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Recycled Paperpulp Cabinet by Debbie Wijskamp

by Moe Beitiks, 11/03/09

debbie wijskamp, paperpulp cabinet, eco friendly furniture, recycled materials furniture

It never ceases to surprise us that much of good, sustainable design is also deliciously fun. Take Debbie Wijskamp’s paperpulp cabinets, for instance. They are what their name implies: drawers and shelves made out of pureed paper mache. And while I want to write sophisticated sentences with phrases like ‘materials reuse’ and ‘resource conservation,’ I just can’t help thinking about how glorious it must be, in a third-grade sort of way, to mash paper into furniture. Wijskamp’s process validates these daydreams.

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Zombie Chair Ressurected By Hongtao Zhou

by Moe Beitiks, 10/31/09

Zombie Chair, hongtau zhou, environmental art, halloween, green furniture, furniture design

Zombie chair! Out for your wood scraps! Oozing sawdust and pure carnage! Designer Hongtao Zhou, who we found  playing with ice, decided to get Holiday on a broken, abandoned chair he found on the streets in Madison, Wisconsin. The result: chair of the undead, risen from the swamp and demanding the chance to sit in your living room looking creepy. Zhou created the drippy effect with wood scraps and sawdust (and probably some monster blood and glue). Expect this chair on your front porch Halloween night, demanding all the sweet linseed oil you can muster. Happy creepy chair night, everyone, happy monster night.

+ Hongtao Zhou

Links Roundup of the Week: New York International Gift Fair

by Olivia Chen, 08/21/09

Oomph! Tables, new york international gift fair, new exhibitors nygif, design accent new york international gift fair, green furniture, eco-friendly furniture

The New York International Gift Fair was this week and we are sorry to say that we missed it, which is why we paid extra attention to the buzz around it — and just like Design Week, we are hearing that there is no shortage of good green design.

Mother Nature Network provides a round-up of the latest green products at the fair.

Habitually Chic creates some online buzz for a new company at the fair this year, oomph!

Treehugger reveals an extremely wasteful aspect of giant expos: the booths — and shows us one example that is doing it with salvaged materials.

Re-nest spotted Ronel Jordaan’s stunning hand-dyed and hand-felted blankets, pillows, and curtains at the fair.

Links Roundup of the Week: Seating

by Olivia Chen, 07/24/09

Emiliano Godoy, knit chair, wooden chair, lounge chair

Summertime is fun, but can be tiring — and all you need sometimes is to sit your tush down on some nice, comfy seating. And if you are like us, you want to be locating yourself on a nice bench or stool that is sustainably sourced and constructed. There is certainly no shortage of functional and eco-friendly furniture to be found out there, and this is what we noticed this week in the blog-o-sphere.

Notcot features a modular and biodegradable lounging chair made of plywood, and a stool made of chopsticks and steamer trays.

Core77 tells us about a hand-woven aluminum chair.

Re-nest is highlighting chairs made from recycled whiskey barrels.

Sustainable ‘Alphabet Drawers’ from Kent and London

Sustainable ‘Alphabet Drawers’ from Kent and London

Kent and London know the ABC’s of sustainable design, and we’re singing the praises of their stylish, FSC approved, solid oak chest of Alphabet Drawers. These 26 letter drawers spell function for the entire household, offering a variety of uses from storage in a child’s playroom or bedroom, to easy filing for a …

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Scrap Lab: Furniture Made of Industrial Scraps

Scrap Lab: Furniture Made of Industrial Scraps

Scrap Lab is a group of designers based out of Bangkok’s Kasetsart University’s Architecture program that creates fun and innovative furniture out discarded industrial scraps. The group makes an eclectic variety of furniture, from a funky shaggy lamp to a lounge chair with a quilt-block pattern — all masterfully re-purposing materials that were once considered waste. While their list of materials includes traditional materials such as wood and metal, it also includes less traditional items such as foam and rope. The purpose of the group’s work is to not only create physical products, but also to collect research on how discarded materials can be used effectively to design functional and aesthetically pleasing pieces.

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Recycled Egg Carton ‘Tamago’ Furniture by Merci Design

Recycled Egg Carton ‘Tamago’ Furniture by Merci Design

We’re impressed with this ‘grade A’ upcycling of egg carton pulp into multifaceted children’s play funiture. The Tamago (Japanese for ‘egg’) furniture series by Latvian design team, Merci Design consists of seven soft-contour furniture forms which may be easily manuvered to create letter and number patterns for playtime learning and fun. …

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Renewable Cork Eco-Furniture and Accessories by Corque

Renewable Cork Eco-Furniture and Accessories by Corque

If you’re looking for unique home accessories that are environmentally friendly and have a clean and elegant design quality, you’ll want to check out Corque’s new collection crafted with – you guessed it – cork! From the fun Rolha candle holder which allows users to turn old bottles into candelabras, to funky Topography placemats, which bring rough terrain to the table, their “Designing Living Objects” line truly showcases the versatility of cork.

