All sort of things cross our minds as we run, but of late we cant help but notice the number of discarded plastic bottles that make up the rubbish that litters the road. They are getting on my nerves!!!! How can it be possible for the production of all that material to be justified in the distribution and consumption of 1000ml of cherry red bubbly liquid? or even more absurd to wrap around 1500ml of water for a little soujour from its normal course through the incredible water cycle, only for it to be deposited back into the loo (the water, not the bottle, that would cause all sorts of problems!) and to continue its age-old journey?!?!
So we mused about the top 5 things to do with old plastic bottles (in lieu of dealing with the real issue which is avoiding putting them there in the first place!) and here are our top 5 – please bring up more if you can think of any because, for now at least, supply of these things will outstrip demand!!
Turn your rubbish/trash into, er, a rubbish bin / trash can!
We were put onto this idea by our friend Tayo in Chile, who revolutionised the way we pack our waste! Because it’s not just weight of rubbish that is an issue, its volume too. We use a wooden spoon handle to shove all and any non-biodegradable waste into bottle, a coke bottle will do, and pack it super tight. I kid you not we can get weeks of waste into one of those little things, then its clean, portable and . . . . . can be . . . .
Turn them into house bricks!
This w
here it gets clever. Tayo also to be creditted for this one! If you don’t get rid of your little clean bottles from Tip 1, then you can line them up, sandwich them in chicken wire and you’ll have the perfect filler for an insulated cavity wall!! This is real! The bott
les minimise the amount of other building materials required and offer a wonderful dome structure which is yet to be rivalled for strength – think of buildings (roman baths, gothic churches etc.) through the ages if you need proof of that!!
Click the image right for even more wonderful projects, using mud and bottles to create an adobe school…
Make clothes with them 
Litter-ally (ho ho) we will be running in plastic bottles, and when you see what YEW Clothing can do with this base material it will not seem so absurd! We have teamed up with the innovative clothing label to supply the base layers that will not only help us survive running through searing amazona, wicking away our sweat, but also carressing us in Patagonia in the deep south during the Austral winter. Incredible
Turn it into Jewelry
Perhaps requiring a little skill and patience but the results are phenomenal. This is the product of a scheme run to empower local people and use a discarded but valuable resource, click the image to read more on this great example from designer Florie Salnot
Or finally, Pot your Plants in them!
We love this idea, and others at Recyclart, where they guys aim to provide “inspiration through pictures and the links where you can find more information”, and not too much text…..