Posted February 24th, 2012 by Rachel

Watch out! There be bears (and wolves) lurking in this wool felt doily by Etsy maker Wolf & Bears. Cut with a laser, this intricate pattern has just enough edginess to it that even the most macho of men might find a new love for doilies. Might.
Have a great weekend everyone and thanks for visiting!
Rachel
Posted February 23rd, 2012 by Emerald

A hundred years or more ago logging teams all over the American Southeast harvested Cypress trees, binding the logs into rafts to be floated downriver to the waiting wood mills. Sometimes the rafts would break up, and the ancient logs would sink to the bottom of the river, there to sit, inviolate and perfectly preserved, for decades.
Ironically enough, as recovery teams reclaim those logs for use, that beautiful old-growth Cypress helps rescue forests from logging today.

In crafting what the company calls its “Handmade Modern” furniture, Edwin Blue is one of several companies making use of this half-forgotten treasure. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Furniture, Profiles
Tags: aluminum, chair, Cypress, fsc, furniture, Machiche, outdoor, sustainable, table, wood
Posted February 17th, 2012 by Emerald

Part of sustainability is simply making use of what’s on hand: the ancient art of sourcing from nearby bounty.

The founders of Bunaco understood this well. For over fifty years the company, based in the Aomori region of northern Japan, has made use of the beech trees plentiful to its area. From a base product line of lacquered tableware, the designers at Bunaco have continually expanded their vision and created a legion of useful interior goods.

Their most recent brain-child is the Faggio loudspeaker, which debuted just last month at the 2012 Maison & Object Show. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted February 15th, 2012 by Emerald
I felt blue this morning, so opened up Jan DiCintio’s blog and within five minutes all that blah was washed away by her cheery, cheeky attitude and the philosophy surrounding red flowers.

An artist’s soul is inextricably wound up in their work, but this seems particularly true with Jan and Daisy Jane Fabrics. While researching this profile I wandered onto her blog, and before I’d even touched my tea her infectiously sunny, positive, let’s-do-it voice had led me six pages deep. That doesn’t happen often. So let’s meet this wonderful lady and see what she’s all about.

The focus of Daisy Janie is the design of original patterns for use on organic cotton fabrics, with wholesale collections released twice a year, spring and autumn. The product is produced with cotton that has been grown, harvested, processed, and woven according to the Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS). Both the low-impact pigments and pigments used in the printing & finishing stages are similarly in accordance. And, in addition, the fabric is produced in a Fair Trade Certified facility.
That’s the dry version.

What it doesn’t capture is Jan’s enthusiasm, or her passion for pattern, line, texture, and form, or her “fiery personal philosophies for ecofriendly living”. And, just as certifications and standards can’t express the personal depth of her business practices, so words can’t adequately express the spring-like joie-de-vivre of her designs. Only pictures can do that. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted February 9th, 2012 by Emerald

Remember being a kid and sitting down with your trusty box of crayons and a nice big inviting expanse of white paper? All that great, creative possibility at your fingertips? Yeah…

The owners of Dutch company WallArt must remember, too, because they’re given designers a grown-up version of that moment: 3D embossed wall panels in friendly do-something-awesome-with-me white. Check out these brilliant examples from their Projects page while I tell you about the product itself.

It starts with sugar. Rather, it starts with bagasse, the fibrous residue left over when sugarcane is shredded to extract the sweet stuff we put in our coffee every morning. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted February 7th, 2012 by Emerald
The glass panels are clean, contemplative, luminous… and evocative of spring?

Well, yes, all that. There are a many sustainable glass products out there, but this creation by Coverings Etc. is impressive in a quiet, well-grounded, Zen kind of way.

Seen close up, Bio-glass evokes carpets of emerald moss, the dark, bare beauty of trees after an autumn rain, the shimmer of ice and snow. As part of a project, it’s sumptuous, striking, and restful all at the same time. Take a look here. Read the rest of this entry »
Posted February 3rd, 2012 by Rachel
Valentine’s Day is on its way folks, so i’ve put together a little selection of fun, sustainable gifts you can still snag in time for the holiday,… if you act fast!

Metal wall art, made from recycled aluminum cans by Transcendant Treasure. These pin up onto the wall in any configuration you want.

Love Pillow sewn from recycled plastic bottle felt by Personal Pillow. The heart is a pocket you can hide a little note or treat in.

Light a torch in your loved one’s heart with this red current scented, 100% soy wax candle from Torch Illumination.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Accessories, Art, Furniture
Tags: aluminum, chair, etsy, frame, furniture, gift, heart, mirror, reclaimed, recycled, red, rug, Valentine's Day, wood
Posted January 30th, 2012 by Emerald
“Demolish another building, it just gives us more to work with!”

John Stein is into demolitions, but not in the way one might think. The founder and president of California-based Kirei USA has a knack for finding the possibilities inherent in the unwanted.

This vision shows clearly in every Kirei product, including the newest line, Windfall. These engineered panels are produced in partnership with Windfall Lumber, which takes Douglas & Hemlock Fir from deconstructed buildings in the Pacific Northwest and brings the reclaimed wood to fresh, new life.
“It’s great to reuse demolition material that would otherwise take up space in the landfill,” says Mr. Stein. “Having it become beautiful wood panels is even better. This is old-growth wood that just can’t be found any more, and we get to bring it to designers.”

Windfall is manufactured in the United States using low-VOC adhesives. The reclaimed wood is milled into strips of differing width, which are then randomly stacked to form the panels and cut to size. Panels are available either solid or 3-ply with a NUAF/FSC-certified core. They may come unfinished, with a clear coat that shows off the natural grain, or stained and prefinished in Anthracite, Mocha, Ivory, and Leather colors. The result adds to any interior.
Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Profiles, Surfaces, Wall Treatments
Tags: bamboo, coconut, commercial, countertop, design, fsc, green, hemp, no-voc, palm, panel, paneling, reclaimed, residential, sorghum, sustainable, wood
Posted January 27th, 2012 by Rachel
In honor of this week’s celebration of Chinese New Year (January 23rd), I give you…

Vigor, the seriously awesome, recycled, drag racing steampunk dragon sculpture by Etsy artisans Reclaim2Fame.

Just look at that face! Read the rest of this entry »
Posted in Accessories, Art
Tags: Art, artisan, brass, bronze, chinese, design, dragon, etsy, metal, New Year, reclaimed, recycled, sculpture
Posted January 24th, 2012 by Emerald
Ahh… Las Vegas. London. Paris. Venice… Ever daydream of traveling to those places?

Okay. So, let’s go!
Wait a minute. We’re here to talk about interiors, aren’t we? And so we are. Specifically, about a very basic, humble, overlooked bit of interior design, one which certainly could use some glamour and snap: the shower curtain.

Somewhere in the broad field between the two extremes of utilitarian and opulent lies style, sophistication, and wit. Check out these travel-themed curtains from the New York-based firm, Izola.
Read the rest of this entry »