Green Day

I nearly forgot about St. Patty today!

It wasn’t until I walked down to the corner store an hour ago that I realized it… when I saw a troupe of jolly (Re:  tipsy) spring breakers all sporting kelly green T-shirts and various other green accessories.  SO… a little list of “green” green things in honor of the day.  : D

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images from Lonely Dinosaur website

 

Clever T-shirt from Lonely Dinosaur

“100% USA-grown Organic Cotton, and the shirts themselves are stitched, designed, and printed in the United States.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

image from West Elm website

I really love this 100% GOTS certified organic bedding from West Elm! Color shown is Cactus.  (230 thread count, oh heaven.)

 

 

image from Jam website

Ever since I discovered Jam Paper & Envelope in New York City a few years back, it has been my favourite source for gorgeous paper and envelopes.  Yes, I said gorgeous.  I like paper.  A lot.   And these Green Recycled Brite Hue Envelopes are no exception!

 

 

image from "aplacefortwiggs" shop on Etsy

I am a HUGE lover of Etsy, and I have written about the great online handmade/vintage goods store several times before on this blog.  This rather green fine art photograph struck me as both lovely and friendly (Beetles are such affable looking cars, aren’t they?)

(this piece, named “Mrs. Olive Green”, can be found in aplacefortwiggs shop on Etsy)

 

image from Neverland Jewelry's store on Etsy

 

What is St. Patrick’s Day without shamrocks?

Sweet handmade four leaf clover necklace from Neverland Jewelry’s store on Etsy.

Trash Talk

I’m on the downtown improvement board where I live and trying to encourage some sustainable decisions that will make living green just a little easier.  One pretty obvious idea: make recycling accessible to everyone!  It makes me cringe to see the large public cans overflowing with cardboard, paper, and water bottles.  So we just need to tell the city to grab some bins and leave them on the corners… Sounds easy enough, right?  Sure, if we wanted the bins to be rained on, get taken by the next morning and clutter the pedestrian corners.   I’m looking for a better solution.  A pretty and well designed solution.  I have found a few from landscapeforms (pictured), though I want to hear from you all on this one:

What creative ways has your city promoted sustainable recycling or trash managment?

Growing Holiday Cards

I love to get cards and letters… birthday, holidays, just-because.  There is nothing quite like getting a written note.  But what to do with cards when they’ve expired their display time?  It’s either sock them away in a box or drawer, or toss them in the garbage (which always makes me feel sad!).

Needless to say, I’m loving Green Field Paper Company‘s plantable “Grow-a-Note” holiday cards!  The paper is made of 100% post-consumer pulp and printed using soy inks, and is embedded with tiny wildflower seeds.  When the holidays are done, you simply put the card in a pot, add water, and voila!  Up sprout your wild-holiday-card-flowers!  So much better than just throwing them away.

Green Field makes all kinds of recycled and plantable paper goodies, from writing paper, to business cards, to journals and sketchbooks, made from hemp, recycled jeans, coffee bean scraps, and more.

Fun Can Change the World

My heart swells a little each time I watch the above videos from the Fun Theory.  Simple, yet well produced, each of the Fun Theory projects realizes great success.  Their theory has been proven: “that something as simple as fun is the easiest way to change people’s behavior for the better. Be it for yourself, for the environment, or for something entirely different, the only thing that matters is that it’s change for the better.”

Think you’ve got the next fun idea?  Now is your time to get paid for it.  The Fun Theory is hosting an open competition for the next installation.  The winner will be rewarded the hearty sum of €2,500 and get to have a little fun making the world a little better.  Deadline is December 15, so get to work! And be sure to also let us know what you come up with!

How Green is your Facebook?

It’s no surprise that we use up quite a bit of energy, both physically and electronically, on our social networking!  Good thing the helpful leaders at Facebook have taken a stance and are helping ease the carbon footprint of our addiction with their new offices!  Their new digs located in Palo Alto owe their innovative design to Studio O+A Architects.

 

d.j. booth and skate park to keep the energy flowing

 

 

When the 700+ employees of Facebook were each questioned what they would like to see in their new offices, they all showed an unwavering desire to create a green environment.  The renovated warehouse is the first commercial project to be completed under Palo Alto’s 2008 green ordinance.  Starting with the laboratory shell of high-tech manufacturer Agilent Technologies, the design takes care to salvage several of the architectural features such as millwork, exposed ductwork and structure.  The building also features high-recycled content carpet and energy efficient light to keep them running late nights.  When the company efficiently combined the 10+ locations into one, they wanted to merge the 700 unique employees while allowing the departments to remain distinct.

 

this whiteboard surrounded conference room begs for creativity!

 

 

‘Neighborhoods’ were created within the sunlit open floor plan through partitions and well placed color. The bright color makes certainly keeps the work environment fun; or is it the dj decks, basketball court and skate park that keep everyone smiling?  or round the clock food service?  Either way, I feel better than ever about updating my status and taking the time to look through everyone’s weekend photos!

