eco-chic design

retro-chic wallpaper that supports sustainable forestry

To my own dismay I’ve been spending more time indoors lately to escape the ongoing heat wave in New York City. This got me thinking about the fun and nature-inspired wallpaper designs by London based MissPrint. They are a whimsical yet modern way to bring the outdoors in through their organic patterns originated from hand drawn illustrations. 

All MissPrint products are designed and hand-printed in London by mother and daughter team Yvonne and Rebecca Drury. Their eco-chic wallpapers are PEFC certified which ensures that the paper products promote sustainable forest management. They are dyed with organic pigment inks that are non-toxic and free of heavy metals. One of their latest additions is the "Dandelion Mobile" wallpaper inspired by wild-growing dandelions in two new color combinations: porcelain with powder blue and mist green with white. Both colorways make me feel cooler already. The stylized seed heads are a modern take on illustration styles from the fifties through their use of color and space. Other nature inspired wallpaper designs include the patterns “Leaves”, “Saplings”, or “Fleur”. Make sure to also check out the mid-century furniture collection upholstered with MissPrint’s hand-printed fabrics. The chairs or sofas are a cool way to recycle discarded furniture and make a great accent piece in any eco-modern home.

making the case for greener homes at the LOHAS Forum

Many speakers at the LOHAS Forum in Boulder last week stressed the relationship between health and sustainability that starts at home. One of the panelists about “Healthy Homes” mentioned that according to the EPA pollutant levels can be 2-5 times higher indoors than outdoors. That’s one scary fact and that’s why I like stores like Ellie’s that we visited during our LOHAS Insight Tour.

Ellie’s is a spacious eco-home store in Boulder that offers everything you can imagine to create a modern eco-friendly home. At the center of the store are all types of eco-friendly building materials ranging from natural cork flooring, bamboo plywoods to non-toxic paints and finishes. What I loved the most about the interior design of the store were the walls made out of the rapidly renewable resource Kirei and the refilling stations for non-toxic cleaners. I also like that Ellie’s teams up with local designers such as Bare Earth Design. The local family run business had one of their platform beds on display made of domestic walnut and Kirei using low VOC, non-toxic finishes. Another product that caught my eye was the natural soy crayons box by local company clementine art. The packaging looks beautiful and is made of 80% post consumer recycled and reusable materials. One common theme at the LOHAS Forum was that the future is now and you’re never too young or too old to start envisioning it. Maybe those colorful non-toxic crayons can help you with that.

modern abstract rug designs certified by GoodWeave

As a big advocate of great modern design combined with social responsibility I was thrilled to discover Amy Helfand’s rug designs at ICFF last month. Her Garland Rugs looked stunning with their dynamic patterns and are GoodWeave certified to ensure child-labor-free practices. Fluttering prayer flags of Nepal are the inspiration behind the Garland Rugs. The indigo looked gorgeous juxtaposed with cream and pops of saturated color. Her website illustrates how the Brooklyn based artist arrives at her abstract designs that go through several creative evolutions. In the case of the Garland Rugs you can see photographs of the actual prayer flags that are transformed into sculptures and then into abstract patterns for her rugs. I love how this process makes Eastern imagery accessible for modern home design. The Garland rugs are hand-knotted at 100 knots/inch in Nepal made of Chinese silk and Tibetan wool.

Amy Helfand is a member of the non-profit organization GoodWeave. It ensures that the rugs are produced in a child-labor-free environment. Through her contributions she also helps to fund rehabilitation and education for former child weavers. It’s a great example that designers can be agents of change and I can only hope that more artists will follow. Other companies that collaborate with GoodWeave include Angela Adams, IndiB and Judy Ross Textiles.

the perfect blend of sustainable cuisine with green decor

One of the advantages of spending summer weekends in the city is that hard-to-get reservations at restaurants are available. That’s how I got a table at ABC Kitchen without reservations. And not just any table but a table made from salvaged wood since ABC Kitchen is committed to sustainable décor as much as sustainable food. All food is prepared with organic and local ingredients whenever possible. None of their produce uses pesticides, synthetic fertilizers, insecticides or GMOs and most meat, fish and dairy is locally sourced. The same commitment to sustainable cuisine can be found in their selection of beverages such as tea, coffee or wine that are organic or fair trade. The restaurant’s location close to the farmers market at Union Square doesn’t hurt either. 

