Ralf Schmerberg : iglu

{moritzbappert.com/blog}

"Yesterday when I went to Gänsemarkt in Hamburg, Germany, I was staggered to see an igloo which was built from 322 fridges. It is titled “Wastefulness is the biggest source of Energy”. You can see it until 9th of November. The iglu is an art project by Berlin-based artist Ralf Schmerberg and is supported by an energy provider. On the inside there is some funny art with many old blinking electronical devices arranged in a very colorful setting. At the outside they had a huge electricity meter which showed how much energy would be consumed by all those very old fridges. It said that with a more efficient use of energy, Germany could save around 40%. All in all I found that a very unique way to raise one’s voice against the waste of energy."

sunchips : compostable chip bag

I actually bought the new Sunchips in the 100% biodegradable bag way back in early May 2010. I noticed in the store how loud the bag was, but I really didn't care because I put the chips in containers for my kids lunches. I recently heard that sales are down and there is even a facebook page called "Sorry but I can't hear you over this sunchips bag" (with nearly 44,000 fans). I am not a fan of that page.

Honestly, I would put up with a noisy bag 100% biodegradable bag if it meant that I was helping the earth for generations to come. It bugs me a bit that a company is trying to do good and it doesn't work. However I do understand the complaint, noisy bags are very annoying. I have also heard that you should pour out the chips you want to eat so you don't end up eating the whole bag without thinking about it. New product innovations might require consumers to change their habits. In the end, the noisy bag is a good thing.

From sunchips.com "We dream of a world with less waste. That's way we're using fully compostable packaging on specially-marked bags of Original flavor SunChips® snacks. Every specially-marked bag of SunChips® Original flavor snacks is designed to break down in about 14 weeks when placed in a hot, active compost bin or pile. If it takes a little longer, don’t worry about it; Mother Nature will get to it soon enough.

Truth be told, our compostable bag sounds a bit different than our other bags, That's because the plant-based materials used to make our compostable bag have different sound qualities than the materials used to make our other bags. Although our compostable bag is a bit louder, we hope you'll appreciate its environmental benefits.

{washingtoncitypaper.com}

People are pissed off about environmentally unfriendly plastic. But people are even more pissed off about the noise level of SunChips‘ new compostable bag, which the Wall Street Journal reports is as loud as a jet cockpit, registering 95 decibels on a sound meter.

The inevitable Facebook group has emerged. Its name is in ALL CAPS, no doubt to emphasize the SHOUTING required to talk over a SunChips bag.SORRY BUT I CAN’T HEAR YOU OVER THIS SUN CHIPS BAG already has nearly 40,000 followers — or whatever Facebook calls these people now.

Over at Serious Eats, Y&H’s friend Erin Zimmer has put together this video to give you an idea of exactly how loud the new bag is. You might want to grab earplugs first.

seed bombs

{anthropologie.com}

Toss these gumball-sized seed-and-soil pods out into your garden - no need to even dig a hole - and they'll eventually bombard your yard with a bee, butterfly and bird-friendly wildflower mixture specific to the United States region of your choice. By Cincinnati design studio VisuaLingual.

Set of five seed bombs in muslin re-useable bag handmade in USA for $6

greenaid : seed bomb

{thecommonstudio.com}

Made from a mixture of clay, compost, and seeds, "seedbombs" are becoming an increasingly popular means combating the many forgotten grey spaces we encounter everyday-from sidewalk cracks to vacant lots and parking medians. They can be thrown anonymously into these derelict urban sites to temporarily reclaim and transform them into places worth looking at and caring for. The Greenaid dispensary simply makes these guerilla gardening efforts more accessible to all by appropriating the existing distribution system of the quarter operated candy machine.

Just B

This cat piano is super sweet. Nice sound, not too loud and cool mixing abilities on it. . . all for under $25.

Finally, someone has refined the color palette of kids toys at mass retailers. I am so ready earthy tones and packaging that is not a plastic nightmare. I love this new packaging that I saw at Target. The packaging becomes a gift-able box just by flipping some flaps. Nice colors, patterns and product offering. Go check it out at Target.

bite me

This adorable fish shaped teething rattle is made from all-natural, non-toxic beechwood, a managed forest hardwood, sanded baby smooth and finished with beeswax. Perfect for 5 months+. Made in China by workers who are paid a fair, living wage.