 

the space features an abundance of inviting areas to interact and collaborate

 

 

(photos courtesy of concepTrends)

Wear My Umbrella

Italian lady Cecelia Felli sees more than just protection from the elements when she looks at an umbrella.

“Some time ago, around home I found this umbrella, very pretty, but broken.  So I saved both the handles and the fabric too, because I was sorry to throw them in the garbage.  Looking at the umbrella fabric and shape, I noticed that there was a similarity in shape with a skirt.  This is how I got the inspiration! Since I was young, in my family I’ve been used to reusing objects, not to trash them if it wasn’t necessary.”

Felli’s umbrella skirts are not only pretty and inventive, but they are entirely reclaimed from the fabric of old umbrellas.  They are also one-size-fits-many, with an adjustable piece of fabric at the waste, and their inherent design makes them perfectly suited for a feminine twirl.

“In design I like the use of natural elements in the everyday life’s objects…the transformable products, the artisan way to work and project. I like also the iconic, ironic, amusing design. I’m a very curious person, determinated, essential, coherent, respectful.”

Cecelia currently makes these skirts by hand, one by one, but hopes to produce them on a larger scale in the near future.  You can purchase one here!

Green Lab Design Studio

What sets Los Angeles-based Green Lab Design Studio apart from a multitude of other event agencies?  Is it:   A.  The utilization of organic chefs and healthy edibles for food service,  B.  Building an event space using energy efficient and recycled elements in construction, or  C.  Employing certified organic cleaning supplies in the cleanup of each event?

Okay, that was a trick questionaire, because the answer is D:  All of the above!

Green Lab, which offers services in decor, design, audio/visual elements, displays and rentals for major venues (restaurants, nightclubs) and exclusive locations, is out to redefine the event design industry by making such green elements the norm, while retaining and enhancing creativity and style.  Green Lab also works in catering, 3-D rendering and live performances, to round out every chic event imaginable.

It’s ever inspiring to see a company grounded by eco-consciousness become a success.

Absolut Mango room at Sundance, 2009

decor detail

setting for the Blackberry Bold US launch

Curtis Peoples performing at a Green Lab designed tradeshow booth

Shoes from the Tubes of London

Look out Chuck Taylor,  there’s a new sneaker on the block, and it believes in recycling… with style:  Above + Below London.

"Metropolitan Line"

These kicks are made from 100% reclaimed materials, primarily cut from the covers of old London Underground (aka, the Tube) and London Bus seats.  The leather trim is 100% recycled or repurposed leather and the rubber sole is from old tires!  What about production, you say?  Above + Below doesn’t believe in low wage labor and unfair trade, so their up-cycled trainers are made in Europe, sweatshop-free.

The project of reclaiming these seat covers started 10 years ago, lead by Robert Taylor, a Central Saint Martin’s grad, and film maker Caroline Read.  They saw the value of rescuing these iconic materials, dating from the 50’s to the 90’s, from a one way trip to the landfill, and created a new product with a lot of character (and quite a history!).

Bright, vibrant, well-made  shoes with an eco-concious design… Brilliant use of ingenuity!

Want a pair for yourself?  You can buy here

"British Rail"

Before they were shoes!

"District Line"

Recycling Energy

With every step we take, every opening of a door, pedal of a bike, we are using energy. According to good ole’ Newton and his law of motion each of these actions warrants an equal and opposite reaction.  When we push, objects push back and the energy is never really lost…. though usually I can’t really see where the energy goes!  What if we could harvest such ‘reactions’ into usuable opperations?  Several innovators have figured out ways of doing exactly this.  Below is a collection of my favorite recycled energy projects that could be adapted and used in a variety of locations:

 

1. THE REVOLVING DOOR- open a door, light up a cafe!  This built project at a Netherlands cafe takes what is already the most efficient door type (a revolving door lets the least amount of conditioned air out) and uses each patrons entry to help generate a little electricity. (via Inhabitat)

 

2. THE ENERGY GENERATING DANCE FLOOR – Dance all night long to keep those beats pumping.  Several of these have already been built and are traveling the US with green promotional events. (via Interactive Architecture)

 

3.THE RIVER GYM- What if your stationery bike actually got you to work on time?  With the River Gym, floating pods will be propelled along the hudson river by people going about their exercise routine inside.  In addition, the vessel would be equipped with purification devices to clean the river as it moves.  You’ve got to check this project by Mitchell Joachim out.

Recycle Your Gadgets!

My uncle Frank, a camera connoisseur, recently posed a thoughtful question here on Innovate: “What do people do with their old digital cameras?”

The query led me to find  Recycling for Charities.  This non-profit will take your used up cell phones, PDA’s, iPods, digital cameras and similar electronic gizmos, and sell them to a company who will recycle the items, avoiding another addition to a landfill.  The profits from their sales are then split (50% or more) with a charity of your choosing.  Recycling for Charities does all the work for you, all you have to do is pack up your item, print out a ready made shipping label from their website, and pick the charity you wish to benefit from your used item!

Want to get more people involved?  Host an electronic waste recycling collection at your business or school!  Find out how here.