Recycling - Jen Style

For those of you here in Infantry Barracks, Ft Leavenworth, you know that recycling is a hot topic. No one can say why some areas of post have curbside pickup and others do not. It's an ongoing mystery. I'll be honest. If it were curbside, I'd completely comply with recycling. But if I have to put my nasty trash in my car and drive it somewhere, well... not quite so motivated. So I reduce as much as possible - no bottled water, no newspaper subscription, reusable grocery bags. But I do have a collection of plastic bags, nonetheless. Some I reuse - as trash can liners, packing material, cat litter duty and such. But still, they seem to multiply. So I got crafty on those bad, non biodegradable, landfill prone monsters!

Here is my new back door welcome mat:

Like that? It even has a stripe!!!!

Up close you can see that it is crocheted from Plarn - plastic yarn - formerly my stash of shopping bags.

You have to use a big ol hook, like the red one below.

Here it is in its actual location. Now I know it looks silly but let me explain. You come up my fire escape, I mean terrace, to face the door from the left. But the door will open toward you. So you have to step to the right to enter. The rug is in the exact spot you must stand so as not to whack yourself with the door. Sometimes we need a reminder, or else we might send ourselves or careening backward down the steep stairs of doom.

So what have you recycled in an interesting way? Not repurposed, actually recycled - turned it into something new entirely??? Consider yourself challenged!