About Us
Mission Statement
To enhance the community artistically and environmentally by providing opportunities for the creative reuse of a variety of secondhand materials
How We Live Up to Our Mission
- Giving individuals and businesses a local outlet for the donation/reuse of materials not usually accepted in recycling programs and other local donation programs
- Organizing and packaging the donated materials and offering them to the public at a low cost; giving a portion of the materials to local nonprofit organizations
- Providing information on the blog and in the shop that educates the community about reuse, and leading workshops in the community that teach how to use cast-off materials in creative ways
- Promoting artisans who use repurposed/upcycled materials and providing an outlet for them to sell their creations
- Keeping materials out of our landfills and waterways and getting them into the hands of people who can learn with them, teach with them, and/or use them to create items and art that beautify their homes or the spaces of others
Untrash Gives Back
It's not just that we help the environment by keeping materials from taking up space in the landfill or ending up in our waterways-- we donate materials to educators, nonprofit arts groups and other community organizations (see a list of recipients here). In addition, we support small businesses by featuring and promoting amazing items made by local and nationwide artisans who use repurposed materials in their creations!
Community Impact
We weigh every donation of materials that come to us. So far, Untrash Creative Reuse has kept 1,375 pounds of materials out of the waste stream and into the hands of people helping to beautify the community. (as of 1/22/24)
Who's Minding the Store?
Inspired by thrifty Greatest Generation parents and growing up in Iowa (which included a 4-H membership and spending a lot of time indoors November-April, sewing, crafting, and cooking), Untrash CR owner Patricia Allbee has been doing something creative ever since, whether knitting, scrapbooking, macrame', creating wacky Halloween costumes, wrapping gifts with maps and other reused materials, and writing (because wordsmithing IS an art, after all!!).
A writer by profession, she's written articles about creatives and their creations for the Dallas Morning News, The Dallas Observer and D Magazine (as well as environmental and art-related articles for the City of Richardson's Communications Dept.) and had a "lightning bolt of inspiration" moment several years ago in which she set her sights on writing a "reuse blog" and opening a creative reuse center. Many baby steps later (and a pandemic), here we are. Her ultimate goal is for Untrash Creative Reuse to double in size and eventually become a 501(c)3 organization. Stay tuned!