Biodegradable – Fabulously Green

Tag archives: Biodegradable

FASHION | Form & Fauna's Racy Shoes

27Feb08

For three years, I’ve patiently hunted for a pair of sexy, sustainable knee-high boots and it’s worth the wait. Form & Fauna’s sporty, sexy look speaks to my inner-tomboy. Sleek racing stripes are a signature in this freshman collection of flats, boots and pumps. Even though they hail from the Fall 2007 collection — they are perfectly wearable for spring. Skinny Bitches and compassionate fashionistas take note: Form & Fauna just may become the “It” label to wear.

Fabulousness Kicked Up a Notch

Inside and out they’re made sans leather, opting instead for high quality Italian-made synthetics. Heels are crafted from bamboo or renewable plywood, while the insoles and cushions are crafted from recycled yoga mats (can you say Ohm?).

Bay Bertea, the designer behind the Form & Fauna label, found the inspiration for her collection from her days as a yoga instructor. Imagine how comfy it must feel to step out (and onto) a yoga mat every day.

Form & Fauna shoes are good for your health. Fume-free with the help of biodegradable materials, and non-toxic, water-based glues and dyes. They’re made in the good, old, USA (how many things can you say that about these days).

Good karma and style? A great way to kick your fabulousness up a notch.

Check out the Form & Fauna website for stockists and stay tuned to Fabulously Green for sneak peeks into the Spring ‘08 Collection.

Filed under Eco Glam, Fashion - Women, Indie, Refashion+Refurb, Shoes, Urban Style, Vintage| Tagged Biodegradable, cruelty-free shoes, Eco-friendly, Form & Fauna, Indie, Non-toxic, Skinny Bitch, Sweatshop-free, Vegan, vegan fashion | No Comments

Felt Furnishings from Illu Stration

10Nov07

It’s always exciting to see what’s new at Illu Stration, Mary Ann Williams’ German-based design studio known for innovating exquisitely tactile felt furnishings and accessories.

Mary Ann sent me these photos earlier in the summer (oops) but aren’t they perfect for late fall? Oak Leaves is a modular system which are either available assembled or as a do-it-yourself kit in a box for your own inspired creations.

Oak Leaves interlock into virtually any size or shape. Some suggestions from Mary Ann include shaping them into pendants (like the hot scarlet number shown above), rugs, wall panels, cushions, lampshades.

Softer and more enduring than a crunchy pile of freshly raked leaves…perfect for jumping on and rolling around in.

A snow white cushion, adds form, function and fun to any living space.

Like the pieces we’ve showcased before, these felt-Flokatis are made from renewable, biodegradable wool. Their interlocking nature means you can create and recreate to your heart’s content. For more information, visit the Illu Stration website.

Filed under Furnishings, Handmade, Interior Design, Lighting, Rugs+Carpet, Small Space Style, Wallcoverings| Tagged Biodegradable, Changeable Style, cushions, design, DIY Style, Eco-friendly, Furnishings, Handmade, home, Illu Stration, interiors, Mary Ann Williams, modern decor, Reusable, style | No Comments

Holiday Style File | Modern Green Christmas p.1

09Nov07

My family is coming out to me this Christmas so I’ve started thinking about how to deck out the apartment – in a fabulously green way of course! So I’ve been on the hunt for decorations that serve double duty for the festive season and beyond (restyle is the Fab Green motto). Will post them as we find them — if you’ve got a few fab green ideas to share, bring them on!

PRETTY AS A PARTRIDGE

These ornaments are perfect for the winter holidays or year round, depending on how you play with them. You can hang them on your tree, over a doorway or mantle for a modern, Christmasy effect. In the new year why not let these flocks take flight as a focal point in a room? Suspend them like a chandelier or an art installation. These are made in Germany from certified eco-friendly and biodegrable wool. Spotted at Branch Home, $18/pair in red and white, or light and dark green.

HEY BABY, LET’S CUT THE RUG

Felted rugs have been the rage all year, and Interface FLOR, one of our favored sustainable carpet companies, offers its own version for the holidays. Party Dress is a fancy cut rug made from the popular Fedora line of tiles. Or for the design-minded who are handy with a carpet knife, you could customize your own border. This modular, cuttable beauties boast eight contemporary colorways and are made from 80% post-consumer fibers. Oh the possibilities!

Filed under Multifunctional Design, Rugs+Carpet, Small Space Style| Tagged Biodegradable, Christmas, Decorations, Eco-friendly, Holiday Style, Interface FLOR, Ornaments, Reusable | 1 Comment

Newbies from Illu-Stration

03Apr07

Mary-Ann Williams of Illu Stration just sent over some pictures of beautiful light furnishings for spring. Amazing. Her felted rugs blew me away last year, and she continues to push her felting methods to new heights. Thanks Mary-Ann!

