EcoATM: Recycle Your Technological Waste and Get PAID

If you're one of those people who waits in line at the Apple store the morning a new iPhone is released (guilty), then you probably have an outdated gadget or two lying around. You probably also have no idea what to do with all your e-waste, and you're not alone. 100 million cell phones are trashed each year, not to mention all the improperly recycled computers and mp3 players leaching mercury, lead and arsenic into the ground. But the EcoATM seeks to change all that and throw some cash your way in the process.

Think of the EcoATM like a reverse vending machine. Instead of inserting money, punching in your selection and getting a candy bar (or, in many places now, a new iPod), you insert your old phone or mp3 player and get money in return. The machine has super smart robots inside (our personal term for artificial intelligence) that determine what you've inserted and calculate its worth. To make sure people aren't ripping off cell phones and heading to the nearest EcoATM to make a buck, you're asked to enter some personal information as well. Then you can decide what to do with the cash; donate it to charity to send your phone off to a responsible smelting facility and pocket the cash.

So far, EcoATMs are mainly a West Coast operation, with a few locations popping up in the Midwest. Though according to rep from EcoATM, we should see them start showing up from D.C. up to Boston sometime around August--with 100 of 'em throughout the area by the end of the year (!)

Now excuse us, we've got a line we might need to start standing in...

GO HERE NOW // Unconsumption, Your Daily Dose Of Creative Reuse And Mindful Consumption

A few years ago author and journalist Rob Walker coined the term "unconsumption," first writing about it in his Times Magazine column:

Getting new stuff can feel really good. Most everybody knows that. Most everybody also knows — particularly in the aftermath of the consumption-frenzy holiday season — that utility can fade, pleasure can be fleeting and the whole thought-that-counts thing is especially ephemeral. Apart from the usual solution to this problem (more new stuff!), it's worth pondering whether getting rid of stuff can ever feel as good as getting it.

Half a decade later, that idea has blossomed into much more. The Unconsumption Tumblr blog is daily proof that, when you can find a new purpose or home for something, "getting rid" of it can indeed feel wonderful. And so can exploring the countless ways that people around the world reuse and repurpose things.

Walker and a handful of other contributors populate the Unconsumption Tumblr with inspiring examples of creative repurposing, recycling, upcycling, mindful consumption and more. They can be pretty much anything, from a world map made from recycled computer parts to Brooklyn's own Dekalb Market to a plan to recycle decommissioned satellites to resources like Hipcycle.com and ManualsOnline.com. A couple of our favs are the iMacquarium, an iMac repurposed as an aquarium and a chair made out of 10,000 plastic drinking straws.

In addition to its Tumblr, Unconsumption has a wiki, which provides helpful info and tips on the best way to get rid of things you don't want. Walker and company also recently started The Uncollection, which features recycled creations that incorporate Unconsumption's logo, from patches and earrings to dinner plates and stationery.

-- John Ruscher

DESIGN SPOTLIGHT // Turn Your Bathtub Into a Sofa

Love it or hate it, you've got to admit that Breakfast at Tiffany's (along with Audrey Hepburn's adorably daffy role therein) has secured itself a lasting cultural fascination--so much so that we've begun raiding Holly Golightly's apartment for design ideas. Serendipitously, her clawfoot bathtub couch (our personal favorite) has popped up on Design Sponge and Apartment Therapy Re-Nest over the past few weeks.

The write-ups advise readers to simply go ahead and make one of these bad boys--you know, just saw a bathtub in half.

Though for anyone reading that's taken one of our metalwork courses, this thing will be a breeze. So once you've made your cut, spraypaint that sucker. Finally, (since we trust you've learned how to upholster as well), use your newfound skill to whip up some choice pillows.

Already got plenty of couch space? Hit the jump for a few more innovations.

There's more than just lounging to repurposing these clawfoot tubs. You've got the timeless "Virgin Mary In A Bathtub":

Though arguably a bit more functional, bathtub planters are a great way to turn a small plot of cement into a vegetable or flower garden:

Not feeling especially crafty but want one of those couches so badly you can taste it? You've always got the option to just buy one. We've come across some highly impressive work on Etsy, one that caught our eye being Ruff House Art. Here's one of their pieces:

Now sit back with your candy cigarette in a long holder and your unnamed cat--and enjoy.

Have any other repurposed bathtub ideas? Let us know about them! Maybe a koi pond? Cat condo? The possibilities are endless!

--Layla Schlack