Houses don't get much greener than this: a former sheep shed, Black Sheep House on the Isle of Harris was renovated to its current glory by Christine and Pete Hope, who have turned it into the ultimate getaway.
With a 'living' roof, the house blends so perfectly into the scenery that it cannot be seen in aerial photographs. And the good news is, you can visit it as part of your eco friendly holiday in the UK if you've got between £700 and £1,100 a week to spare. With its truly breathtaking views and a Japanese soak tub I can't imagine anywhere better to escape the city [Via Kits and Mortar]
Ever been so hungry you wanted to wolf down the bowl and cutlery along with a delicious meal? Well, now you can because as Japanese inventor has come up with a set of edible crockery with matching chopsticks.
The edible tablewear by Rice Design, which is surely the greenst form of 'disposable' crockery out there, is baked from traditional sailor's hardtack--a simple dough of flour, water, and salt. The bowls and chopsticks are shelf-stable for several months as long as they are kept dry. Just make sure you don't nibble on the chopsticks too much during your meal!
I've heard CFL bulbs described as looking 'a bit like ice creams' before, so being a big kid, I was delighted to see that a designer has taken this analogy a step further to make these mouth-wateringly cute ice cream cone lamp fittings -- specially for use with the eco-friendly bulbs!
Available in white or realistic honeycomb beige, the 'whippy' lampholders are just gorgeous, and would add a fun and surreal twist to any room. They come complete with cable and UK electrical fittings, and are available to order online. £35 at Mixco Boutique.
[Via Haute*Nature]
Last week, we featured a wonderfully extra-terristrial looking ottoman made from hundreds of surplas flip-flops. Quite a feat of engineering I thought, but it turns out it's far from being a one-off.
UniquEco is a company that does nothing but make stuff out of old beach shoes -- and it turns out you can put them to a surprising number of uses: from jewellery to toys, sculptures and household accessories, they've found some really great ways to re-use the colourful plastic that would otherwise be discarded to damage land and sea.
It's a whopping £349, but isn't it beautiful? Best of all, for this award-winning lamp, which features in London's Design Museum and New York's MOMA collection, Herman Miller insisted on sticking to basic eco-conscious priniciples such as using energy-saving LEDs. The final product is also 95% recyclable and made of 24% post-consumer plus 13% pre-consumer recycled materials.
A proprietary heat distribution system means that the Leaf light is always cool to the touch, and it swivels up to 180 degrees so that it can be used as a soft ambient glow or focussed spotlight. Touch controls are mounted at the base and the intensity of the colour can be adjusted from a cool wash to a warm glow; it'll remember the last setting you used when you turn it off, too. There are five colours available: black, white, red, nickel and polished aluminium.
[via Shiny Shiny]
There are so many awesome recycled decoration ideas coming to life in the run-up to Christmas it's hard to know which to choose, but when I saw this recycled wreath from Biome Lifestyle, I just had to share the cheer...
Look closely, and you'll see that it's made from recycled materials, including waste tin that has been carefully blunted, painted and crafted into leaves and other shapes. All the work was done
by a small co-operative in Africa. The cost of the wreath goes directly to the co-operative which helps local families and artisans. Why not put one on your door this Christmas? It's bound to get comments, giving you a cue to spread the word on this very worthwhile project. £25 from Biome Lifestyle.
All cool visions for the future come out of Japan (self-heating bra anyone?) and it's good to see eco-friendly living is occupying the mind's of some of the country's hottest designers. Treasured Trash is a creative team that makes truly delicious-looking objects of desire out of old bits of stuff. Their latest project is this eco-friendly office concept made of various recycled materials. To find out more about Treasured Trash and what they do, there's a great interview with them here.
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