Cork Chaise

Cortiça is a full-size chaise longue with a place for head, heels, and everything in between. Since it's made of cork, a renewable material, it's lightweight, naturally waterproof (and buoyant!), and impervious to rot and mold. Cortiça can be used indoors or outdoors.

The balanced form, along with the pliability of the material allows the user to rock gently from side to side or on her back with a great degree of stability. The result is a sensation of floating, weightless yet totally supported.

Materials: Pure cork (reclaimed waste material from the bottle-stopper industry), non-toxic marine-grade adhesive, and a small amount of polyurethane
Dimensions: 72"L x 20"W x 26"H

Contact White Canvas Designs to get one for your home. 

Finally, a simple way to present prints of all those photos you shoot and intend to display.

These blocks of warm walnut each feature a slot for supporting a single print of any size. Switching out images is quick and easy, and the blocks look great mixed or matched.

Handcrafted in Los Angeles from sustainably harvested wood, these make a great green gift for yourself, or for someone you love.

materials:

FSC-certified walnut wood

dimensions:

Small: 1.75" x 1.75" x 1.75"
Medium: 4" wide x 3.75" deep x 1.75" tall
Large: 6" wide x 4" deep x 2.5" tall



Contact White Canvas Designs to get your own set of photo cubes. 

Odessa Half Chest

Another gorgeous furniture piece made of reclaimed wood with a vintage paint finish.  The Odessa Half Chest measures 17H x 46W x 15D

Contact White Canvas Designs for pricing and availability.

Restoration Chair Overkill

I had to laugh when I saw the newest chairs come out from Restoration Hardware.  The idea I think is on but somehow it comes across looking like a terrible attempt at original design.  I just couldn't imagine people putting these in their home unless they REALLY needed to have something different from a catalog store.

What do you think?

Recycled Rascal

Had to post about this.  Who needs another shaggy dog story? We all do, when it’s about Rascal, who started out as shredded and rolled newspapers and grew into this adorable eco-friendly canine —one headline at a time. Flop down beside him and enjoy!

Yup, and you can get yours here for $129.

IoLine Toddler Bed

Here's a bed that perfectly sized for your toddler. Low to the ground, the IoLine Toddler Bed's clean and modern shape allows growing children to climb in and out of bed with ease, building confidence and independence.

This piece features decorative sides and a headboard for wigglers. Sides come in two styles, squared for the purist, sloped for the sophisticate.

In keeping with its designers' commitment to sustainable design practices, the Toddler Bed is made with 100% natural, non-toxic and sustainable materials, and is manufactured in the U.S.

 materials: Solid bamboo, non-toxic water-based polyurethane glue, and non-toxic wood oil

dimensions: 54"W x 29.5"D x 19"H

Contact White Canvas Designs to find out where to purchase one for your toddler.  

Retro Metal Cabinet's

A recycled metal cabinet reminiscent of high school days houses bathroom essentials behind a latched locker door, while three wooden shelves hold stacked towels and other items. Both short and tall versions fill a hard-to-find organizing need in scant space.  Starting at $198.

Get yours here. 

Cerno- X-Grow Table

A great new company out of Southern California, Cerno creates unique lighting and furniture. 

Cerno:
-Verb (Latin)
1. To resolve, distinguish, decide, sift, determine, to perceive.
Their mission statement:
We view our end product as art resolved with science, Cerno’s design and engineering team work hand in hand, which promotes a communicative honest approach to design. The three founder’s passion for design, quality and precision execution is visible in each hand assembled fixture that leaves our facility.

One fine example of their work is the X-Grow Table.

A Baltic Birch plywood bodied table base with glass top. 

Maison Side Chair

These one of a kind side chairs are made of reclaimed materials and have a funky paint finish that anyone would admire :)  There is limited stock available and chairs measure 42H x 17W x 18D.  Contact White Canvas Designs for pricing and availability. 

Parcels of Any Shape

Excessive packaging is a major pet peeve, so we were really inspired by this flat cardboard sheet that is capable of conforming to the shape of any object, saving a bundle on wasteful filler. Designed by Patrick Sung, the packaging design concept features triangulated perforations that allow it to bend around odd forms. This could also save on fuel for shipping, since all of that wasted box filler is eliminated.