The restaurant was co-created between ABC Carpet & Home with chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten and Phil Suarez. It perfectly fuses a pre-dominantly white and sustainable décor with seasonal produce to create a pleasantly airy atmosphere. I’ve always loved the sustainable products at ABC Home & Planet and it’s great to see them utilized in a restaurant. The food is served on handmade porcelain dinnerware by local artisan Jan Burtz. Each piece is hand-built and hand glazed. The bread baskets are handcrafted by the indigenous mapuche people of Patagonia and are part of the ABC Goodwood Collection that also includes Jim Denney’s dining table made from salvaged wood. If you happen to be in town I can highly recommend the peekytoe crab toast appetizer.

acoustic wall panels made from eco-friendly felt at ICFF

As a long-standing fan of wool felt utilized in modern design I was excited to discover the stunning acoustic felt wall panels by Anne Kyyrö Quinn at ICFF. The installation unveiled her latest “Laine” and “Leaf” textile structures that are inspired by nature. Both create a sense of movement through their play of light and shadows. “Laine” is inspired by the reflections of ripples on water and “Leaf”, as the name suggests, by moving petals in a summer breeze. The structures of the acoustic felt walls were mesmerizing and felt like a breath of fresh air. I never imagined that acoustic wall panels could create movement and stillness at the same time. So how do they reduce noise levels? The main material felt absorbs sound through its tiny cavities of its intricate 3-D surface that wick sound waves into another layer of fabric underneath. It basically functions like an acoustic sponge. The result is beautiful and functional at the same time. This makes them perfect for eco-conscious home theaters, offices, lounges or restaurants. In addition the London-based designer Anne Kyyrö Quinn introduced her "Lola" low seating pieces and cushions. And here again, she puts a surprising twist on one of the oldest fabrics in the world by turning the organic designs into structural pieces of art.

organic baby bedding for sustainable baby showers

This weekend I’ll be at a baby shower and I was thrilled to see that the parents mostly picked eco-modern gifts for their registry. Since they are very popular parents most of the items were already taken. But I was able to secure some super-cute crib sheets made of 100% organic cotton by Q Collection Junior in Roxy. They combine my love for sustainability with great design through their contemporary elephant parade pattern. Q Collection Junior is the latest addition to the family tree of Q Collection and has the same sustainable values. As it so happens with younger members of the family they are simply much cuter. Q Collection Junior offers an entire line of eco-modern children's furniture and bedding that are safe for people and the planet. Each of their products is made from non-toxic materials and manufactured in a sustainable manner. Their children’s furniture uses only zero or low VOC, formaldehyde-free materials as well as water-based, non-toxic glues. The baby bedding is only made of organic cotton printed with low-impact, non-toxic fabric dyes. All this is especially important since babies spend most of their time close to ground surfaces. With this knowledge I hope that the soon-to-be parents will be able to get some sleep. Well, most likely that won’t happen with their new eco-chic baby.

urban-chic furniture made from recycled plastic

Within my certificate for sustainable design at MCAD I had to propose an office of the future with a minimal ecological footprint. That’s how I stumbled upon Rodrigo Alonso’s stools and recycling bins made from post-consumer recycled plastic. As mentioned before it’s difficult to find modern recycling bins that are actually recycled. I’m glad I discovered one as cool looking as this one. The Chilean designer Rodrigo Alonso created his 100% recycled furniture from plastic waste found in toys, drink trays, stadium seats or even electronic devices. These waste materials were then transformed through a rotomoulding technique into useful objects such as eco-modern stools or recycling bins. At the end of the product’s useful life it can be re-crushed and re-rotomoulded again. I love that part. Rodrigo Alonso’s 100% recycled plastic furniture was designed for the urban equipment company Fahneu in Santiago de Chile. But I can easily see his eco-modern furniture at outdoor areas of industrial or urban parks or at cool office spaces and atriums. They certainly make a bold sustainable statement with their irregular polyhedral shapes. I’m also very impressed by his latest fair-trade and social design project ARMO shoes but I’ll save this for a later post. Stay tuned.

