It was the fall of 2007. I was in my garage untangling holiday lights, thinking here we go again – another holiday season with the same old decorations. I sighed, finished a bottle of water, and then placed the empty bottle atop the plastic mountain that rose from my recycling bin.

As the empty bottle settled into its new digs, I looked at my holiday lights and had an epiphany: a tiny light bulb can fit inside the open end of a plastic bottle. I dimmed the lights in my garage, pushed a holiday light bulb into an empty bottle, and presto! The bottle harnessed a glow that was big, bold, and brilliant! I was off and running...

Within minutes, I’d glued several empty bottles into the shape of a Christmas tree. I inserted a holiday light bulb into each bottle, stepped back, and marveled at the crude tree’s luminescent beauty. Unable to contain my excitement, I showed my creation to my brother, who – after a brief ‘where do you find the time?’ Q&A – directed my unbridled enthusiasm to our local mall’s holiday crafts contest. I won first place!

My victory inspired me to patent my idea and look for ways to improve it. My brother began cutting plywood into festive holiday shapes, or templates. We designed brackets to give the templates stability, and devised a way to keep the lights in place by poking them through the caps of the empty plastic bottles. Our enthusiasm brought us to the 2008 Craft and Hobby Association trade show in Chicago, IL. What a wonderful experience! We met great people and our crafts drew a lot of interest. My brother and I were so proud that we could bring a concept from a small garage in Ft. Lauderdale to an enormous trade show in Chicago, but not nearly as proud as we were when the Craft and Hobby Association told us that our product was selected as one of the most Eco/Earth-friendly crafts for 2009!

I am very thankful for my brother and all the wonderful people who have helped Eco-Crafts launch from my small Florida garage. And I thank you for visiting the Eco-Crafts website. With your support, we can usher in a new era of seasonal décor, and shed some big, bold, and brilliant light on environmental awareness!