06Sep09
I never was a fan of garbage bag couture but these I love. Conceived by fashion designer and creative director Gary Harvey, this collection set out to prove that recycled clothing can be beautiful, innovative, and enchanting. The couture-inspired collection, which was shown at London Fashion Week back in 2007, features gowns made entirely from recycled materials: 42 pairs of Levi’s 501s, 37 black tees, 30 copies of the Financial Times, 28 camouflage army jackets, 26 nylon baseball jackets, 21 laundry bags, 18 trench coats, ten pre-owned wedding dresses, and seven Hawaiian shirts — to be exact. It seems that the original colors, textures and shapes of the reclaimed materials did much to inspire the silhouette of the final pieces themselves.
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06Aug09
It’s been awhile since I’ve gone trolling for treasures so in the interest of fun (read: mid-morning diversion) I checked out what new arrivals there were at two of my favorite online sources for vintage modern furniture and accessories (ThisisnotIkea and Lushpad). Tons out there but here is a little roundup of preloved pieces that are both modern and affordable:
YELLOW VINYL RETRO SOFA, $795
This clean-lined three-seater sofa seems to “float” off its legs. A handsome piece that costs less than a new sofa at Crate&Barrell or the Sofa Company. It’s vinyl, which I would normally shun if it were a new, but since it’s vintage, it deserves a nod. Check out the listing at ThisIsNotIkea.com.
RETRO MODERN THROW PILLOW, $35
A great fun print (love the pink, chocolate, olive color scheme). Then I noticed it’s actually made with sequins. Groovy! Only one available. Found for sale at ThisIsNotIkea.
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03Oct08
Some of the best high style, low budget decorating ideas come from design students whose apartments serve as blank canvasses for expressing their creative ideas. The New York Times Home & Garden editors recently visited the interior worlds of several future design stars and uncovered 19 ideas worth a steal. Many projects feature quickfire re-design ideas that will inspire your inner weekend warrior.
ODE TO FOAM
A constellation of styrofoam veggie trays make a personal, modernist statement. Mounted with push pins, you can create your own art in minutes. Read the New York Times article on the design by Pratt Institute student-design Michelle Nicholls
ANIME BOOKSHELF
An Ikea hack by illustration student Young Nam Heller reminds us of the newspaper wallpaper idea we shared a few months back. Here Ikea Lack shelves are covered with used Japanese comics and lacquered with Minwax (we recommend using a non-toxic, greener alternative offered by OSMO or AFM Safecoat). Or forego the lacquer altogether.
DRESSED TO THRILL
Idea No. 11 | Castoff dresser drawers (found lying on an obliging Manhattan sidewalk) are primed, painted and transformed into wall-mounted, floating shelves and planter. Clever design by Cooper Union architecture student Kayt Brumder.
For more chic-n-cheap makeover ideas see the complete New York Times slideshow.
Photos by Phil Mansfield, New York Times
01Oct08
In America, we turn trash into treasure. In Japan, they recycle by design. Case in point: Doug Aamoth’s post about this dining table made from a washing machine drum. He stumbled upon it and the coordinating chairs during a tour oversees at a Japanese recycling plant devoted to handling home appliances like refrigerators, washers, dryers, and TVs. The plant not only recycles, it apparently likes to design too.
The chairs are made of a really, really dense plastic derived from some of the bits of scrap from the various machines. It looks and feels like wood, though, and apparently there are picnic tables, chairs, and benches in nearby parks that Panasonic has supplied with this type of furniture.
Mythbuster fans will probably get a kick out of Doug’s video tour of the Panasonic recycling plant where you get to watch things get crushed, pulverized and blown up — all in a fabulously green day’s work.
Spotted at Curbly
29Sep08
Booklovers now have their own house of worship: the Selexyz Bookstore. Designed by Dutch firm Merkx + Girod, the Selexyz in Maastrict takes its Gothic aspirational feel from the medieval Dominican church that contains it.
The conversion of the church into a retail store centered around a simple, elegant idea: create a freestanding three-story bookshelf within the church so that architectural elements could be in view and preserved intact. The perforated steel contrasts the stone carved quatrefoils, arches and stained glass. On the ground tables, seating and display cases complete the look without major renovation required. Quite genius.