green your home with eco-friendly felt

Felt is one of the oldest fabrics in the world and I mentioned its modern comeback in Undercollar’s pillows made from reclaimed felt or Megan Auman’s cozy/cuffs. This weekend I’ll make sure to check out the latest home accessories made of wool felt by Graf & Lantz at NYIGF. I love how the designers combine the sturdy and eco-friendly material with contemporary shapes. Graf & Lantz is a design studio based in LA that creates eco-modern designs such as bags, pillows, wallets or bowls made primarily from 100% merino wool felt imported from Germany. Wool felt is a sustainable and biodegradable material since it comes from sheep and is therefore completely natural. The beauty of the high density felt used by Graf & Lantz is that it’s not only stain- and water-resistant thanks to its natural oil content but it also gives their designs a sculptural quality. My favorite home accessories are the elegant felt bowls in heathered white, grey, pistachio and charcoal with a different colored center. They are fun to look at plus handmade in the USA. Most recently Graf & Lantz added a new line of Swiss wool felt that’s coarser and not dyed or bleached to their collections. It’s used in some of the ottoman designs and comes in the two colors white and brown. I’m curious to see what else the designers came up with.

eco-smart home and office design

What I’ve always loved about the EcoSmart Fireplaces from Australia is that they look as great at minimalistic eco-homes as well as office spaces. And then there are of course the environmental benefits that they are fueled by the renewable energy denatured Ethanol. As we all know Ethanol is produced through the fermentation of sugar from products such as sugarcane, potatoes or wheat. It needs to be de-natured with various substances since it can’t be sold in its purest form (100% alcohol) to avoid human consumption. The benefit of denatured Ethanol is that it’s completely composed of biological products making it greenhouse compliant. Its combustion results in a clean emission of heat, steam and carbon dioxide which means you’ll be able to breathe freely. The environmentally-friendly EcoSmart Fireplaces don’t require any installation or utility connection for fuel supply so that you can easily move them around. They come in a variety of stylish settings that range from modern to retro. My favorites are the Vision or Fusion that also work well as a visual separator for lofts. The Retro is a fun alternative for smaller studios or creative office spaces. Either one would definitely warm up any eco-modern space in a cool way.

office furniture for a sustainable future

Since we spend at least 8 hours a day and 5 days a week at our office desks they might as well give something back to us. The Kalidro desk designed by German designer Stefan Brodbeck for Steelcase might just do that since it’s designed with a sustainable future in mind. Steelcase has long been known for their cradle-to-cradle designs such as the Think chair or Leap chair. 

Stefan Brodbeck founded his design firm brodbeck design in 1994 in Munich to create stylish furniture based on the user and not the other way around. The height adjustable Kalidro desk is up to 99% recyclable, easy to disassemble plus its packaging materials are 100% recyclable as well. It’s made from 34% recycled materials with only sustainable wood sources being used. The designs include a wide range of colors and finishes but my personal favorite is the modern look of the desktop in pearl snow with an orange frame and the corners in polished aluminium. What I love the most is that Kalidro’s design has been created for a longer lifecycle and is upgradeable. Of course it would still be the most eco-friendly option to not replace your existing office furniture at all. But Steelcase even formed a partnership with Green-Works in the UK that redistributes office furniture to charities, schools, community groups, hospitals or start-up businesses and therefore keeps them out of landfills. This way you could actually feel good while working away at your new sustainable office desk.