Video and pictures: From lampshades to plastic bikes, 1001 ways to reuse your rubbish
There's money in plastic – just ask thousands of people descending on a trade fair in Shropshire this week.
Some people attending the Plastics Recycling Expo in Telford were artists, others were engineers involved in industry.
But they all had one common interest – how plastic we throw away can be re-used to make hard cash.
"Everything I make is made from plastic bottles," she said. "I collect them from shops and businesses.
"It can take me up to an hour to make a lamp shade, but once I made a life size family sculpture out of plastic – that took me about a month.
"The idea to make this came when I was a student in Nottingham. I worked at a cafe, and we recycled so many plastic bottles.
"One day I decided to take some home to see what I could do with them."
Peter Manning, who designs life size model motorbikes out of plastic, was also at the two-day fair this week after travelling from Somerset.
"When my son was little he asked me to make a him a model of a motorbike, but he wanted it to be life size.
"I made it and then a week later he forgot about it. It was only two years ago when I was moving house I found it and I decided to make something more of it," he said.
"You can't ride them, but you can pick them up, which baffles a few people."
More than 150 companies had displays at the show, which also incorporated a plastics packaging show.
Steve Crowhurst, event director, said: "This is a true showcase of the innovation, investment, talent and hard work that is making UK firms a success internationally.
"It's where some of the biggest opportunities and challenges facing our industry are debated and provides a unique space for exhibitors and visitors to do business, network and build on their knowledge and expertise."
