bottles to the trash - her Ohio town does not recycle green glass - when she saw something over the rim of the garbage can.
"Suddenly I noticed the varied and beautiful shapes, colors and sizes of the wine bottles. I knew that I had to work within the confines of the bottle's shape, not to melt them down into a new product.
"I discovered the unique features of each individual wine bottle, and facilitated it becoming what it was best suited to become: a tumbler, a vase or part of a table."
Through her business, Blue Moon Bottles, based in Athens, Ohio, James makes vases and tumblers as well as tables and even glass block for building. In addition to repurposing her own green glass, James began collecting from local restaurants and set up a recycling center at her home for area residents. She takes the glass that she can't use in her projects to a nearby town for recycling.
Brands like Los Angeles-based Artecnica also use recycled glass in its tranSglass line of vases, candleholders and glasses. These pieces, which are available nationwide, have a more modern look than many expect from recycled products, and are part of the MoMA New York's collection.
Business partners Jennifer Pearson and Courtney King were also motivated to create handsome home goods by the fact that their local community didn't recycle glass. The glass was going to the local landfill, but because Pearson's husband is an architect, she knew there was a demand for products that used recycled glass.
The two bought a kiln and founded Glass Roots, a Bozeman, Mont., company that now turns post-consumer glass bottles into countertops and architectural tiles, lighting fixtures and landscaping materials. The team has a solar-powered manufacturing process and a partnership with Yellowstone National Park's recycling program, so that the glass bottles that are discarded in the park become Glass Roots' raw materials.
The team can make one 6-by-6-inch tile out of the equivalent of one wine bottle; the tiles are sold through specialty home decor stores.
"My husband is our best critic," adds Glass Roots' Pearson of his architect's eye. "Whatever we make has to first and foremost be beautiful. You need to be proud to have it in your home, and not just because it is green."
One of the beauties of glass, though, is that it is so versatile that it doesn't need to be recrafted by an artist in order to be both aesthetically pleasing and functional. Arizona's The Garden of Glass is one of a number of businesses across the country that sells glass aggregate, sea glass and other small, colored recycled pieces of glass - tumbled to reduce the sharp edges - so the pieces can be used as a landscape product in lieu of mulch or paving for a driveway or walkway.
Another outdoor option is IceStone Pavers, Brooklyn, N.Y., made from 100-percent recycled glass. In fact, they are actually made from the broken pieces and overruns from IceStone's kitchen and bath countertop manufacturing, so when you buy these pavers, you're cutting down on industrial waste as well. These are the only "Cradle-to-Cradle" certified pavers available as part of a Zero Waste program.
