TerraCycle CEO Tom Szaky has turned garbage into a revolutionary new industry.

Have you heard about TerraCycle?  It's a really cool concept for those items that you throw in the trash that can't be recycled.  TerraCycle upCYCLEs it.  They turn it into eco-friendly products that are reasonably priced. The backpack featured is only $12.99.

I just came back from the Terracycle Green Up Shop and boy am I inspired.

Conveninently located next to the Port Authority on 41st Street & 8th Avenue, it is an awesome display of  eco friendly items to be used at home, in class, on the go or even the runway.

Yes darlings, there is an entire dress made from m&m candy wrappers that is fabulous, and tons of other clothing items made from bamboo and salvaged fabric.

I am super inspired to keep making my bags and branching out into other items.Maybe next year you will see “smartalecky” in the Green Up Shop!

Next time you purchase a box of Capri Sun drinks, a tube of Colgate toothpaste, a Clif bar etc.. consider hanging on to your trash and sending it to Terracycle! TerraCycle takes a wide range of different non-recyclable waste materials and then makes affordable, eco-friendly products. Terracycle is hoping to eliminate the idea of waste by finding innovative, unique uses for materials others deem garbage. With over 50 products available at major retailers like Walmart, Target, The Home Depot, OfficeMax, Petco and Whole Foods Market, TerraCycle is one of the fastest growing eco-friendly manufacturers in the world. Consider what happens when your kids finish drinking a Capri Sun…they toss the empty juice box in the trash which eventually ends up in a dumpster or landfill. Instead of adding the drink pouch to a pile of other pouches at the landfill, TerraCycle converts the used drink pouches into unique fashion bags, tote bags, pencil cases, and other items for kids and adults (check out the adorable Skittles bag below made from recycled Skittles wrappers)!

Last week on Facebook, I entered a contest all I did was leave my blog link (as a comment) on Terracycle's Fan Page. This morning I had a message saying that I won. Yay!!  I of course don't know what the prize is until it gets here. But I wanted to share this site with yall. I stumbled across Terracycle when I was ... yes I don't remember what I was doing. They recycle all kinds of things into new things. Some of these things will be available only next month(April) in Walmart Stores. Here is some more information about it; the information is copied in part with permission. "A whole bunch of brand new TerraCycle items will be available, during April for a limited time only, at every single Walmart across the country. Starting April 5th, nearly 60 TerraCycle products will be sold right next to the original items they were made from. Cheetos kites and tote bags made from Frito-Lay wrappers will be sold with bags of Frito-Lay chips, while notebooks and purses made out of skittles and M&M wrappers will be sold right next to bags of Mars Candy. For those of you unfamiliar with the trash to treasure company, TerraCycle, here is a little background information: TerraCycle collects traditionally non-recyclable waste from people all across the country by paying a non-profit of the person collectings choice, 2 cents for each piece they collect and mail to the company, with the use of a pre-paid shipping label they can print right from the TerraCycle website (www.TerraCycle.net). A majority of TerraCycle’s active participants are schools, because the students usually bring in the items TerraCycle collects during lunch; such as juice pouches, chip bags, and cookie wrappers, plus the money can go right back to the school. TerraCycle uses the waste it receives from its Brigade members to make hundreds of products that are not only eco-friendly, but are also very affordable because its made from waste!"

According to the Guilderland Elementary School Acting PTA President, Guilderland Elementary School raises money by upcycling Capri Sun juice pouches.  By simply offering a recycling container in a lunchroom, local schools and organizations can earn money and protect the environment. Starting healthy habits for body and earth can start early with Capri Sun.  Yes, that says Capri Sun.  Remember the sugary juice in bags that kids loved in the 80's?  For today's kids, Capri Sun offers 100% juice, recyclable pouches, and school or organization fundraising programs.  This is a win, win, win situation.

BROOKLYN, Mich. -- One man’s trash is another man’s treasure. At least that’s what the employees of Michigan International Speedway say. The staff of the track, in partnership with TerraCycle, have pledged to upcycle paper and plastic goods that would normally be thrown into the garbage. In return, TerraCycle will pay MIS Cares, the track’s charity component, up to two cents for every piece collected so the wrappers can be turned into cool, every-day products such as pencil bags, laptop cases, flower pots and toys. “We have pledged to do everything we can, not only as a business, but as individuals, to minimize our effects on the environment and set a positive example that ‘every little bit counts,’” speedway President Roger Curtis said. So what can be upcycled? Drink pouches, potato chip bags, candy bar wrappers, cookie wrappers, energy bar wrappers, pens, markers and highlighters — you name it. Just about anything can be upcycled by TerraCycle.