Chris Digman of Pawtucket, Rhode Island creates unique glass artwork in his spare time, "as a way to relax," as he puts it. Digman works almost exclusively with materials he salvages, or "recycles" himself, as he was inspired by the waste of our throwaway society.

Digman works at Boston's Logan Airport, where he runs a club for Virgin Airlines. "This is where I came up with the idea to use wine and beer bottles," Digman tells URTH Guy. "Everything was thrown out and it drove me crazy." Digman says it's not because the airline wasn't interested in recycling, but rather because he says the airport didn't have recycling infrastructure.

So he asked his staff to put all the used bottles aside for him. "I would throw them in a box and bring them home first on the bus to South Station and then on the train back to Rhode Island," he explains. "I looked like a hobo collecting trash and my arms were sore when I got home. But I think the result is pretty snazzy." Digman stresses that glass is extremely easy to recycle, and that it comes in so many sizes, shapes and colors "that the things you can use it for are only limited by what you can dream up."

Digman says he aspires to do projects that are 100% recycled. "I don't have to spend a dime on them and it's really a great time," he says. He adds that he gets inspiration for his work from vintage craft books, particularly a series called "The Family Creative Workshop," which includes a lot of ideas on how to reuse things (the Green Cheapskate would be proud!). Digman says he employs bottle-cutting techniques from the series for much of his raw material. In the past, when reuse and thrift were more common, people often repurposed bottles for lamps, containers, holders or other items.