Giving vivid new meaning to the word ‘up-cycling’ is DittoHouse, an Ohio-based textiles company which repurposes fabric waste for its range of graphically modern blankets and pillows. Overseen by founder and textile designer Molly Fitzpatrick, DittoHouse harnesses the potential in scrap cotton materials, which, once sorted and de-fiberized, yield a whole new collection of yarns which Fitzpatrick weaves into — Continue reading
Danish company Vipp, best known for its pedal-activated luxury garbage bins, is now in the pre-fab housing business. Vipp Shelter, a predictably stylish steel and glass modern house, is shipped in two containers, its 590 square feet ready and waiting to be assembled onsite in 3-5 days. While pre-fab retreats — Continue reading
A pair of glass greenhouses mark the entry to the stunning transformation of a 300 year old paper mill on the southern coast of England into a ravishing sustainable gin distillery. The work of Britain’s Thomas Heatherwick Studio, the refurbishment of Laverstock Mill from a derelict site to Bombay Sapphire’s new distillery, is both an architectural and ecological wonder, — Continue reading
You’d be forgiven for not knowing that today is National Ceiling Fan Day. An green initiative spearheaded in 2013 by the American Lighting Association, fan manufacturers, and leading energy conservation groups, the aim of National Ceiling Fan Day is to draw attention to the intrinsic energy efficiency of fans over — Continue reading
Vietnam’s A21 Studio has impressively fashioned a prototype for a child’s tricycle, using primarily untreated bamboo stalks. By applying a natural resource plentiful in Vietnam, the studio conceived of a design with seat and back rest comprised of thick bamboo stalks, and thinner bamboo components making up the handlebars and dowels that hold the — Continue reading
Canadian design studio Castor has taken up-cycling to novel and ironic heights with a chandelier made entirely from burnt-out light bulbs. Designers Kei Ng and Brian Richer, who founded Castor in 2006 with the intention of recasting common and discarded materials in unexpected ways, keep things interesting with a range of — Continue reading
The only private residence in Florida to have been designed by Frank Lloyd Wright is in danger of crumbling—a fate that the non-profit Spring House Institute desperately hopes to avert. Given landmark status in 1979 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and then placed on its 11 Most Endangered Historic Places list earlier this — Continue reading
The Cain Collection of chairs, stools, tables and benches by New York design studio Staach exemplifies their belief that modern, affordable furniture can be built both locally and sustainably. By sourcing FSC certified maple, shipped directly from timber mills in New York and Pennsylvania, and hand fabricating and finishing pieces — Continue reading
The village of Krumbach, Austria, boasts something that no other city in the world has: bus stops—seven of them—designed by an international list of architects. The end product of a project called Bus:Stop, the structures were created via collaborations with local craftspeople and businesses to help boost tourism in Krumbach. — Continue reading
A wood carving tradition that dates back to the 19th Century and the Bosnian town of Konjic is still practiced by Manulution, a modern furniture company that pays homage to a Balkan craft perfected over the course of four generations. Manulution’s sustainably sourced European hardwoods find expression in simple forms — Continue reading
There’s nothing cute about millions of animals doing time in shelters, waiting to be whisked off to a loving home—only to be put down when the wait becomes too long. But Ikea’s inspired marketing campaign, aimed at finding homes for shelter dogs, is plenty heartwarming. Teaming up with creative agency — Continue reading
Dutch design brand Vij5 has introduced a collection of cabinets partly comprised of NewspaperWood, a composite material they helped develop in 2011 with designer Mieke Meijer. Reversing the wood-to-paper process, NewspaperWood is born of layers of newspapers, which, when rolled and sliced, expose patterning akin to that of wood rings. — Continue reading
3Form, makers of architectural surfaces, has a sustainable, socially responsible answer to expanding its translucent Varia Ecoresin product line. The company’s Full Circle initiative mines the skills of artisans across the globe for the hand-crafted decorative elements used in creating its Varia Ecoresin panels, a material comprised of 40% pre-consumer — Continue reading
Italian outdoor furniture company Serralunga presented a suite of new offerings at this year’s Milan Furniture Fair, with the Alice table by Milan designer Patrizia Pozzi playing the charming attention-getter. Alice delivers on the whimsy its name implies, with a table-top of molded (100% recyclable and UV protected) polyethylene that looks — Continue reading
London based designer Marjan van Aubel has designed a table which harnesses solar power that can then be used to charge portable devices. A collaborative project with Swiss solar panel company Solaronix, van Aubel’s clean and modern Current Table ingeniously substitutes a standard table top for a grid of bespoke — Continue reading
Capitalizing on research that shows we’re just not getting enough sleep, or at least the proper kind of sleep, lighting products company Saffron, makers of the well-named Drift, think they’ve got a solution. An energy efficient LED light bulb, Drift looks ordinary enough, fits into a standard light socket, and — Continue reading
Swedish clothing retailer Uniforms For The Dedicated is proposing a novel approach to recycling—with a shopping bag that graphically encourages a clothing donation with each consumer purchase. The Rag Bag is a shopping bag which, when turned inside-out, morphs into a mailing envelope, postage-paid and pre-addressed. Customers are urged to — Continue reading
Even novice gardeners have big dreams, and Edyn, a new gardening system, promises big things to weekend gardeners and expert growers, alike. A two-component system—a sensor which, when ‘planted’ in garden bed, monitors soil conditions and transmits the data via a smart phone app; and a solar-powered valve which automatically — Continue reading
When life gives you lemons…. With ongoing bad news related to sugary drinks, and its undeniable complicity in the proliferation of plastic waste, the Coca Cola company may be forgiven for feeling a bit persecuted of late. But, give them credit for trying to generate some good eco-centric press for — Continue reading
For the venerable Vermont-based furniture company, Copeland Furniture, the concepts of environmental stewardship and sustainability, far from being buzzwords, are intrinsic to the company ethos. A recipient of the American Home Furnishings Alliance (AHFA) Sage Award for environmental excellence, Copeland’s longstanding commitment to exceptional design and manufacturing standards is reflected — Continue reading
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