Modern Gift Wrap

We love these modern ideas for gift wrap- and think the DIY types out there will too. The ideas are fresh and some of them, even green.

 

On the left, Chinese menus and a felt fortune cookie portend good luck in the New Year, or a trip to the returns line. On the right, a colorful patchwork and new take on a decorative bow.

See the rest. 

-caroline

Space Age Terrariums

Meet the Domsai! Space men from another planet? Try Milan, where these 10-inch ETs debuted at 2009’s Design Week. Matteo Cibic—a multi-threat creative director for architecture, design and ad brands—describes his little guys as a kind of tamagotchi for desks or side tables. These terrariums require a bit of water and sunlight, which suits Cibic's aesthetic: user interaction is a hallmark of his work. Produced in the tiny Northern Italian commune of Nove, a hot bed of ceramics, these anthropomorphic planters are all one of a kind - they are hand cast and mouth blown.

$140 at A+R.

Pre-Fab Clubhouse

Fans of prefab design can now pass their affinity on to their children via Modern Cabana’s newest addition to their collection of modern living spaces — the KIDDO Cabana. Dubbed the “ultimate choose-your-own-adventure” dwelling space, kids will adore turning the blank canvas of the KIDDO into their own unique playhouse.

Read the rest via Inhabitots.

Portable Herb Garden

Pure Contemporary recently featured great ways to bring the outdoors in -- and our friend Anne Robert provided this gem by French firm Les Ateliers Ouvert. Made of eco-friendly material (aside from the herbs), la table-potagère (the kitchen garden table) -- is by all accounts "Green Design": A portable herb garden, that allows modern cooks the joy and essence of fresh herbs. Importing from France will be about $1600 with duty and shipping, so it is not an impulse buy. We're waiting word from the company to see if plans for distribution in the US is imminent.

--diane

Tags: Les Ateliers Ouvert, portable herb garden, Indoor+Landscaping, Green Design

Hang in there

Looking for something to do with your recyclables? The Organelle Design Studio will gladly take them off of your hands -- creating lamps from recycled wood, plastic clothes hangers, and plastic bottles.

-- allie

Tags: recycled products, green design, modern lamps, eco-friendly design, chandelier

Bright, Green, Modern Fabric

Sina Pearson, founder and head of New York City-based Sina Pearson Textiles, is known for infusing cheerful, sophisticated color into high-performance fabrics. Now, for her latest eco-friendly collection with Crypton Green® technologies, she utilizes the exuberant palette of India. Indian Summer, sustainably produced from post-consumer recycled polyester fibers, offers two related patterns in a total of thirteen colorways. The Crypton Green finish adds stain-, microbial-, moisture- and odor resistance, without harming the environment. The collection premiers  November, 2009.

To create the fabrics’ palette, Pearson imagined women in brightly colored silk saris standing in rice fields, a juxtaposition of hot colors with earthy green and brown landscape tones. She added hints of fruits and spices from the outdoor markets, jewels and henna dyes. “These are colors to stimulate the senses,” she enthused.

Two patterns, thirteen colorways. The patterns take off from traditional Indian arts. Mehndi is a stylized dot-and-floral motif that looks directly to mehndi painting: ceremonial, ornate decorations on hands and feet made with henna dye. Pearson’s Mehndi is languid and flowing: ogee curves intertwined with abstract florals, all rendered in dots. The seven colorways are Gold Fortune, Joyous Orange, Energy Red, Majestic Plum, Harmony Green, Henna Brown and Cosmic Black. Ikat conjures classic ikat fabrics, a technique in which the yarns have been resist-dyed prior to weaving. Indian Summer’s Ikat features short dashes of color in random rhythms. The six colorways are named Orange Awakening, Spiritual Red, Purple Promise, Green Peace, Down to Earth Brown and Meditation Black.

Green ingredients and finish. Both Mehndi and Ikat are jacquard-woven of post-consumer recycled polyester. They use Crypton’s most innovative green production processes which meet strict emissions requirements, and are MBDC-certified Cradle to Cradle Basic. Using Mehndi and Ikat can contribute to LEED-CI points.

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List prices, Indian Summer: Mehndi, $104/yd.; Ikat, $100/yd.

TO THE TRADE Info: www.sinapearson.com or 212.366-1146

CONSUMER Info: Consumers may special order from www.museousa.com or 816.531-3537

LED Modern Bamboo Garden Lighting

Using the form of bamboo trunks as inspiration, this design is the postmodern version of a Zen garden that works as lamp and as interior divider. The design has an aluminum base that holds the trunks, which are formed by a repeated module made of translucent flexible acrylic set up as screen.

Each trunk is held to the base through the hidden metallic structure that holds to the modules and the electrical system. The trunks are slightly flexible, creating harmonic movements in contact with the wind, allowing the hit of the trunks that generates a soft percussion as background music.

It's an idea in LED lighting found on led-emotionalize.

Wooden Tiles for Spas, Pools, Bathrooms

  

KUUPS uses the latest technology to bring the warmth of wood into high humidity installations with its new range of wooden tiles.

I have no idea how they accomplish this, although I've read the explanation. It includes  a lot of references to H2O eco hardwoods optimized through exposure to high temp HPL, phenolic resins, and celulose fibers.

The tiles have already been used in Spa installations in international hotel chains like the Hilton, Marriott and FourSeasons. They're avialable in a combination of 13 formats and 6 wood types, so customization for projects is easy. The woods used come from sustainable forests and are PEFC (Pan european Forest Council) certified.

100% recycled, 50% Off

 

These lowly discarded rubber tires have been carefully refashioned into modern planters. Grab a set of three for $55 at DWR.

Modern Rock

Vintage modern, boomerang style rocking chair- so spare with just enough curves. Available at TC Donobedian in San Fran for $1,200.