As someone in the early stages of building my own home, (at this point, a bare earth foundation pad), when I actually allow myself the luxury of dreaming about kitchen finishes, I can’t help but look at the various treatments with a certain unrestrained design lust. My mind wanders to the rich variety of sustainable products that are out there and I thoroughly enjoy the diverse design options any one of them would offer.
While the new standard eco-friendly choices–bamboo, reclaimed wood, marmoleum, clay finishes–are already in mind, I find myself lingering over the concept of glass as a design feature. I’m not talking about nice little squares of recycled glass tiles that no one can see unless they’re taking a shower or against a backsplash. I’m talking about thick glass slab countertops so beautiful they may cause an uncontrollable drooling response.
While most humble homebuilders tend to think of glass as an accent attraction, Tish Oye and Steve Shahbaghlian of Glassworks in Seattle have taken the concept of interior glass to new and glorious heights. Founded over thirty-five years ago as architectural glass fabricators for the building and design industry, Oye and Shahbaghlian have developed a profound appreciation for glass as functional art. Deeply committed to sustainable building practices, the duo now offers a beautiful series of recycled glass countertops that not only create amazing impact but are fully functional as well.
Recycled green cast glass
Made from discarded shower doors from a local manufacturer, Glassworks melts the glass down and re-purposes it into gorgeous green cast glass slabs. Ranging from one to two inches thick and up to twelve feet long, these exquisite countertops are an ideal kitchen feature and work in bathrooms, home offices, and anywhere else a dramatic design statement can be made. Born from a from a unique arrangement with one of the nation’s premier glass shower door fabricators, the recycling project offers builders and remodelers a fresh option in sustainable building. “As part of their quality control process, the company used to send any doors identified with scratches or small dings to the landfill,” explains Oye. “Under our new program, they ship the doors directly to us. From there, we turn them into something beautiful and useful.”
The tempered glass used for shower doors is a perfect “raw” element for the recycling process. When the shower doors arrive at Glassworks, they are broken into small, pebble-size pieces. The pieces are then put into a mold and re-fired. Under the heat of the Glassworks kiln, the “pebbles” melt together to form translucent cast glass. “The end result has the same integrity and beauty of glass made from non-recycled materials,” continues Oye, “But these pieces have the added benefit of not contributing to a landfill.”
But Oye is no Greenie-lite. An accomplished businesswoman, Oye recently earned her LEED certification. Determined to do all she can to make her company and their fabricating process more sustainable, she’s about the little things smaller companies can do to lower their carbon footprint and be a good neighbor at the same time. With a shy determination, she’ll tell you about her plan to heat the Glassworks shop with the heat from the kilns they use. Or how when a client refers Glassworks to a potential customer, as a thank you, Glassworks makes a donation in that client’s name to the good works organization of their choice.
Any builder or remodeler looking to find that one gem that sets their design apart should highly consider recycled cast glass counters. Having a Glassworks designed countertop in your home or building is like owning a unique piece of commissioned art that is beautiful, functional, and sustainable. The perfect building troika for the modern age, its just one way small business is shining the light on making our world a better place.
Above: Images from the Glassworks portfolio, prior to using recycled glass.
View all their transparent creations at: www.glassworksinc.com
