Pourover style coffee, the kind you make using a Chemex, is getting more and more love from aficionados of the dark stuff. The problem is the paper filters that get tossed after each use. Coava, a two-man roastery in Portland, Oregon, heeds the call with the Kone, a photochemically-etched steel filter that eliminates paper waste from the equation. A beautiful object in its own right, the......read more
London's Eco Age is a store, showroom and consultancy that acts as a hub for all things green. Founder Nicola Giuggioli doesn't think "sustainable design" should infer any particular aesthetic. Neither do we. Here, Giuggioli discusses the concept....read more
We could get used to working here. Designed by FLOAT architecture, 'Watershed' is a 100 square foot writer's studio that reveals the complex ecology around it. Little tunnels under the structure bring reptiles and amphibians into view through the floor-level window. A water collection basin, doubling as the front step, attracts birds and deer. All of the structure's parts are......read more
As part of its footprint reduction project, Puma commissioned Yves Behar of fuseproject to create a new packaging system for Puma shoes. The result is a revolution in showbox design. Using 65% less paper than a traditional shoebox, the "Clever Little Bag" is a cardboard stock frame wrapped in reusable shoe bag. The packaging has no laminated printing, no tissue paper, requies less space......read more
Ocean Green is a small Britsh surfboard company with a staunch focus on sustainability. Avoiding the negative ecological impacts of conventional board shaping, the shapers use hollow balsa cores (sourced from sustainably managed forests) instead of non-biodegradable polyurethane or polystyrene, and organic hemp or cotton cloth instead of fiberglass. At 6'4", the Golondrina is Ocean......read more
Top notch architecture site BLDGBLOG points us to this inspired bit of material reuse from German architect Matthias Loebermann. The Palettenpavillon is made entirely from shipping pallets, ground anchors, and tie rods. Intended as a temporary meeting space, the structure is designed for simple dismantling and reassembly, and can be recycled in entirety. With dramatic textures and a curvilinear......read more
There have been plenty of attempts to build with recycled wooden pallets, but none have quite pulled it off like the Pallet Project at the offices of Brandbase in Amsterdam. When the creative agency approached MOST Architecture to design the temporary space for their new studio, their only requirement was that it had to be furnished by recycled materials. The Dutch firm went all out with the......read more
When esteemed architecture firm Foster + Partners first unveiled its plans for Masdar, “the world’s first zero-carbon city†on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi, it was dismissed by many as gimmicky, a Disneyland-ish attempt at sustainable planning. Well, the first phase of the Masdar development is complete, and the design's technical brilliance is dispelling those early......read more
Indonesian furniture designer Abie Abdillah has a thing for rattan, the super abundant, highly renewable palm found in tropical climates around the world. Which is cool because so do we. Like bamboo, rattan is a fast-growing plant that's great for sustainable design. What makes it extra special is its strength and bendability. Designboom shared some pics of Abdillah's latest rattan......read more
Kwangho Lee's "Lifelike Design" exhibit at Design September in Brussels, which we discussed here, is up now at Hunting and Collecting. Check SlamXHype for story and pics. Nissan's ludicrous ad spot for the all-electric Leaf sedan is catching flak in the blogosphere. Advertising blog Copyranter calls it an "absolutely outrageously manipulative insensitive hubristic piece......read more