We could see how the concept would not be the most practical for all applications, but it could be really great for mailing a surprise gift to a friend! Soft items like clothing or shoes, or even products that are rigid, like a funky reusable water bottle, could be perfect for this packaging. Not to mention that the perforated lines give the package an interesting graphic pattern style. There is something to be said about the efficiency of boxes that stack, which is why it is great that the sheet can also be folded into standard 6-sided boxes.
Sung has branded his concept the UPACKS (Universal Packaging System). Although it is not related to the shipping carrier United Parcel Service, the naming likeness could attract some attention for this waste reducing, “inside the box” packaging concept.
by Lea Bogdan, 05/03/10

Valentines Be Mine

Happy Valentines Day!  And Happy Birthday to my niece Avery :)

Woolytown Recycled Sweater Baby Booties

A Valentines gift idea for the baby in your family.  Handmade from 100% recycled New Zealand wool, these sweet heart baby booties are hand needle-felted by a Massachusetts mom. The wool used for these shoes was repurposed from an old sweater. Available for babies 0 to 6 months, they'll keep your little one's toes toastie as she warms your heart.

 

 

Lotus Bed

If you don’t have time to fly to Southeast Asia to score a magnificent, original work of art, no worries: we’ve done the treasure seek-and-send for you with Viva Terra's exquisite hand-carved lotus headboard. The artisan woodworker in the U.S. combines it with a platform bed sourced from vintage reclaimed Douglas fir, pairing clean-lined contemporary design with the sculpted lotus flower symbolizing rebirth. The result: a bed where fantasies of exotic faraway lands share a pillow with a reinvigorating night’s sleep. Headboard and platform bed also sold separately.

Get yours here. 

Staircase Drawers

Here’s a brilliant idea that leaves us wondering – why didn’t we think of this first? Despite our penchant for 2-in-1 furniture, we’ve never seen anything quite like this before. Regardless of attempts to be organized in the modern world, most of us continue to be ashamed of one (or eight, in my case) junk drawers around the house- black holes filled with old receipts, pens, and random trinkets. But now you can flaunt your junk drawer with Unicraft Joinery’s simple yet brilliant under-the-staircase drawer solution.

What a great way to utilize a generally overlooked space! Step and store in style, using each step as storage for a different item- everything from socks and shoes to books and, well, junk. The Australia-based company unfortunately does not have a website, but contact info can be found here, with more details in Vogue Living Australia’s Autumn/Winter 2007 issue.

by Emily Pilloton, 01/25/11

18th Century Church to Private Home

Adaptive reuse projects generally call to mind industrial warehouses and factories turned into trendy studios, or shabby-chic restaurants and bars, but the transformation of the St. Nicholas Church in Kyloe, Northumberland, England has taken this concept of renewal and grounded it much closer to home. The church was purchased not too long ago by Sally Onions and Ian Bottomley, who went the unconventional route when scouting for their newest digs. Far from a Norman Foster style box, or even a classic and quaint Victorian house, the duo instead opted to transform an 18th century basilica into the sanctuary they now call “home.”

The church was originally built in 1792, so the couple wanted to maintain as much of the building’s classic architecture as possible. Rather than undertaking a full-on renovation — which actually would have been cheaper — they opted to restore the key elements of the church, such as the vaulted ceilings and original stained glass windows.
While sofas and beds have replaced pews, the integrity of the architecture remains – you can even find the old cemetery within the churchyard. But don’t think the two are reading by candlelight once the sun sets — the former house of worship has evolved to accommodate contemporary living with modern appliances, fixtures, electricity, and other creature comforts.

by Jamie Hall and Diane Pham, 12/23/10

Chindi Chair & Barstool

Tightly woven scraps, or chindi, from vibrant cloth remnants add festive color to kitchen decor. The folding chair and bar stool combine durability with radiant liveliness, offering a welcome alternative to standard seating.

The chair starts at $98 and the barstool $239 from here. 

Hampton Dresser

Made of reclaimed wood, this gorgeous 4-drawer dresser has a unique finish that reminds me of the beach or a weathered barn look. 30H x 56W x 20D

Contact White Canvas Designs for discounted pricing and availability. 

