It has been noted that one man's trash is another man's

treasure. But for Wheaton resident DeAnna Cooper, 42, that trash is

an opportunity to recycle a portion of the planet into something

utilitarian and unique.

Last November, Cooper, along with her sister-in-law Kathy Cooper and

lifelong friend Jamie Anjus, founded Coopersong, an Internet-based

business that produces lunch bags, hip purses and tote bags from

recycled products. The bags and purses are hand-made, one at a time,

by the three stay-at-home moms, who manage to coordinate all of their

work despite residing in locations across the country.

"Kathy lives in Colorado, and Jamie lives in Los Angeles, and

my husband and I relocated here to Wheaton," Cooper said.

"In putting this together, we've spent a lot of time on

the phone and also videoconferencing with (Internet phone service)

Skype."

The bags are made using two rather unusual components: broken-down

bicycle inner tubes and good old cowhide-covered baseballs that are

no longer being whacked in the batting cage. Cooper said local bike

shops as well as schools, park districts and local baseball groups

are all helping supply the recycled materials.

"Glen Ellyn Cycling has been wonderful about keeping the old

inner tubes from flats they've repaired, and once a week,

I'll drop by and pick up what they have," Cooper said.

"I go home, wash the tubes and then cut them into strips. We

use them as handles for the lunch and tote bags."

The baseball covers are removed and used as supporting material sewn

on the bottom of the tote bags and also as pockets for storage along

the side.

To date, the three partners have made nearly 400 bags - a

process which Cooper said could take as little as one hour or as much

as an entire day. Adding to the intrigue, Cooper admits that up until

recently, she didn't even know how to sew.

"I worked for a number of years in Los Angeles at the Fox

studios as a finance executive and never learned to sew," she

said. "My sister-in-law has been wonderful about teaching me.

I've sort of learned by trial and error. Sewing is like

numbers with the financial work I did - it's all very

logical, really."

Cooper said the company was formed in order to give her partners and

herself the ability to still be moms and continue going to sports

team practices and being there for their children when they get home

from school. The "green" aspect of the business, Cooper

said, was born out of her former life in Los Angeles.

"Living in LA, one of the things you get used to is waking up

and hearing what the air quality is going to be that morning,"

she said. "My husband and I moved back to the Midwest partly

to reconnect with who we wanted to be as individuals as this point,

and that includes caring about and living in a better environment

- it's the path we'd like to be on now as

we've gotten older. This business is a way to do that and also

offer something that's really unique."

Cooper has also added her first retail outlet that will allow her to

market her bags beyond the Web site. Jan Rooney, co-owner of Anew, a

woman's boutique shop in Geneva that takes in items on

consignment, recently met Cooper and fell in love with her various

bags.

"She (Cooper) came into the store and from the minute I saw

her merchandise, I liked everything about it," Rooney said.

"It's going to be an absolute hit here In Geneva. We

sort of recycle things ourselves, given that we take in items and

sell them, and we're also trying to be as

'green' as possible. I'm so excited to carry

these products." 

For more information about Coopersong, call 630-903-9755 or go to

www.coopersong.com.