01 ORIGAMI
Pendant lamp, floor lamp, lampshade: felt 100% pure new wool

02-03 PLISSEE un-dyed felt
Pendant lamp; lampshade: felt 100% pure new wool

04-05 CAPPELLETTI
Lightchain, 3 m, available with US plug; felt 100% pure new wool.

These pieces are available in multiple colors. Handcrafted in Germany, these wool felt furnishings are biodegradable, naturally fire-resistant and recyclable. The felt is Wool Mark labeled, and dyes are chemical-free.

View the whole collection here. In Europe you can buy directly through Mary-Ann. Some of her pieces are also available through Branch Home.

Filed under Handmade, Indie, Interior Design, Lighting| Tagged Biodegradable, Eco-friendly, Handmade, Indie | No Comments

DIY Style: Sliding Felt Doors

04Mar07

Here’s a great weekend DIY project for modern felt doors I found at Apartment Therapy. Designing with wool felt for fashion or home brings lots of advantages: it’s a renewable material, biodegradable and naturally flame retardant.

The Materials:
• 1/2 inch white wool felt from Sutherland Felt Company @ $75 a yard
• Hospital track, endcaps and rolling hooks from Medical Products Direct
• Thick brown leather
• White spray paint
• Silicone spray

Other Felt Suppliers:
• Central Shippee
• Southeastern Felt
• Aetna Felt

The Tools:
• Exacto style knife
• Drill with 1/4 drill bit

Designer’s Note: The toughest part was finding the right felt. It turns out that to get good felt you have to go to industrial suppliers who sell this stuff for aircraft engine mounts and other heavy vibration situations. Some offer felt made from recycled content. Here’s what we ended up with.

The Instructions:
1. Measure your doorway and order your felt large enough for both panels to more than cover the opening both side to side and up and down. It comes 72″ wide so you are in the best shape if you only have to buy one length and have them cut it down the middle for two 3′ wide pieces.

2. Order your hospital track to all felt door to slide out to the side in both directions. It only comes in silver, but don’t worry, you can paint it.

3. Mount your track on the ceiling and as tight to the door as possible so that the felt will hug the opening.

4. Insert end caps and rolling hooks. Spray with silicone to ease movement.

5. Masking off area around track, spray with white paint to blend in with ceiling.

6. Hold up felt and measure to fit.

7. Trim felt down with eXacto knife.

8. Using 1/4″ drill bit, drill holes in top of felt about 1″ down and 3″ apart. Also drill holes for leather handles as well.

9. Stitch leather handle on with leather thong.

10. Hang felt from hooks.

Fab Green Recommendations
1. Source wool felt or ask vendors if they have felt made with recycled content.
2. Use recycled leather for your handles found on your next trip to your favorite thrift or vintage shop. Or try another rescued, gorgeous material that inspires you!
3. A lightweight slider track from IKEA is a good alternative to a hospital track. If you like the look it will save you the painting step.
4. Design your own pattern! For inspiration, check out the amazing felt creations of Anne Kyrro Quinn.

Thanks Maxwell!

Filed under Interior Design, Small Space Style, Textiles+Fabrics| Tagged Biodegradable | No Comments

Fab Friday | Interior Finds

16Feb07

Hot green finds around the web:

PEEK-A-BOO

Memento Rug by Norwegian company 2Form
100% wool felt, made sans child-labor, biodegradable
Spotted at Design Milk

SIDEBOARD STYLE

A gorgeous vintage modern collectible sideboard/credenza is up for sale at Brooklyn’s primo vintage furniture boutique Baxter & Liebchen.

Spotted at Design*Sponge

MODERN PLUSH

Esther Diamond Collection of throw pillows take their style inspiration from vintage modern fabrics.

Spotted at Hannah Pittman’s Style Hive

WINED AND DINED

Resourceful Canadian company Yellowknife Glass Recycler’s Coop brings second life to empty wine bottles. Voila–whimsical drinking glasses for your next foray into the bubbly!

Spotted at Great Green Goods

STYLE FROM THE STORM

Apparently it gets rather stormy in parts of Canada. Case in point: downed trees make up the main raw material for SMC Furnishings, a company that creates beautiful pieces like this headboard from reclaimed wood.

Spotted at Trendir

Filed under Furnishings, Furniture, Handmade, Indie, Interior Design, Refashion+Refurb, Rugs+Carpet, Vintage| Tagged Biodegradable, Eco-friendly, Handmade, Indie, Tabletop | No Comments

Fab Friday | Fashion Finds

26Jan07

Some fabulous links to eco-chic fashion spotted around the web this week:
Emerging Parisian design label SANS debuts a simple yet sensual line of womenswear this season that features fresh and flattering silhouettes and sustainable fabrics made from bamboo, soy, tussah silk and organic cotton. SANS is a collaboration between designer Lika Volkova and sustainable production veteran Alessandro De Vito.

