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Who among us doesn't have a baggy T (or six) lying around? Designer Mari Santos of Urban Renewal takes all those ugly 'ol shirts that you wouldn't be caught dead in and transforms them into adorable pieces you'd actually love to wear. She embodies such a creative (and green) spirit that I had to share her with you!
So you work in a cubicle and have less access to sunshine than prisoners (hey, they get two hours a day)? Bring a bit of nature inside via these inspired pieces of eco-technology. Studio OOOms carves each one of these USB keys individually. A tad pricey at $100 but manageable if you convince yourself that they are tiny works of artistic philanthropy.
ASUS' commitment to green computing has resulted in
the research of alternative materials for use in their products. With such innovative technologies, ASUS has created an
image of the future for computing – showcasing environmentally friendly
designs for notebooks, LCDs and Mini PCs made from earth friendly, renewable bamboo. Plus, they look really, really cool.
Lest we forget, light comes from electricity. And, unless your hooked up to a windmill or something, that electricity is most likely brought to you courtesy of the oil industry. Thankfully for us, a few designers are on a mission to remind of us of this fact by way of quirky, hopeful products.
Martyr (above) from The Play Coalition may just be the world's first suicidal night light and will remind you of our rampant abuse of electricity every time you flick the switch.
To combat "power vampires," aka the crazy amount of energy being quietly sucked away while our appliances are not in use, designer Paul Oh of Yanko Designs has come up with this simple plan, "Unplug them." Ok, not such an original thought, but this convenient outlet certainly is. The simple addition of a ledge not only reminds you to unplug but keeps your cords all neat and tidy in the process.
You're a little trashy and try as you might, you can't seem to separate the whites from the yolks, let alone the plastic from the paper. No worries. The Ovetto Egg Recycling Bin smartly uses color coding to make recycling as stylish and simple as possible. Made from recycled polypropylene, this futuristic little guy is cute enough to be on full display and says to the world, "Hey, I may be wearing acid-washed jeans but at least my trash is in the right place".
Who knew soap bottles could be so inspiring? Artist Carolyn Mason cleverly casts discarded plastic bottles in shiny porcelain and stuffs them full of brightly colored flowers to get this cheerful result! I loooooove the mass grouping on the fireplace - such a little ray of sunshine!