Choosing a church as a space almost begs you to design high, providing shoppers a unique, visceral experience of reaching loftier heights, the way a good book often does. Walk up the stairs and you get a rare glimse of the world from the top of a church looking down. Look above and you are almost arm’s length away from frescoes painted hundreds of years ago.
I can’t help but giggle at the irony of all this secular conversion. Metropolis Magazine goes as far to call these church conversions a trend for the Dutch city. Friars’ homes turned into capitalist “dens of commerce.” Oxymoronic though it is, the space really works. The inspirational and aspirational mood of church architecture with a space for reading and books? Maybe not so far fetched.
Photos courtesy of Metropolis Magazine
Filed under Architecture, Interior Design, News+Features, Refashion+Refurb|
Tagged Architectural conversions, Bookstore design, Dutch architecture, Linkedin, Maastrict, Meryx Gilrod, Metropolis Magazine, Selexyz Bookstore |
12Sep08
Some things are better the second time around. Case in point: Ecoist’s collection of fashion accessories designed and made entirely from repurposed Coke Cola labels. Ecoist sources its raw materials from Coke manufacturers in Peru (rescuing the misprinted or discontinued), and local artisans weave labels into a variety of bags and clutches. Check out the process here.
According to Ecoist, the collection is certified fair trade, and they plant a tree with each purchase. It’s partnership with soft drink juggernaut like Coke may not be able to help rescue the millions of bottles consumed and cast off in other parts of the world, but keeping the manufacture of their styling accessories local keeps the footprint small.
Baguette Clutch, $48 at Ecoist or check out the entire Coke collection.
04Sep08
When faced with constraints, a designer sometimes becomes more creative. This is definitely true for me, and I suspect true for a few of the Season Five designers on Project Runway. In last week’s episode Fashion that Drives You, designers were challenged to fashion an outfit from car parts — a Saturn VUE Hybrid to be exact. Maybe too many designers reached straight for the seatbelts, but some really took fashion from driveable to wearable. Check it out…
Korto wowed the likes of Michael Kors, Heidi Klum, and guest judge Rachel Zoe with her woven coat-dress made from recycled glimmery seatbelts. Rachel Zoe was jonesing to take it out for a personal test drive.
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28Mar08
Shabby chic less the shabby. This weekend project works great on cast-off dressers, sideboards, desks, and tabletops. If you don’t already have a piece in your own pad to experiment with, try hunting down a gem on Craigslist, a local flea market, Goodwill or garage sale.
A Green Twist
Finish it off with a hip, healthier paint option like Yolo’s Sprout Collection (for modern, spring-inspired colors), Benjamin Moore’s Aura, or Fine Paints of Europe (for rich, historically-derived colors). Other companies like Pantone have started offering non-VOC or low-VOC paints and primers as well so it’s much easier to go high style and fume free. The few extra dollars per gallon is worth it for the health and environmental benefits.
Video Podcast Instructions
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIJ-DDOtH6k&hl=en]
Prefer written instructions? Check out the complete post by Chris Gardner on Curbly.
Check out our full list of DIY Design ideas here.
Filed under Budget Decor, Furniture, Materials+Finishes, Paints+Techniques, Refashion+Refurb, Videos|
Tagged DIY furniture, eco friendly paint, Eco-friendly, how to refurbish furniture, modern DIY, Non-toxic, podcast |
09Mar08
These jackets by Canadian designer preloved are ideal for guys who like kickin’ it old skool. The line of urban style outerwear gets its edge from salvaged sweaters and crafted into one-of-a-kind pieces (you can actually see the process unfold on video from the homepage). Who knew that dumpster diving would look so totally righteous?
Most of preloved’s offerings are available in their on-the-ground stores in Canada, but I did happen to spot these coats online at Olio United. A few are currently on sale and perfect for spring.
For more on preloved’s womenswear, check out our previous post.
06Mar08
Here’s a fabulous idea to celebrate the coming of spring: a constellation of petite vases courtesy of your favorite tea tin.
FABULOUS VARIATIONS:
Tea not your thing? There are probably other containers and bottles around your pad begging for rescue: that sexy, skinny bottle of olive oil you just finished up. Wine bottles with graphic labels, those vibrant cans of imported tomato sauce.
Via Domino Magazine
