Trash to treasure: The adventures of a Dallas salvagista

by Sarah Blaskovich

Photo by Sarah Blaskovich

Julia Schloss, a salvage artist, is surrounded here by stuff that someone else deemed "trash."

DALLAS — Julia Schloss has been making things out of people's trash since she was nine years old. It wasn't a proud pastime back then -- in fact, it was called “scavenging,” the ugly stepsister to a much prettier term we now call “salvaging.”

“It was the way I lived. I made things out of other people's trash,” Schloss says. She grew up in Garland and her family members were Great Depression survivors, serious about recycling. It wasn't until years later later that Schloss recognized the environmental benefits of her lifelong hobby. And today, she is a salvage artist who sells unwanted goods to consignment shops, donates it to charity, and even gives some as gifts. (Yes, re-gifting. She's betting you'd never know her incredibly cute presents are made from used stuff or even trash.)

And it's also a money-maker: Last year, she made about $12,000 by selling items she collected from people's curbs on bulky trash day. That $12,000 also includes profit from numerous successful Dumpster dives. “Recycled art was trash 10 years ago,” she says. “Today, trash is treasure. It's trendy.”

Schloss has recently inspired other Dallas-Fort Worth “salvagistas.” (No word on the masculine version for a savvy salvager, though they certainly exist.) Schloss shared her salvaging tips to a room of garage-salers and salvagers -- some radical, some not -- all hovered together to hear Schloss tell her tales. “You will leave here empowered,” she told the group as they gathered one Saturday morning at 1727, a gallery in the industrial district. “You'll never be able to drive by a pile again.”

Digging for treasure

Schloss remembers hopping into a Dumpster a few years ago, eager to reach the colorful tile samples at the bottom of the bin. She's a salvage artist, and the tiles would come in handy for a handful of projects she waned to create. Peering into the Dumpster, she experienced what she called a “serious adrenaline rush” -- salvagers, you know who you are -- and hopped in without a second thought. It was a few minutes later when she realized she couldn't get out. After a few screeches, a police officer came to her rescue.

Sort of. “He was wondering what I was doing,” she said. “And I had to make it funny, right?” He laughed like he was supposed to, but then scolded her and hauled her out of the Dumpster. The police officer then did his worst – as a punishment, he took her precious free tiles. A few months later, he sent Schloss a photo of art he and his kids had made from the tiles, all inspired by Schloss' story. Now they're old friends.

One learning lesson (besides to get creative when caught by the cops) is to devise a plan for getting in and out of a Dumpster, Schloss says. She recommends buying a small foldable step stool with a rope and hook attached. Hold onto the end of the rope when you hop into the trash can, and then pull the ladder in with you. That'll ensure you get out safely. (No promises about whether you'll be stinky.)

Photo by Sarah Blaskovich

Don't get her started on styrofoam. "It's making three-eyed frogs in the Trinity," she says. So she rescues it and makes art. The entire piece is styrofoam, and the small square she's pointing to is part of an old Chinese food container.

But Schloss warns other artists and salvagers against getting too stir-crazy about taking people's trash. She jokes about turning into the “weirdo in the backroom” with piles of stuff they could never use. It's bad karma, she says, to take a beautiful piece of clothing from someone's curb with no intention to sell it or use it.

She's found incredible things, like a bag of gems that she later used to design her wedding ring. She also found a live parakeet, in the cage with water and food, sitting on the curb for the trash. (Must've gotten too chatty in the middle of the night, we think.)

In one Dumpster, she dove for a beautiful painted bowl and realized it was actually a 22 pound turtle – alive. She hoisted herself out of the trash bin, turtle in hand, and found a rescue breeder. (Husband wouldn't let her keep it.) The breeder was amazed that she'd found a 25-year-old female leopard tortoise and cut her a check for $2,000. Now that's a bargain.

Seasons for salvaging

Some times of the year are better than others for finding trash treasures, Schloss says. An important tip is to make a list of the things you want to find. That way you won't hoard anything and everything that you “might use someday.”

Spring: It's spring cleaning in most households, so personal trash cans will be full of purged stuff. This is the best time to find yard furniture, Christmas decorations (including a plethora of fake Christmas trees -- all of which can be sold to Christmas decorators for a nice sum), household items, winter clothes, and plants -- dead and alive.

Summer: Schloss says summer is the best time to find “everything.” She finds school supplies, kids clothes, toys, dog crates, swing sets, tools, and yard equipment. Summer is her favorite time to lug unwanted kiddie pools over to animal shelters -- which use the plastic pools to bathe large dogs and let them play. It's also the time when college students move home for the summer. Many students leave treasures behind, especially at dorms and apartments near Southern Methodist University, she says.

Fall: As the year winds down, Schloss finds lots more Christmas and holiday decorations thrown out. She also says this a good time to stock up on gifts. Some of her gift ideas include collecting real bird's nests and placing jewelry wrapped in tissue paper inside; salvaging a cool pitcher or bowl and place smell-good soaps inside; or finding reusable, recyclable bags (like the ones they sell at grocery stores) and placing the gift inside. All can be found on the curb or in the can.

Winter: This is the quietest time of year, and Schloss suggests that salvagers to go through their own piles and donate unused items. Winter is a good time to take plants, mulch, or leaves off of people's curbs and use them for your own garden. (Take unused leaves, mow over them so they're chopped up, and put them on flower beds to mulch all winter. You can also pour a sugary substance like Coke over leaves and they will dissolve into moist soil.) Schloss also goes out the week after Christmas and finds mountains of electronics, which can be pawned for a pretty penny.

Salvaging can be a hobby, or a business, or both, Schloss says. “Salvagers are an old breed that are mewly being recognized,” she says. “Here's the bottom line: Our code is, 'Waste not, want not.'”