Cliff Rock and Claudia Rexroad of Willow Creek Glass work together to create a glass vase. They have been making art together for 15 years. Photo by Isaac Broyles.
The husband-and-wife team of Cliff Rock and Claudia Rexroad operate Willow Creek Glass, which uses nearly 5 tons of recycled glass every year to make a wide variety of objects
Project by Isaac Broyles and Steve Butera
Written by Isaac Broyles
For the Sunday Gazette-Mail
This is the third in a series of multimedia projects from the West Virginia Uncovered project at West Virginia University.
Click here for more stories from West Virginia Uncovered.
Click here for a photo slideshow for this story.
ALUM BRIDGE -- Piles of old, discarded, and broken glass bottles surround a makeshift blue tent, the product of a society who has branded these items as trash. But by the end of the day, Cliff Rock and Claudia Rexroad will have melted down and transformed these dull lifeless bottles into hundreds of vibrant glass novelties.
The husband-and-wife team operate Willow Creek Glass, which uses nearly 5 tons of recycled glass every year to make a wide variety of objects: paperweights, animals, whimsies, sculptures, eggs, vases, marbles, flowers, jewelry, fruits and vegetables.
"When something breaks or turns out wrong, we can simply throw them back into the furnace and try again," Rock said.
Rock and Rexroad run Willow Creek Glass from their Lewis County home, so rent isn't an issue. Their only real operating cost is the propane they use to keep their furnaces going.
Because they can operate inexpensively through recycling, Rock said they can sell their items at a low price. This simple business plan has allowed Willow Creek Glass to thrive while many bigger glass companies experience economic hardships.
Recycled materials also find new uses in the couple's personal lives. They are building a home for themselves made of wood and glass salvaged from other buildings and scrap piles. Even the walls in their future home have glass bottle sculptures built right in.
To promote their product and message of recycling, Rock and Rexroad conduct many demonstrations at festivals, grand openings and artisan shows. Rock said they sell many of their glass novelties and give artisan demonstrations to the public at the Tamarack arts center in Beckley. They also make novelties for weddings, class reunions and business conferences.
Project by Isaac Broyles and Steve Butera
Written by Isaac Broyles
For the Sunday Gazette-Mail
This is the third in a series of multimedia projects from the West Virginia Uncovered project at West Virginia University. Click here for more stories from West Virginia Uncovered.
Click here for a photo slideshow for this story.
ALUM BRIDGE -- Piles of old, discarded, and broken glass bottles surround a makeshift blue tent, the product of a society who has branded these items as trash. But by the end of the day, Cliff Rock and Claudia Rexroad will have melted down and transformed these dull lifeless bottles into hundreds of vibrant glass novelties.
The husband-and-wife team operate Willow Creek Glass, which uses nearly 5 tons of recycled glass every year to make a wide variety of objects: paperweights, animals, whimsies, sculptures, eggs, vases, marbles, flowers, jewelry, fruits and vegetables.
"When something breaks or turns out wrong, we can simply throw them back into the furnace and try again," Rock said.
Rock and Rexroad run Willow Creek Glass from their Lewis County home, so rent isn't an issue. Their only real operating cost is the propane they use to keep their furnaces going.
Because they can operate inexpensively through recycling, Rock said they can sell their items at a low price. This simple business plan has allowed Willow Creek Glass to thrive while many bigger glass companies experience economic hardships.
Recycled materials also find new uses in the couple's personal lives. They are building a home for themselves made of wood and glass salvaged from other buildings and scrap piles. Even the walls in their future home have glass bottle sculptures built right in.
To promote their product and message of recycling, Rock and Rexroad conduct many demonstrations at festivals, grand openings and artisan shows. Rock said they sell many of their glass novelties and give artisan demonstrations to the public at the Tamarack arts center in Beckley. They also make novelties for weddings, class reunions and business conferences.
When Rock moved from Detroit to West Virginia in 1976, he had no idea he would spend the rest of his life making glass art. After about a year in the state holding down odd jobs, he got a job at a glass factory. He quickly became interested in glass blowing, and decided to stay in West Virginia.
He worked for almost two decades until he met his companion, Rexroad, and decided to quit his job and start Willow Creek Glass with her.
The importance of recycling was instilled in both Rock and Rexroad from early childhood, so the two easily connected. To them, recycling isn't just a hobby -- it's a way of life.
When they met, glass blowers were what the couple likes to call "purists," meaning that they only bought and used clear crystal glass to make their pieces.
"I came from an artist background, where color is everything." Rexroad said.
So they began experimenting with recycling different bottles to get colorful pieces.
"We haven't stopped experimenting yet," Rock said.
They have had to slow down their operations in the past year, however, because Rock suffered a heart attack. He is almost back to full health now, and he and his wife are trying to get caught up on all of their orders. The experience has made them want to prepare for an eventual retirement.
Rexroad doesn't want to keep the secrets of Willow Creek Glass' success to herself. She would like to become something of a lobbyist for recycling.
Her plan is to talk to different communities and solid waste authorities about the importance of recycling. Rexroad said that instead of shipping bottles out of state and paying people to take them away to landfills, we could keep them here and make something beautiful out of them. Rexroad said she hopes she can eventually get West Virginia recognized as the "Recycling State."
Many members of the surrounding community have adopted Willow Creek Glass' model of recycling, and regularly bring them bags of glass bottles that would have otherwise been thrown away.
Rock and Rexroad accept all the glass that people bring them, partly because they can melt through 60 bottles a day, and partly because, "the next thing you know everything will be switched to plastic."
Post a comment