Energy Efficiency and Good Health

Time and time again, studies (such as this piece published by the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition in 2004) have shown that exposure to natural light affects your vitamin D and immune system, serotonin and melatonin levels, as well as your circadian rhythms, sleep cycle and hormones. In fact, scientists at the UNC School of Medicine recently published a study in which they pinpointed the key connection between light signals and circadian rhythms. The study is anticipated to give insight on how light influences molecular signals in our bodies to affect a broad array of biological processes ranging from the sleep-wake cycle to cancer growth and development. In addition to the aforementioned studies, the lack of proper lighting can lead to issues such as depression (S.A.D.), immune problems, and your susceptibility to life-threatening diseases such as diabetes, multiple sclerosis and cancer are exacerbated - particularly as related to Vitamin D absorption. Researchers from the Moores Cancer Center at the University of California, San Diego have found that 600,000 cases of breast and colorectal cancers could be prevented each year worldwide, if vitamin D3 levels were increased. Only within the last couple years have we seen the building industry begin to embrace green lighting that's not only cost and energy-efficient, but also concerned with issues related to human health. However, with heightened awareness, today's consumers are increasingly able to tailor various lighting options to meet their individual needs.  

 

Change Your Bulbs 

Despite all the support of many green enthusiasts, the road to the CFL switch has been a rough one. While compact fluorescent bulbs are considerably more energy-efficient than incandescents (they save at least $30 in energy costs over the life of the bulb), many individuals continue to dislike the quality of light given off by these bulbs. Add to that the fact that most compact fluorescents have the toxic chemical mercury in them, and you can see why many people are resistant to switching their bulbs. Luckily, in just the last year, the field of energy-efficient lighting has produced a whole new breed of super energy-efficient LED bulbs that have no mercury and better mimic the quality of light we are accustomed to with incandescents. LEDs are gaining speed in the world of interior lighting, with new iterations consistently outperforming the ones that preceded them. Just this year alone, we've seen the release of square LED alternatives to the round bulb, companies switching off incandescent bulb production in favor of LEDs, and most recently the release of LED replacements for the common bulb in local stores. Unlike CFLs, LEDs can be filtered without a dramatic loss in output, meaning that achieving ambient lighting isn't an issue. For example, Philip's A19 AmbientLED delivers the same illumination as a 60 watt white light incandescent, at a mere 12.5 watts -- and like incandescents, they can also be dimmed and fit into just about any lighting fixture. The new LED bulb also boasts a life of 25,000 hours. And if we're talking cash, a single bulb can shave hundreds of dollars off your electricity bill. The reality is, if every state in the US were to switch to these LEDs we would save 32.6 terawatt-hours of electricity each year — enough energy to power 17 million homes. LEDs are very much the future of lighting.

Read more here.

 

Indigo Quilt

Feather-soft bedding made from organically grown cotton and natural indigo dyes is so rare it qualifies as a collector's item. Using that all-but-extinct vegetable dye - today, almost all indigo is synthetic - a cooperative of 50 artisans in remote northwest India hand-makes our collection. Drawing inspiration from local mandanas, decorative wall art inspired by the region's flora and fauna, the craftsmen and women fashion the bedding's border pattern to resemble linked old coins. This work furnishes critical income in an area long devastated by drought and plagued by acute poverty. Fair Trade Certified.

Get yours here. 

Fortune Cookie Coin Purse

Diana Eng’s Fortune Cookie coin purse combines several eco-fashion design practices into a small, well-crafted pouch. The Project Runway alum makes her purses from reclaimed leather that is marked and traceable through an online database. The laser-etched ID number might indicate, for instance, that the hide was destined for the dumpster because of stains or discoloration. Eng cuts her purse patterns from the unsullied areas, keeping as much of the highly processed material from going to waste.

LUCKY NUMBERS

By using leather scraps from the furniture, upholstery and garment industries, Eng taps into a resource that has very few uses in such small quantities. Although leather remnants are sometimes ground and repressed to make bonded leather (used mainly in book binding), most are sent to the landfill. Plus, leather hides are usually tanned with heavy metals and chemicals that can pollute our air and water supplies.

Leather hides are usually tanned with heavy metals and chemicals that can pollute our air and water supplies.

Each purse comes in a dust bag inspired by gourmet food wrappers and Chinese paper cuts. As a special touch, a fortune is included with every purchase.

Get yours for $45.