Cool Hunting
by Laura Neilson
This past weekend's Bklyn Designs show was host to an array of local designers and manufacturers, including EcoSystems brand bamboo furniture. The green-minded company utilizes a innovative tool-free assembly system that relies on interlocking aluminum pieces rather than nuts, bolts and screws, allowing for construction of the brand's modern-looking Bamba chair in a matter of minutes—a godsend for the Ikea-weary.
In addition to flat-pack shipping, the downtown Brooklyn-based company implements region-specific production on large orders to reduce fuel waste and excessive shipping costs. EcoSystems' sustainable materials include bamboo plywood (not only a rapidly-renewable resource but also an incredibly durable one), as well as biodegradable fabrics and foam, easily-recycled aluminum hardware and plant-based clear wood finishes.
Other than their spare collection of well-conceived chairs, benches and side-tables, EcoSystems also fabricates made-to-order custom pieces, including the interior furnishings and curvaceous recycled plywood chairs (pictured above) for Soho's Ion Hair Salon, dubbed as New York's first "eco-salon."
|
previous entry Modern Living Supplies |
next entry Cap-sac Fannypack Hats |
by Laura Neilson The design competition at this year's Greener Gadgets Conference showcased ten innovative finalists, each utilizing technology to facilitate greener lifestyles. By and large, the majority of the conceptual gadgets functioned on energy "metering" ideas, including the winning design, The Tweet-a-Watt (pictured above right), a power meter that automatically publishes your power usage wirelessly via Twitter for friends and followers to see. The...
Using hoods from vintage American cars, Joel Hester handcrafts coffee tables in his Dallas, TX studio. Taking advantage of the bright colors of yesteryear and the patterns created by oxidization, the one-of-a-kind steel pieces add industrial chic to living rooms. Tables start at $850 and Hester also makes bed frames, desks and other furniture to suit all your yearnings for metal.via Bem Legaus...
For a chair prototype called the Conolounge, Chilean designers Onceneto tapped La Tercera newspaper for leftover paper printer rolls. A steel support provides structure and adds a fetching bright green accent. It's a clever example of creative reuse that reminds us of a less conceptual and more practical version of Julian Lwin's Biotube Bench. via Treehugger...
A Pratt graduate who cut his teeth in the Brooklyn design scene, jewelry and furniture maker Kiel Mead represents the next generation of New York designers. Taking inspiration from such disparate sources as everyday objects (car keys, chewing gum, retainers) and Catholic iconography (Saint Sebastian, crucifixes), his work mixes irreverence with first-rate craftsmanship. In this video, we visit his Brooklyn studio where he shows...
For the forthcoming ICFF in New York, Brooklynite Bradley Price was one of eight designers selected by Bernhardt Design to be featured in the ICFF Studio, a new platform for showcasing prototypes during the furniture fair. Bradley's design, "Angle Parking," is a clever take on the ubiquitous—and often boring—bookcase. By skewing the angle of the bookends to 45°, the shelving can accommodate 12½" deep...
by Laurice ParkinAfter several visits by our small army of NY-based contributors, today we bring you a few of the best we found at the new Sunday morning ritual of Brooklyn, the Brooklyn Flea. Be sure to check back throughout the day to see more of what the new church has to offer. Bowling Alleys, icons of both Americana and funny shoes, have not...
