Mission: Frost

Glass Recycled's mission is to 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.

Photo Credit: Vintner's Circle

When Glass Recycled took on "Mission: Frost" on it was no surprise to me that the owner wouldn't let hundreds of bottles enter their local landfill. That's when the frosted bottles entered the door of Glass Recycled's warehouse. The beauty and thickness of the glass was intriguing. Crushing a few bottles allowed more and more ideas to flow once we properly disposed the internal fluid. The opportunity was given to us from a local warehouse. Believe it or not we received a call from HGTV, due to our featured product on the show. The president of the warehouse defiantly did the right thing when she contacted the founder and owner of Glass Recycled.


The president was instructed to discard these bottles into the landfill by the manufacture. Its pretty crazy that we are making such a huge effort to go green by recycling in our homes and in public facilities and the people who mass produce do not contribute. I now question each and every company and what they do to make their company green.

Glass Recycled is making up for all those who not taking responsible actions by turning glass into beautiful counter tops... Imagine the possibilities!

Smooth as Glass

See the bottom of a glass bottle?

I am finally in Texas! Let me tell you- it's not what I imagined... I landed in Dallas Texas on Tuesday morning and was picked up by the founder and the owner. The first thing we did was pull up into a beautiful hotel known as The Gaylord Texan. First off if you have never been there you must stop by (at least) to see its massiveness and the architectural design, but its another treat to eat at the Riverwalk Cantina. The Riverwalk Cantina is lined with Glass Recycled from the hostess stand to the actual bar; the atmosphere offers so much more than great food- color. The colors that Glass Recycled was able to contribute to such a festive restaurant was unreal. I personally loved the bar with the great lighting.

Sifters- sort the different sizes of glass.

After a light lunch we then did a small tour of the area. We stopped into the show room where most could design their kitchen from the top down in pieces of  toilets, broken mirrors, and old bottles. To see the custom designs and with every piece being so unique it was jaw dropping. Customer feedback can only back up the eye piercing images of the creativity and beauty behind Glass Recycled.

Today has been the best part of my trip down to Texas thus far... I went to the warehouse where the product is actually made. The labor intensive hand made counter tops, ceiling tiles, and floors were amazing to see created live. Glass in forms of sand, chunks, to whole bottles lined the place along with several hard workers that truly have a passion for upcycling and art. I have never been so impressed by how much the producers know and care about the end product.

Now I am back at the office taking all of the inspiration in and capping today's adventure prior to taking on more this evening into tomorrow!


**The counter top that is being placed back home in Frankfort Michigan was being finished while I was there and I can't wait to get back and see it completed and installed into the Crystal Lake Art Center. Check back for some images and updates on my last few days in Dallas Texas!**

Our HGTV Experience

“How much do I love my kitchen? I don’t think I have the words, yet!”, homeowner, Teri Graham, shared with us all on HGTV's Bang for Your Buck, last week. As many of you may know Glass Recycled had another opportunity to make an appearance on HGTV. The Graham family created a "green kitchen" and had a awesome island- if I must say so myself.

The bright colors and recycled products filled their kitchen with a fresh and energetic look. The founder and owner of Glass Recycled said, "I want people to have the choice and not limit them..." when referring  to the Graham island. The orange "green" kitchen made a statement in not only their home, but the whole Bang for Your Buck episode. "I Googled "recycled" glass and when I saw that I could create my own sample online thro' Glass Recycled, I was excited by the possibilities. I worried tho' that I wasn't going to get it right & but, after talking to [the founder and owner], I realized it would be a fun process... and we came to our final mix after three samples."

Focusing on Texas' creative roots the founder and owner looks at his products as "artwork on a counter..." and therefore easily said that the process of creating your dream counter top is as easy as taking a, "Coloring book and a box of crayons with 64 colors and letting the customer make a combination that fits you, and that makes Glass Recycled unique."

 With GlassSLAB island being the focal point of the kitchen the Graham's have made quite the statement. "We came to choose Glass Recycled in many ways. My husband and I could not agree on any one kind of counter surface after looking for several months and then having our contractor bring us samples. We were looking for a statement piece; the island would be our main gathering place and visible throughout the great room. Also, we were looking for something that could be considered "retro" but still very modern." This is when Glass Recycled stepped in and made their kitchen stand out from the "average Joe" kitchen. "Almost everyday we can look at it and find some new piece of glass or aspect of it that seems "new". All of our guests comment on it and we are very happy to have something that literally no one else will ever have, due to its dynamic nature.We will likely put a piece in our Master Bathroom..."

What other kind of manufactures let you have that much fun  with your purchases and design?

"Our HGTV experience was phenomenal! Every person we came into contact with at High Noon was professional, friendly and efficient. Ultimately, the crew was so talented - and very funny as people.", Graham said.

Teri Terrazas-GrahamLoading...

10:27 AM (11 hours ago)

Teri Terrazas-Graham