Posted: Wed Aug 17, 05 8:19 am Post subject: how do I recycle broken china
In my work I come across a fair amount of broken china, it's all rubbishy stuff that can't be sold because it was cheap and nasty in the first place so never had any value and less so now it's damaged.
There are sometimes nice plates that have a crack or chip, I can rescue these as I cut them up for mosaics and ebay them but I'm still left with about 2 bucketfuls per month of junk...is there ANY use for this at all? I personally don't have time to make something out of it but I feel bad just adding it to landfill.
While I entirely agree with the use of such broken pottery as crocks, I doubt that with the best will in the world any of us could use two bucket loads per month
If it's just chipped a bit, charity shops will often take it.
Other than that... I'm struggling to think of a good way of using this in bulk. The mosaics plan is an excellent idea; got any pictures of your work you can share with us?
Large chipped plates will of course make good plant saucers, which is handy even outside, to save water draining straight out and to ensure pots are watered properly and not shocked.
You could use the mosaic to decorate the outside of plant pots; you might be able to sell these if you're both arty and energetic enough to do the selling. I am sure I've seen a website about using broken crockery for quite intricate mosaic called pique nique or something odd like that.
Joined: 30 Jun 2005 Posts: 571 Location: Grenoside, Sheffield
Posted: Wed Aug 17, 05 8:43 am Post subject:
1. Find a field.
2. Bury bits of broken pottery in field.
3. Leave for a couple of years.
4. Return and dig up pottery.
5. Announce significant archaeological discovery to local press.
6. Retire on proceeds of flogging genuine Roman/Saxon/Norman/Renaissance/Ikea artefacts.
Alternatively try sticking it on ebay. Admittedly most of the adverts for broken china involve Pink Floyd, but you can't have everything...
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Posted: Wed Aug 17, 05 9:05 am Post subject:
Thanks for all the ideas!
All of my plant pots, both inside and out have a very generous layer of broken pots at the bottom so I've buried some of my problems away out of sight!
re charity shops - the best stuff goes already, this is the stuff that I wouldn't dare give to them
re mosaic - I don't actually make anything with the pieces, I bought a cutting tool from the USA that I use just to cut them into pieces and sell them as they are (there are loads of things for sale on ebay made by americans with bits of china including jewelry but why would they buy english mosaics and pay for postage when they have their own broken china?)
Do you have anything like an art college or school near you? Or a University, or adult education college? Sometimes they need materials for art courses, including, er ... "pique assiette".
If it were ground up and mashed enough (oooh, that could be fun to do) you could use it instead of gravel or other proprietory granules, say in your greenhouse or coldframe.
Or is there a local craft centre near you? Artists' cooperative?
Try advertising it on Freecycle, or local paper free-ads?
Someone here used it themselves in a nice mosaic floor in their shed:
Many schools study the Romans in year 3 (I think). Would they like to do a mosaic with your pottery as part of their half-term project?
Our local museum does education days on the theme of "Archaeology". One of the tasks the children get to undertake is the reconstruction of broken plates and other crockery using plastecine and masking tape.
Oh - a local Scrap Sceme or Scrap Store is basically an organisation - sometimes local authority, sometimes charity-based - who hoard all sorts of stuff that MIGHT be useful to someone for some kind of artistic endeavour. They can be used by anyone from local playschemes to the afore-mentioned adult education colleges. Where abouts are you?
Use them as crocks in the bottom of plant pots for drainage?
BUT you must remember when emptying the pots the next spring - I just got a nasty cut scooping the soil out by hand forgetting that I put a broken pot in the bottom last year
I've now replaced the broken china with woodchips to avoid this happening again.
My local tip has a 'hardcore' skip, I put any broken china in there now.
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