{monkeygrassonline.com}

Forest Facade

When Patrick Blanc was a boy, he suspended plants from his bedroom wall and ran their roots into a fish tank. The greenery received nourishment from the diluted—ahem—fertilizer and purified the water in return. Forty-five years on, the French botanist's gardens have grown massive in scale. One inside a Portuguese shopping mall is larger than four tennis courts, and there's one in Kuwait that's almost as big. But Blanc's recently completed facade for the Athenaeum hotel in London (shown) could be his most high-profile project yet. Looming over Green Park, it's an eight-story antigravity forest composed of 12,000 plants.

Blanc uses a kind of techno-trellis as the underlying structure: A plastic-coated aluminum frame is fastened to the wall and covered with synthetic felt into which plant roots can burrow. A custom irrigation system keeps the felt moist with a fertilizer solution modeled after the rainwater that trickles through forest canopies.

But plants for this vertical landscape must be chosen with care. Because the walls are so high, conditions vary widely. The shade at ground level is perfect for rare Asian nettles; on the brighter upper stories, plants that usually cling to windblown cliff faces brave the blustery British breezes.

Blanc, who still has a fish-tank setup in his apartment, says his creations will always reach upward: "I leave horizontal gardens to others. I only think vertically."

{wired.com}

mister dohman

I really like his recycled words!

{etsy.com}

William Dohman: I am an architect from St. Paul, MN (yeah another MN native etsy seller).

Plug me in

I wish I had a pair of these toasty gloves last winter. What a great idea! Fingerless and heated from the USB port connections. Price range from $8-25.

{manly version} {gray convertible} {purple with animals} {girly convertible version}

Hausboot

Flo Florian and Sascha Akkermann of design firm Confused Direction have designed a lovely floating home. It is ecofriendly too, with zero-emissions, a green roof, and materials such as 250 year old larch wood salvaged from an old farmer's shed.

{confused-direction.de}

Goodbyn

This is so smart. It is like a bento box but even better. Only $29.95. No more plastic baggies. . and lots of cute compartments for grapes, cheese, crackers, fruit snacks, and carrots. You would just have to ensure that no one would run away with it.

from goodbyn. . .
We are a small company in Seattle who had a little idea to reinvent the way kids eat lunch—making lunchtime easier, more inspiring and fun for both kids and parents. From the beginning, we decided to be as transparent as possible about our decisions as a company: how we produce, ship and get product to market. Below, you’ll find information about our materials, suppliers, vendors and craftsmen whose unrelenting energy has made Goodbyn possible.
to buy and learn more

Michelle Brand

This curtain is made from the bottoms of soda/water bottles that have been trimmed. How lovely and smart.
She attaches the pieces with clothing tag attachments. How smart and simple.

{michellebrand.uk.com}

eco-chicken

{wow-imports.com}
This recycled, fair trade plastic bag chicken figurine is handcrafted by disadvantaged crafters in the townships near Cape Town, South Africa. These eco-friendly plastic bag animals have been produced exclusively for Wow Imports. These are made from a wide range of colorful recycled plastic. Notice that many of these chicken figurines have logos from Fanta and Coke. No collectible chicken figurine is alike so allow for variations. Only $10.95.

Target Center's Green Rooftop

Here is a rendering of the green Target Center Roof. I am not sure if this is the final version? I found this one on google.

Landscapers worked to install an 80-pound strip of vegetation June 27th 2009 on the roof of the Target Center in Minneapolis. The green roof will be the third installed by the city and at 3.5 acres, the fifth largest in the United States. The price? $5.3 million. It will keep an estimated 3.68 million gallons of rainwater annually from draining into the Mississippi River.

This is the third green roof installed by Minneapolis city government, joining the City Hall and the downtown Central Library.

{startribune.com}

a design team that eats together stays together

A design studio in San Fransico, Stamen design eats lunch together as a group each day. As the group got bigger they started to realize all the packaging waste they were generating, so they devised a plan to halt the garbage pile up--reuseable aluminum containers. They even bring the containers to be filled at a few of their favorite local restuarants. Such good little eggs.

Reminds me of the "Baker Square" aluminum pie pans that you would return in the 1980's. Unfortunately, they don't do that any more. But if they were smart, they would.

$29.95 for the plain aluminum and $35.95 for the color ones

{reuseablebags.com}

quiet hours toys

just love the rainbow and the giraffe bookend.
Quiet Hours is a mother-owned and operated online shop that offers a changing array of artisan-crafted toys and wares from around the world. They work with small companies, fair trade cooperatives and independent artists and crafters who design custom-made, limited-edition pieces that will delight the little people in your life.

{quiethourstoys.com}