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‘Whatchawant’ Stool: A Modern Spin on the Rocking Horse

‘Whatchawant’ Stool: A Modern Spin on the Rocking Horse

Swedish designers Charlotte Ryberg and Johanna Strand created their Whatchawant stool as a fun piece of furniture that would inspire the imagination. They built this timeless piece, made of plywood, and containing no screws or superflous parts, with an eye on sustainability and a desire to do away with …

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Palo Samko’s “Only Men’s” Chest with Top Secret Surprise

Palo Samko’s “Only Men’s” Chest with Top Secret Surprise

How many times have you found yourself saying, “I sure wish I had a hidden drawer to keep all of my top secret documents”? Carpenter and designer extraordinaire Palo Samko must have heard you, because he created just that–an elegant chest of drawers with a cleverly concealed compartment for storing your most treasured possessions. Each bureau is made to order by Samko, who uses reclaimed materials such as plywood, pine and buttery tan leather. This chest and its secret drawer are so sweet, you may want to have a backup location for your valuables because you’ll probably end up showing all your friends!

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Inhabitat Reports from BKLYN Designs 2009!

Inhabitat Reports from BKLYN Designs 2009!

Yesterday morning, the Inhabitat team gathered in DUMBO for the opening of BKLYN Designs our favorite locally-grown furniture design show. In its seventh year, the annual showcase of locally-designed furniture provides visitors with sampling of the best in the borough. We saw lots of our old green BKLYN favorites such as Brave Space and Uhuru as well as plenty of exciting new faces and designs — and were especially excited to see what this year’s Pratt students had in store for us. This year’s show, while smaller than last year, proves once again that functionality, eco-sensitivity and beauty can come together under a smart designer. If you live in New York City, we hope you make it out to DUMBO before the weekend is over, to catch our BKLYN Designs Editors’ Choice Awards – which will be given out on our green design walking tour at 3pm on Sunday. To entice you, here are some of our favorite designs from the show…

And don’t forget to check out our photo album >

Hugh Hayden’s FUNiture Tennis Ball Chair

UHURU Booth 2009

Hugh Hayden showcases his colorful FUNiture

Recycled Sweater Stools by Sara Ebert (at the Pratt booth)

Buoy Chair by Evan Dewhirst (at the Pratt booth)

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WAY BASICS Eco-friendly Flat-Pack Furniture

WAY BASICS Eco-friendly Flat-Pack Furniture

Love the idea of flat-pack in concept, but think the reality involves a frustrating wrestling match with an allen wrench and a cryptic set of Swedish instructions? Not so fast! …

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MILAN 2009: Designersblock Show

MILAN 2009: Designersblock Show


Each year the Designersblock show at the Milan Furniture Fair brings together an incredible assortment of designs by a diverse range of designers, and their 2009 offerings did not disappoint. At this year’s show it’s back to basics with simple, raw and natural materials dominating the exhibition. Some of the designs appear to have come out of an afternoon spent in the woods or countryside. Others look like they were shaped by nature itself. Designers seem to have made it a point to give new value to worn out or overlooked objects and to work locally with traditional makers and manufacturers. Designersblock once again showcases some of the most relevant thoughts on today’s design.

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Paper Wood Stools Sit Lightly on the Earth

Paper Wood Stools Sit Lightly on the Earth

Drill Design is set to unveil these new Paper Wood Stools at this week’s Milan Furniture Fair with the tag line that “off the rack” just will not do. Composed of wood veneer and recycled paper, these stools break the mold by moving away from the one size fits all paradigm. Not only are they light of weight and sturdy in strength but they come in a variety of heights to seat everyone from tiny tots all the way up to the towering Shaquille O’Neals in the crowd.

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LONDON DESIGN FESTIVAL: Ryan Frank’s Isabella Stools

LONDON DESIGN FESTIVAL: Ryan Frank’s Isabella Stools

We’re great fans of Ryan Frank’s work here at Inhabitat, and we can’t wait to get a firsthand glimpse of his new stackable Isabella stools at this month’s fast-approaching London Design Festival! The Isabella stool provides eco-ergonomic seating in addition to a sculptural storage solution inspired by hand-carved African designs. Rather than using the exotic hardwoods featured in traditional African seating, the innovative designer chose to work with 100% felted wool and ’strawboard’ – a sustainable, formaldehyde-free material made entirely from compressed straw.

