Awesome Recycled

Artist Matthew Cassidy of Fragmented Frames takes disused old cameras, camcorders and other gadgets, transforming them into cool works of art, meticulously arranging each component into a shadowbox. A great gift for designers, photographers or tech junkies.

Milk Run Co.’s unique drink coasters are made from recycled plywood playing fields from old, defunct pinball machines. They come from a variety of machines circa 1955 to 1979. Sold in sets of four with a metal stand.

Thomas Dambo creates awe-inspiring beasts from scrap wood and junk. The imposing Olav the Wolf appeared for a brief time, then was burned to the ground. Most of his works can be found in Denmark, but one of our faves is in Puerto Rico.

Loll Designs’ Racer Rocker is a flat-pack outdoor rocking chair. It’s made of 100% recycled HDPE plastic, and each one is the equivalent of 288 milk jugs. It also has a storage trunk at the back. Available in seven colors.

Shwood’s limited-edition Newspaper collection eyewear is made by pressing and gluing layers of recycled newsprint into wood-like logs, then cutting them into eyeglass shapes. Available in sunglass and RX models.

If you loved Monsieur Plant’s natural skateboard, check out Salvaged Skateboards. The shop makes decks and complete skateboards using reclaimed wood, such as ones used in whiskey barrels, pallets and floorboards.

Sandy’s CanCars takes the art of aluminum can sculpture to a whole new level. His intricate cars are handmade from dozens of cans, along with balsa and custom metal parts. The models sell for thousands, Sandy sells DIY plans for just $10.

For his River Collection, furniture maker Greg Klassen took discarded wood and then cut blue glass by hand to make them fit the contours of the wood. The resulting tables and sculptures look like rivers or lakes.

Mafia makes affordable, stylish and waterproof duffle bags and backpacks out of discarded kite, windsurf and sailboat sails. Each bag has a unique design and comes with a lifetime warranty.

Germany’s Skypak creates rolling bar carts using authentic aircraft food and beverage cart. These ones are made from reclaimed wine and whiskey barrel timbers replacing the aluminum sides and top. Also available as coolers.

King of Sweden sells large rugs made of the leather and fabric labels from discarded jeans. The labels are stitched together over a sheet of cotton. If you have enough old jeans lying around you could try this idea yourself.

Dirtball Fashion specializes in 100% recycled clothing. Their latest lineup addition, the Green Jean, is made of cotton and water bottles. We missed out on the Kickstarter but discounted pre-orders are still available for Nov. shipping.

A case made of a plastic bezel and wooden strips from a skateboard factory. The strips are laminated and milled then filed, sanded and oiled by hand. The bezel comes in black or white, but the color of the wood strips vary.

If you’re near San Antonio, check out Joe O’Connell and Blessing Hancock’s Ballroom Luminoso, a series of six chandeliers made from custom structural steel, LEDs and recycled bicycle parts, installed in a cement underpass.

A sketchbook made of nothing but random, reused paper gathered in Chicago. Each notebook has a random assortment of pages. Some are blank, some have prints, some are thick and textured and so on.

Founded by Emily & Betsy Nuñez, Sword & Plough makes bags and other accessories using nothing but military surplus such as tents, sleeping bags and parachutes. The bags are sewn by U.S. military veterans.

Conceived by creative agency LOLA Madrid, Bicycled is series of unique, handmade bicycles made from old car parts found in junkyards. Sign up to get on the waiting list for one. (Thanks Elias!)

Bottled water seller Fred has always encouraged customers to reuse its containers. To further its cause, the company has released a batch of T-shirts made from nothing but recycled plastic bottles.

Positive Space Designs created this three-seater bench using reclaimed wood from an old bowling alley. It actually reminds us of those seats where you put on your bowling shoes.

Artist JM Gershenson-Gates of A Mechanical Mind creates various creatures including spiders, dragonflies, and this here creepy, yet awesome metal scorpion using old watch parts. More here.

Throw out that crummy cardboard box and arrive in style with this wooden bottle carrier, handmade by David and Christopher Steinrueck from salvaged redwood, and a galvanized steel handle.

Diamond Supply Co. recently unveiled their upcoming line of sunglasses with frames made from multicolored layered wood recycled from skateboards. Watch for them on DSC’s online store.

Portable speakers that are made from old loudspeakers. Each unit is unique and rare (and pricey). It’s available in two sizes and comes with an internal battery, a charger and a 3.5mm cable.