STYLE: DESIGN : Once Is Not Enough

With the April 22 observance of Earth Day just around the corner, thoughts turn to the state of the planet--and how we can keep it from spinning out of control. Recycling is perhaps the easiest, most popular way to help, but nowadays, sorting newsprint, cans and bottles is no longer enough. For recycling to be more than the pointless collection of tons of paper, aluminum, plastic and glass, we must also open our pocketbooks and buy goods that are made from these and other reusable resources. Fortunately, numerous designers and craftspeople offer a growing selection of “green” clothes, jewelry, toys and housewares. (For more information, send $2 for the booklet “Shopper’s Guide to Recycled Products” to Californians Against Waste Foundation, 926 J St., Suite 606, Sacramento, CA 95814, (916) 443-5422.) Some of the items shown here are created nearby; others, halfway ‘round the world. All are part of the if-in-doubt-don’t-toss-it-out movement, in which materials formerly used only once turn up in second-generation products. Metal license plates are reborn as hibachis, and scraps of movie celluloid are strung together as dangly earrings. Even compostable organic materials take on new shape, with deciduous leaves getting pressed into picnic dishes and cow manure being molded into lawn ornaments. In other words, to sort and buy is to recycle with a cause.