Via Jill Danyelle of fiftyRx3 for Inhabitat

Sk8bags and accessories by beck(y). Designed by Becky Hickey, the collection featured handcrafted, one-of-a-kind bags, iPod cases, wallets, totes and belts constructed from recycled skateboards and plush fabrics.

Via haute*nature

Accessories by San Francisco designer Liz Saintsing for vintage UNTAMED. Unique bags and belts inspired from refashioned flea-market finds and graphics printed by Liz herself.

Via Miss Malaprop at Stylehive

Kimono Rings by Carrotbox $16 and up. Made using recycled vintage Japanese kimonos and acrylic.

Via haute*nature

Filed under Bags, Budget Fashion, Eco Glam, Fashion - Women, Handmade, Indie, Jewelry, Refashion+Refurb, Sales+Shopping, Unique, Vintage| Tagged Biodegradable, Eco-friendly, Handmade, Indie, Organic | No Comments

Charlotte Lancelot's Fab Felt Floor Tiles

20Jan07

Interpretations of the houndstooth for floors began with cool cork tiles by . But if you’re more the warm and fuzzy type, you may opt instead for these modular felt floor tiles designed by Charlotte Lancelot:

http://www.charlottelancelot.com/pages-produits/feltfloor.html

Felt Floor, Felt lighting, orchid hooks. Interview!

Filed under Indie, Interior Design, Materials+Finishes| Tagged Biodegradable, Indie | No Comments

Sneak Peak: e bella's newest rug

17Jan07

Annie at e bella sent over some pictures from their newest product line and I fell hard for the new Rio Oro Rug featured above (the landscape ain’t too shabby either). What was the inspiration, I asked her. Apparently Nicole Linton (the founder-designer behind e bella) had found artistic inspiration in a river bed last summer and had sat down to paint. Several months later, her watercolor abstract found new life in this beautifully woven Rio Oro which means “river and rock” in Portuguese.

Only one has been made so it’s an exclusive piece, but custom orders can be taken. For more information, visit e bella designs.

Committed to creating “art without borders” e bella has worked with Peruvian artists since 1992 to design contemporary pieces using traditional techniques. Their mission has contributed to raising the standard of living for many weavers and their families.

Thanks Annie for the sneak peek as always!

Filed under Handmade, Interior Design, Rugs+Carpet| Tagged Biodegradable, Eco-friendly, Handmade | No Comments

Walls and Wares to Die For: Lily Yung

11Jan07

My fetish for felt furnishings continues with a look at the sinewy, die cut furnishings and jewelry designed by Toronto-based mixed media artist Lily Yung. Made from industrial wool felt, the pieces are dyed and hand assembled by Lily into gorgeous webs for wall panels, pillows, rugs and runners.

Not one to waste good material, Lily takes the remaining die cuts (the cut outs) and uses textile techniques to create masterful pieces of jewelry:

Lily’s personal favorite? The blue Boa FB1:

“I think the blue boa is very successful. It is simple but dramatic on
the body and fulfills my goal to incorporate the closure mechanism in
the piece and it is also adjustable to fit different neck sized and
can be easily reconfigured to be a collar or a bracelet.”

The Fab Factor: Lily’s pieces are simply stunning and beautifully crafted. Wool felt as a material that is landfill-friendly and naturally fire-retardant (goodbye to chemically-based fire-proof treatments). We love that Lily sources her wool and cutting services locally (conserves fuel/transportation), and transforms otherwise wasteful leftovers into beautiful pieces.

You can meet Lily and see her work in person at:

Virtual/Tangible v2.0 Show
@ Velvet da Vinci, San Francisco
January 24, 2007

Interior Design Show 2007
@ Direct Energy Centre, Toronto
February 22-25.

If you’re planning on attending either event, we’d love to have you share your field report with Fab Green readers!

You can see more of Lily’s work here. If you’re interested in buying or sourcing her pieces feel free to contact Lily directly.

Another entry on Lily’s beautiful wire jewelry to come later this week. Special thanks to Lily Yung for answering our many questions and sharing your work with Fab Green!

Filed under Art+Graphics, Handmade, Indie, Interior Design, Jewelry, Materials+Finishes, Multifunctional Design| Tagged Biodegradable, Changeable Style, eco-chic, Eco-friendly, felt, Furnishings, Handmade, Indie, indie fashion, Jewelry, Lily Yung, modern style, Non-toxic, Recyclable | No Comments

Fabulously Green