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ECOTOTS KIDS FURNITURE: Inhabitots exclusive interview

ECOTOTS KIDS FURNITURE: Inhabitots exclusive interview

Smart, sustainable, and super cute only begins to describe these stylish eco kids furniture designs by Indianapolis-based ecotots. We’re excited to announce that our baby and kids site Inhabitots recently scored an exclusive interview with Scott Willy, one of the creative forces behind the Ecotots brand. Constructed of 100% renewable FSC-certified Smart Wood, they feature a flat-packable design that is easily assembled without the use of tools. Planet friendly as well as parent friendly, their designs epitomize what we look for in sustainable furniture for kids. If you like this sort of thing, check out the full interview over at Inhabitots!

ECOTOTS: Behind the Baby Brand at Inhabitots >

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CASAKids Modern Furniture for Inhabitots

CASAKids Modern Furniture for Inhabitots

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EMOCJA SIDEBOARD Adapts with Interchangeable Pegs

EMOCJA SIDEBOARD Adapts with Interchangeable Pegs

Sometimes sustainability comes in the form of adaptability, making objects able to accommodate evolving styles or tastes. Polish design studio Emocja had transformation in mind when creating the Bufet Filcowy sideboard. A sleek black panel creates a canvas of some 4000 holes laid out dot-matrix style. Felt pegs of any hue (not unlike cigarette filters) can be arranged into infinite patterns.

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BKLYN SNEAK PEEK: Bamboo Furniture from Ecosystems

BKLYN SNEAK PEEK: Bamboo Furniture from Ecosystems

New sustainable furniture company EcoSystems creates cute, family-friendly furniture that is as thoughtful of the environment as it is to the owner. Starting with renewable materials, EcoSystems follows an earth-minded agenda from start to finish, including taking responsibility for their designs at end of its (first) lifecycle, by taking back and recycling their furniture when you are done with it. Did we mention this stuff is super cute and durable – coming in a variety of primary colors and innovation seating/table configurations? Ecosystems will be showing at BKLYN Designs this weekend, and you can be sure that Abigail and Jill will be stopping at this booth during Sunday’s Mother’s Day Green Design Walking Tour >

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Solar Desk to Liberate Cubicle-Bound Hordes

Solar Desk to Liberate Cubicle-Bound Hordes

Office Workers rejoice! No longer shall sweet Spring breezes and the splendid Summer sun tempt thy shade-drawn domain! Shirk off thy cubicles, thy mouse and keyboard manacles! Too dramatic? Well, at any rate, this solar powered outdoor workspace by Mathias Schnyder offers an attractive office alternative for desk-bound drones seeking to brighten their work environment.

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MODERN SLANT Eco End Table from Todd Laby

MODERN SLANT Eco End Table from Todd Laby

Ever since we first laid eyes on Todd Laby’s stunning green furniture design back in 2005, we’ve been huge fans. Unlike so much of what passes for ’sustainable design’ these days, this thoughtful designer manages to make green design about more than simply using bamboo or eco-friendly adhesives in standard designs, but instead rethinks the very nature and construction of the objects we own, and does so in a way that is sleek, chic, and always provocative. In his ‘Modern Slant’ line of plyboo coffee tables, the bottoms and legs of the tables are positioned at acute angles in order to efficiently balance books and magazines, and keep them from falling over like in your typical flat shelf. Now Laby has a brand new end table that utilizes this same clever idea of angular legs to support all of your literature needs.

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Bathtub Couch by Max McMurdo of Reestore

Bathtub Couch by Max McMurdo of Reestore

Bathtubs are places for relaxation, and here’s a new interpretation- turn your tub into a sofa! This clever design by Max McMurdo breathes life into an antique fixture, and turns what was headed for landfill into a smart, provocative, and comfy conversation starter. Founded by UK product designer Max McMurdo, Reestore is a line of green products based on the recycling of old home products. Taking everyday waste objects and turning them into charming yet functional pieces of furniture and accessories, Reestore attempts to “avoid traditional eco materials in favor of contemporary finishes, fabrics, and, above all, style.”

