Office furniture manufacturer gives old equipment new life

What do you do with old office furniture? In the states, we have a magical website called Craig’s List. On Craig’s List you can sell or give anything away and someone will take it. Of course, the people who come knocking on your door may make you want to reconsider the whole landfill thing.
South Coast Office Furniture, a UK-based office furniture manufacturer, has created a not-for-profit recycling service for unused and unloved contract furniture. The company will pick up the items for free and list what they currently have on their website. This perfectly usable furniture is for businesses, charities, schools or anyone who needs the equipment.
According to the company, 500,000 tonnes of office furniture is being landfilled (new British slang, anyone? Anyone?) each year, the aim is to reuse and recycle it in large quantities.
Well done old chaps!

Own a piece of NYC

No, I’m not talking about the Brooklyn Bridge. New Yorkers and New Yorkers at heart now have an opportunity to own a piece of historic NYC. Made of New York furniture is constructed out of old Manhattan lumber using as few machines as possible. This eco-friendly furniture line rescues 19th century lumber and wood materials that would end up in a dump somewhere in Jersey. The geometric collection’s simple lines complement the charm of the old wood. Prices range from $200 to $1,200 and the collection can be found here.

More fun with tennis balls

I love the confused look on that dog's face. I imagine he's pondering, chew toy or beddy..it could be a chewy pet bed?!!. I don't know if this dog bed would be comfortable, but it sure is a creative way to recycle old tennis balls.

Lifestyle-driven architecture

It’s like the Guggenheim but homey.
LivingHomes, a developer of modern, sustainably designed, prefabricated homes, has partnered with Kohler Co. to present the Kohler LivingHome, which debuted at the TED Conference, Feb. 3 – 7, in Long Beach, Calif.
The new KieranTimberlake line of LivingHomes offers six “expandable” single-family residences and multi-family models that are designed for “infill” or inner city lots that have limited space and views.
Designed to achieve LEED-Platinum certification, the two-story, 2,200-square-foot home features furnishings, materials, products and technologies that showcases high design with a low ecological footprint. Some of these products include, Anderson composite wood recycled frame windows, Sherwin Williams no VOC and Low VOC paints and stains, Humabuilt Wheatcore doors, Trex decking, railing and trim products, Lyptus hardwood floors, Crossville recycled mosaic glass and porcelain tiles and Dupont Zodiac countertops.

Essentially a series of simple, stylish, stacked boxes, the modern aesthetic offers open and flexible interiors and promotes passive solar and day lighting. The design also reflects LivingHome’s Z6 Sustainable Building Goals for construction and operation: Zero water, Zero energy, Zero waste, Zero emissions, Zero carbon and Zero ignorance.
“As with all LivingHomes, the Kohler LivingHome features a comprehensive environmental program which dramatically reduces the water and energy the home requires for operation, as well as reducing construction waste and indoor air pollution,” says Steve Glenn, CEO of LivingHomes. “Once it is placed on a permanent site, the home will generate and store power, and it will be eligible for LEED certification.”
The home is valued at $675,000 but is being offered for sale at $499,950. That price does not include transport, install or foundation.
Photos courtesy of Visual Nomad.

Eco-friendly, affordable custom cabinets

Designing a green kitchen doesn’t mean sacrificing style or breaking the bank.
Robin Wilson Home is licensing its name for a line of affordable, eco-friendly custom cabinetry made in the U.S.A. by Holiday Kitchens. The line will launch at the April 2009 Kitchen/Bath Industry Show in Atlanta. The eco-conscious line features more than 100 door styles in green materials, such as bamboo, coconut, wenge and stainless steel. Classic hardwoods like cherry, maple and oak also are available. The manufacturer uses low-volatile organic finishes, paints and stains, and the frameless custom cabinetry has 10 percent more usable storage space compared to traditional framed cabinetry, according to the company.
Another area to consider is how the cabinets are made. And it’s hard to not be impressed with Holiday Kitchen’s green manufacturing principles. According to the company, its manufacturing process uses computerized cutting methods to reduce waste and 100 percent of its wood waste is recycled into cutting boards, animal bedding and landscape materials. Its cabinet lines also use sustainable woods and reconstituted veneer.
I guess it is easy being green.

How green is green?

While many furniture companies tout their “green” products (sustainable wood, green finishes, eco-friendly fabrics) they fail to mention how much waste they are producing to make these green products. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a start and I applaud their efforts.
However, Argren is my kind of green. This furniture manufacturer's products are made from 95 percent recycled content. The photo of the home office features 100-percent recycled materials. The office is made from 100-year-old windows reworked into upper cabinet doors, drawer fronts and lower doors are reused five-panel door inner panels. Hardware is 120-year-old silver tableware fashioned into pulls. The desktop and shelving is from 100-year-old Douglas fir flooring and the wood framing is from a 90-year-old barn.
The company also uses low- or no-VOC finishes, operates a community recycling center and employs green practices in its production processes.
To reduce the amount of usable construction waste that ends up the landfill, the manufacturer accepts any wood and building materials, such as windows, doors, old decks, fencing or cabinets. Argren’s artisans incorporate some of the lumber and architectural elements into furniture pieces. Wood materials deemed unusable is chipped and used as animal bedding and garden compost.
Each furniture piece comes with a certificate of authenticity, which includes significant historical information on materials used.
While vintage/reclaimed doesn’t appeal to everyone, I think all decors should have one conversation piece.
One more thing, while salvaging wood from a teardown project, workers found a stray cat they named Tommy who is now Argren’s official shop cat. What’s not to love??!!