Green Art in Cleveland, Ohio

Alexandra Underhill is a whiz with a needle. She is also a fanatic about recycling. She has combined those two talents toward making wonderful clothing out of recycled men's ties. She has created skirts, vests, bibs, accessories and wallets.

It's Earth Day year round at the From the Blue Bag office and studio, ever since Deby Cowdin, decided to start a business that focused on using her art to creatively convey the importance of recycling to everyone.

The company began with one product, a flattened wine bottle cheese tray that was an improvement on an existing concept that Deby had seen at a friend's house. But the line expanded and business really took off when the food functional serving trays and dishes were developed with a little help from the ingenuity of husband Scott. All of the items in From The Blue Bag's current product line are food functional, meaning they are freezer, oven and dishwasher safe.

From the Blue Bag obtains their materials by engaging local bars and restaurants to join in its bottle recycling program. The company provides a collection receptacle and comes to empty it once a week. They also encourage these companies to recycle their stryofoam peanuts and bubble wrap, both of which do not biodegrade in a landfill.

The gift industry is constantly looking for new and innovative gifts. The green movement is spreading so rapidly some couples have even planned their weddings with completely environmentally aware products and services. From the Blue Bag filled this gift niche by investing in equipment that can laser etch an invitation right onto a bottle. They can also personalize any of their other products.

Who knew trash would be in Deby's future? She sure didn't. From the Blue Bag sells in 35 stores across the US and has shipped products all over the world.

Brooke Cowdin

Freelance Writer

Introducing VESSELS. . .edgy, functional art that utilizes the unique combination of recycled glass (alcohol/liquor bottles from local restaurants and bars) and recycled jewelry. Use your VESSEL as a decorative piece for your end table, dresser, bar or bath as a:

Room Diffuser
Bud Vase
Prayer Bottle
Wish maker . . . make a wish, put it in the bottle and cover it (real tight!) until the wish comes true. Use again and again, for special wishes!
T.L. Champion is the artistic director of the VESSELS project. She's a native Clevelander and active member of COSE and the American Advertising Federation, Cleveland.

We love Cleveland. We love its history, its character and its potential. We created A Piece Of Cleveland to preserve this rich history by telling a story and turning unwanted materials into something better than they were before.

The products that we offer are made from materials carefully extracted from office buildings, residential homes, churches, schools and other historical structures in the city. Countless people, maybe some who were our ancestors, have walked on, sat in, and used the materials that we are rescuing to create our products. By using durable and beautiful wood, glass and metals found in these buildings, we allow legacies to live on.

We believe in:
- Preserving Cleveland history

We salvage materials from remodeled or demolished homes and give them a better purpose. For us, piles of century-old maple flooring that would normally wind up in a landfill are a gold mine. Just as a first-time meeting with someone does not reveal their full character, simply stripping away the surface of a solid piece of old lumber can reveal rich, vibrant wood with detailed and beautiful grain. It is from these pieces that we create our uniquely-designed products.
The older the wood, the better. Wood and other materials have great stories behind them, but many new buildings are constructed with less natural products than they were years ago. Over time, synthetics have become more common and cost-efficient for construction. By using quality 100 percent wood, we can offer products that are durable and timeless.
Our favorite part is telling a story. Although we cannot make the walls talk, we strongly believe in educating our customers on where their products came from and how they came to be. To connect our customers with Cleveland's intriguing history, we provide a re-birth certificate with each of our products that details what kind of building the materials used were taken from and where that building was located.
- Doing our part to help the environment

We use stains, finishes and paints on our products that are non-toxic and contain natural ingredients. We try to be the most environmentally-friendly we can be, without sacrificing quality. We always start fresh by stripping our wood to a new surface. From there, we do our best to bring out the characteristics of the wood with products that are not harmful to the environment.
We save quality materials from the landfill and give these pieces new life by using them to create unique furnishings and accessories.
- Designing unique furniture

The library of materials including wood, glass and metal that we have on hand is taken from buildings with distinctive characteristics. We have created desks using original drawers from Adelstein's Pharmacy, a building constructed for doctors and dentists in 1928 in the central neighborhood of Cleveland. We have created wood tabletops with beautiful wood grain out of solid maple floorboards of St. Josephat Church, a Roman Catholic Church on E. 33rd Street that was built in 1915.
Designing APOC products is like putting together a puzzle. We creatively consider every board and place it with precision.

I also create jewelry, ornaments and functional items like hand and wall mirrors from vintage silverware. I started with making angels and have added dragonflies, butterflies, bees, birds, and trees in keeping with the natural theme. The hand mirrors are backed with nature inspired fabric and recycled beads adorn the outer edges. Wall mirrors incorporate silverware pieces and stained glass to make unique home decor.