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SUNDANCE CHANNEL’S “THE GREEN” INTERVIEWS SCRAPILE

SUNDANCE CHANNEL’S “THE GREEN” INTERVIEWS SCRAPILE

On Tuesday May 29th at 9 p.m. EST, be sure to catch the Sundance Channel’s “The Green” television programming as tomorrow’s “Big Ideas for a Small Planet” episode focuses on sustainable furniture. The episode, titled “Big Ideas for a Small Planet: Furnish” should be of particular interest to our design-minded crowd, including an appearance by Inhabitat-favorites Bart Bettencourt and Carlos Salgado of Scrapile, who recently participated in our Reclaiming Design panel and are the subjects of this exclusive clip. Read on for more info about the episode, the show, and “The Green.”

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MODGREENPOD Sustainable Fabrics & Upholstery

MODGREENPOD Sustainable Fabrics & Upholstery

One thing we are especially excited to check out at this weekend’s HauteGREEN show is the new range of fabrics and wallpaper by ModGreenPod. Sisters-in-law Nancy Mims and Lisa Mims design adorable poppy wallpapers and furniture upholsteries that are as eco-friendly as they are easy-on-the-eye. Coincidentally, ModGreenPod’s graphic textiles also grace the seats of the Hi-Five chairs, another HauteGREEN highlight. The fabrics are made from organic cotton and adorned with bright, graphic prints, proving that “eco fabric” does not have to mean “undyed hemp.”

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HAUTEGREEN SNEAK PEEK: Hi-Five’s Apt Chair

HAUTEGREEN SNEAK PEEK: Hi-Five’s Apt Chair

This past weekend at BKLYN Designs, we were excited to discover Kiel Mead and Michael Cummings of Hi-Five’s simple but stunning Apt chairs, and were pleased to find out they are made from Richlite, a resin-impregnated paper product that we’ve praised on several occasions before. The Apt Chairs also boast snazzy upholstery thanks to ModPod’s organic cotton fabric line.

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UHURU STOOLEN LITE Scrap Wood Table

UHURU STOOLEN LITE Scrap Wood Table

Uhuru’s scrap-wood creations caught our eye at BKLYN Designs last year, and at this year’s festivities, their Stoolen Lite low table was once again a crowd pleaser. The round coffee table, constructed of collected wood scraps from local workshops, is the second generation of the Stoolen Chair, which is smaller, and encompassed by a found bicycle rim. While we love the simplicity of the circular shape as it cleverly mimics the shape of a tree stump, custom shapes and sizes are also available. Uhuru will also be one of the design teams showing their work at the upcoming HauteGREEN show this coming weekend.

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BKLYN DESIGNS: UHURU CUTOFFS TABLE

BKLYN DESIGNS: UHURU CUTOFFS TABLE

As we’ve seen before with their Stoolen series, Uhuru is great at making scraps of leftover wood into clean-line, modern, and oh-so-green furniture. Their Cutoffs Table may look like your ordinary gorgeous coffee table, but is actually made from reclaimed yellow heart pine in its not second but THIRD lifecycle. The boards are salvaged from demolished buildings, used to make larger tables that Uhuru sells as part of their line, and the cutoffs from those tables make up this smaller table (and give it its appropriate moniker). Place it on a solid steel frame and you’ve got the perfect eco-friendly and ever-functional centerpiece for your tiny NYC apartment.

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FORM3 Sustainable Furniture Design

FORM3 Sustainable Furniture Design

Northern California-based form3 design is a great example of beautiful furniture that is enhanced, not hindered, by the use of sustainable materials. Their clean-lined and well-crafted pieces exhibit mid-century-inspired aesthetics, seamlessly integrated with eco-friendly and discarded waste materials. Their line of office furniture, like the chair and side table shown above, are one-of-a-kind pieces constructed with byproduct materials from local manufacturers.

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GROW YOUR OWN GRASS FURNITURE

GROW YOUR OWN GRASS FURNITURE

Here’s a great spring project to get you ready for those up-coming summer barbeques: grow your own lawn furniture with the Terra Grass Armchair kit. All you need to do is assemble a cardboard frame, fill it with soil, seed it with grass, then stand back and watch it bloom. In just a couple weeks, a green and grassy armchair will appear in your lawn!

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Eco-Friendly Bamboo Designs by Todd Laby

Eco-Friendly Bamboo Designs by Todd Laby

Last week I attended the opening of the Bay Area Furniture Art exhibit at the Blue Room Gallery. One of the designers that stood out to my green-hunting eye was Todd Laby, whose company, Rhubarb Decor, aims to improve the perception of green furniture through “aesthetics with ethics.”

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LOTS MORE GREAT GREEN DESIGN STORIES HERE... KEEP READING!