In 2009, 767 million gallons of wine were consumed in the United States, meaning approximately 2.9 billion wine bottles were emptied in the United States alone that year.
Glass has one of the highest recycled rates of all recyclable material in the US but still only about 1/4th of those wine bottles were actually retrieved to be recycled in 2009.
A modern glass bottle will take about 4,000 years to decompose, longer if it’s in a landfill.
This project is not original or new. Using something for a new purpose has been done for a very long time, these days it’s called “Upcycling”
Upcycle- Upcycling is the process of converting waste materials or useless products into new materials or products of better quality or a higher environmental value.
The bottles I use come from local restaurants, friends and neighbors in Puerto Vallarta Mexico. I hand cut and frost the bottles and turn them into hanging and free-standing lamps.
But these aren’t just lamps. They represent a new way of thinking about the world’s resources and remind us of the needed change that is finally happening. This project helps to lower the carbon footprint of each bottle created and in a small way make a global impact.
On another note…
Last Friday I was invited to participate in the Marina Art Festival. This is a weekly event that takes place at the Marina here in Puerto Vallarta every Friday. I will be there again this coming Friday along with many other artists so come visit and check out all the beautiful art on display and maybe even make a purchase!
