Soap as a packaging material

Can you imagine how much plastics we can replace?  

"it is estimated that over a lifetime, a single person uses around 800 shampoo bottles, most of which are just thrown away and pollute the environment taking thousands of years to degrade. 
zhou’s soapack is a sustainable brand that proposes the use of soap as a material to package shampoo and other toiletry products. the packaging itself can be used as soap and completely disintegrates when used, leaving no plastic residue behind." designboom

mi zhou is a post-graduate student at central sant martins and developed this project for the material futures program. soapack was exhibited in the degree show during june 19-23, 2019.

 Another proof that design can save the world :)

What can be done with cork

Cork is one of my favorite materials, along with copper, glass and wood. I like its warm touch and flexibility. We have seen quite a lot of applications, but here below are a few more, presented at 

METAMORPHOSIS :

Cork shoes designed by Jasper Morrison for Camper 
source

Naoto Fukasawa - benches of different heights, which take advantage of the cool smoothness of cork in its contact with the human body. 
source 

Álvaro Siza - a nest of two cylindrical stools,
source

Portuguese architect Eduardo Souto de Moura's doorknobs
source 

More applications and design ideas with cork on my blog.

Another beautiful way to recycle

Another beautiful way to recycle - collecting glass bottles to be crushed on-site and then combined with a vegetable bio-resin binder. The result is strong and weatherproof products - bollards, street furniture, tiles and lights.

source

Diana Simpson Hernandez, a Mexican London based designer, is behind the idea of the first Waste lab initiative - the Glass lab.

Designer approach to recycling

Photo by Sean Fennessy.

As my regular readers already know, I am Fascinated with glass, its beauty and enormous range of colours, forms and applications, but what I even more like about it is the possibility to be recycled. And one great example of clever designer approach to recycling glass is what Melbourne based glass artist  Ruth Allen is doing and her  Sustainable Stubbies! Functional vessels created from repurposed bottles, beautiful lighting. Enjoy:

Look at her Champagne pendant from the new Sustainable Stubbies LIGHT range:
Aren't they beautiful?

Photo by Sean Fennessy

"The bottles are taken through a hot process that strengthens the product by nature of ‘annealing’, resulting in a vessel that can withstand hot liquid, a dishwasher and the test of time." source
I think that this is one of the best ways to  recycle glass and a great example of sustainability in action.

Clever Use of Materials - NEW PIECES FROM OFFCUTS

I expect this to become a trend in design - to create products and by-products that are made from the scraps. This is the main idea behind the creations of German designer Samuel Treindl. Have a look -

This is Brass Shelves and, as you can see from the picture, there several other products that wil be created from the offcuts like a clock and hangers, etc.

Out of object - lamp out of cabinet

Helsinki Design Week 2011

The To Declare exhibition is the highlight of the Helsinki Design Week program at the Old Customs House. And the job of making it an exhibition that people feel that they must come and see has been put on the shoulders of Kaj Kalin:

"Most of the gadgets and stuff around us are made to say, “Buy me!” Otherwise, if no one buys them, they have no other purpose for being. This is their only message. This exhibition is not just about showing design objects, but saying something with them.These will be items with a message.'

Onebarrel by Harry Thaler

Shower timer David Weatherhead

The World Design Capital title is awarded every other year to one city which is exceptionally
skilled in utilising design as a resource for social, economic and cultural development
- The designation is granted by the International Council of Societies of Industrial Design (Icsid).
Helsinki is the third city to receive the title, after Turin in Italy (2008) and Seoul in South Korea
(2010).
- World Design Capital Helsinki 2012 will launch teasers about its programme during the
Helsinki Design Week 2011.

Consume 40% less water with the new faucet Fiji

allowing a reduction of water flow from 8 to 10 liters per minute. It was presented at the last Idéo Bain - a  trade show staged every other year in Paris that draws together all those involved in bathrooms and well being. This reminiscent of a tree new faucet named Fiji is designed by Silvia Şuanda / Sezgin Aksu for www.dipra.fr and is available in chrome or colored version.











via: marieclairemaison.com

See your product here

Floor on the Walls - Elegant Re-use of Materials

Frame Magazine posted photos of the new French park-café in Zürich Z Am Park that features classic elements interpreted in a modern way. Well, that is not so new, but what is new here is the approach -

due to the very low budget of the ownersParts of the former flooring, an oak-herringbone-parquet, were used to form the Bar and Couches, all contrasted by the warm grey, monochromatic space. Materials were re-used where possible; old curtains were handpicked for the shifting upholstery, and a modular vintage lamp (by Trix and Robert Haussmann, 1965), was chosen to create a glowing lighting.

'We wanted the interior to keep evolving, so instead of just placing the classic Horgenglarus Bistro-chairs in the space, we asked various artists and designers to each re-work four of them in their own way', says Christian Kaegi Aekae (designer at Ae Kae). These can be seen and used in the café during three months, after which they can be bought at an auction evening. The profit fully goes to the designers.

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My Favourate Designs from Milan Design Week 2009 Previews

I have published already a lot of previews

of the much expected Milan Furniture Fair that will open next month. And many new are coming every day, especially on the site of designboom.

But my favoritepiece of furniture is the pure white cabinet designed for Bd Barcelona by the French graphic designers Antoine & Manuel. It tells stories through its carved doors and unusual legs. I expected it to be a great success. It was exhibited for the first time in Paris Maison et Objet this January, with a great success of attendance.




I also acclaim the "More" furniture system by Giorgio Caporaso idea for modular unit that can easily
be joined without the use of specific tools, to make a bookshelf, a table, a chair or a separating unit. It can be made of cardboard, too. It is an example of good Recession-Friendly Design. Which, to my regret, not always means high aesthetic value.






But Regenesi's mandate is to use only post-consumer materials treated with original processing techniques that allow for the same quality standards associated with virgin raw materials. With Regenesi's products are connected the names of designers such as Denis Santachiara, Matali Crasset, Setsu and Shinobu Ito, Giulio Iacchetti and Marco Ferreri, and products include this basket made from regenerated leather and the Fruit Bag by Setsu and Shinobu Ito. Regenesi will be exhibiting at FuoriSalone in Milan next month.

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Green Design

Design is getting greener and greener. And I like it - this is the better way to live healthy life. When we think green still in the design phase of each product then we shall need less investments to fight with trash or existing problems.
One way to live better is to introduce nature inside our homes. A great idea is this unique lamp designed by Laura Fiaschi and Gabriele Pardi (Gumdesign) for Tredicidesign. Lit with a Floraset bulb, produced by Osram and developed to stimulate the growth of house plants, the plants and flowers are in small Murano glass vases while the structure is in metal.

source DOMUS

But it appears that some simple steps can considerably improve the quality of our lives. For example an arrangement of three common houseplants, used in specific spots in a home or office building, can result in measurably cleaner indoor air.
More green design ideas and sources of information are available in my Design for Green Living & Wellness blog.

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home furnishings

Great design for the sustainability-minded

Aren't they elegant? These reclaimed-wood Iconic Panels are ideal for retail settings, hotel interiors, and temporary installations such as trade-show exhibitions, but also make a great accent wall for residential furnishing, too. They not only utilize lumber salvaged from olive-barrel staves, razed gym bleachers, and blighted buildings, but also their producers B+N use low-VOC varnishes and water-based glues that don’t contain formaldehyde. The panels can be sawn, nailed, glued, and outfitted with shelving hardware.


More details on Metropolis.

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