The first of the twice-monthly Green Design features for April is all about the wonderful renewable resource that keeps wine bottles sealed and makes sandals so comfy: CORK!
According to the Portuguese Cork Association (APCOR), cork has been used for a while as a material for product & furniture designers in Portugal, and its use is spreading worldwide.
One of my favorite cork products is this snazzy Cork Cuff designed by Studio 1a.m.’s Donna Piacenza. They describe cork as “100% recycled and recyclable, flexible, and water repellant [...] the perfect unexplored resource for jewelry.” It’s unisex, and suprisingly inexpensive.
[via treehugger, retails for $48 @ the Studio 1a.m. shop]
If you’re looking for something to decorate that first post-dorm apartment, check out the ‘Rolha’ Cork Stool by Portuguese design collective Bleach. They’ve been using cork in a lot of their pieces (including a lamp and a vase) but this stool has a great sense of whimsy, “[paying] homage to the first and most common use of cork – the bottle stopper.”
[via Better Living Through Design, retails for $390 @ A+R]
Or, if you want to join the cork revolution without spending a lot of your hard-earned money, try re-using old wine corks by making a Wine Corkboard. Kits are available, but making your own is super-easy and is a great way to use up scrap studio materials (wood, glue, foamcore, picture wire, etc.). Directions on how to make one are here.
