NBCUniversal's "Green Is Universal" And Etsy Announce The Winners Of "Art Of Reuse" Contest For Earth Week 2011

NEW YORK, April 22, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- NBCUniversal's "Green is Universal" and Etsy announced today the winners of its "Art of Reuse" contest, a competition to create handmade items out of purely recycled materials, in honor of Earth Day.

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In just three short weeks, the contest drew over three thousand online users, many of whom submitted items and voted for their favorites on Facebook. After the online community narrowed the list down to ten finalists, contest judges Martha Stewart, Oxygen's Tori Spelling, Bravo's Andy Cohen, TODAY's Hoda Kotb and Kathie Lee Gifford, FEED's Lauren Bush and iVillage's Angela Matusik chose the top three winners.  The first place winner will receive an all-expenses paid trip to the Universal Studios Orlando theme park.

Following are details on the winning items:

1st Place: A Cast Iron Claw Foot Bathtub Couch, created by artist Jill Morrison. Morrison transformed a discarded claw foot iron tub, which at the turn of the 20th century could be found in nearly every home, into a one of a kind "Breakfast at Tiffany's" inspired couch.

2nd Place: Firefighter Coat Turned Messenger Bag by artist Evon Cassier. Cassier re-envisioned the cross body bag, giving an industrial aesthetic whole new meaning. By dissembling old firefighter jackets and leather scraps, she gave a new purpose and story to otherwise unwanted articles of clothing. Each bag is unique, just like the firefighter coat it came from.

3rd Place: 20-Minute Dog Sweater by Jennifer Kerr. Kerr's entry is a hand-me-down in the true sense of the word. Instead of throwing away an old sweater, she transformed it into a cozy outfit for her dog. For anyone who wants to try this at home, Kerr provided easy instructions for assembling this dog sweater in just 20 minutes!

"The enormous buzz around this contest speaks volumes, not only about people's creativity, but the role 're-use' can play in giving old materials a fashionable and practical second life," said Beth Colleton, VP of Green is Universal. "We hope the contest inspires more consumers to think about old items in a new way – I personally will never look at an old tub, used credit card or a discard soda can in the same light!"

Other unique creations that made the top ten include the following: