Design^Sprout | Your Guide to Green Design

Vote for Design^Sprout - Ya Know Ya Wanna!

   I'm so happy to be among Apartment Therapy's Homie Award nominees for Best Green Home Blog. If you could take a moment out of your busy life, I'd so appreciate you to cast your vote here and help spread the word so that inspiring, planet-friendly design ideas are showcased in as large a forum as possible. Just type www.designsprout.com into the box - shouldn't take more than 5 seconds. Whew, now that that's done go ahead and have another piece of pumpkin pie. You've earned it for being so nice to the environment. Happy Holidays!

The Trashiest Christmas Ever.

   Christmas trees have gotten so expensive lately that for quite a few years now I've decorated a potted plant. True, you lose that fresh-from-the forrest smell but you're $100 bucks richer for the sacrifice (not to mention, free of tree-killing gulit!). That's why I was so utterly thrilled when Design^Sprout reader/super clever designer Eric Dalpiaz sent in photos of his homemade, completely recycled Christmas tree.

  "Why not make a tree out of stuff you have laying around doing some house renovations? I just framed it with the 2x4s and some framing nails. Then I wrapped that frame with the chain link fence.  The rest is pretty self explanatory. Just converted the chandelier to make it able to plug into the lights. Figured I'd use all this stuff for something before I took it all to Habitat's ReStore." High-five, Eric.

 

Cheap, Chic and Oh-So-Green DIY Ornaments!

  I spied these scrumptious Christmas ornaments on the crafty blog, my life in lowercase.  The clear, glass bulbs are a fabulous blank canvas for creativity.  Here, she's used bits of scrap yarn, offering up a colorful and textural feast for the eye. They would also work wonderfully with the tiny bits of wrapping paper we often end up throwing away. You can find the affordable bulbs all over the place but extra points if you get them at saveoncrafts, which promotes recycled glass.

DIY - Recycled Suitcase Dog Bed!

     Okay, it's not the most life-changing DIY you've ever seen, but the sad, little dog bed my 4lb. Yorkie, Winnie called home (yeah, I know what you're thinking, but I promise I am not that type of girl...) needed some help! Store bought beds are easily $50 and not great quality, so I thought, "hey, maybe I can just make one."  After much internet research, a perfect solution (and creative inspiration!) was found via Kristen, Etsy seller and winner of the Design*Sponge DIY challenge (below). 

   Because Winnie is so tiny and likes to nest in small spots, I knew an ordinary suitcase would be too big for her.  Luckily, in the back of my closet I had this vintage Samsonite hat case that I've been carting around for years - finally, a reason to dust it off! Again, a stroke of luck when it turned out that Winnie's old dog bed was the perfect fit! Check out Kristen's instructions (scroll to the bottom) for how to sew a pillow to custom fit your suitcase.

   Next, I bought a fun, vintage Afghan for $1 as it was riddled with holes, cut off the offending parts and used some left over yarn to sew a sleeve covering the old bed. I tucked in the open end at the bottom as I want to be able to remove it for washing.

   Next, add dog toys (which she immediately attacked!), her favorite blanket and viola! What was once kicked under the bed when guests arrived is now a conversation piece! All for $1. Doesn't get much better than that! Thanks Kristen!

     Yeah, she likes it.

Water Purified By Human Sweat (Less Gross than it Sounds).

   Tired of sweating it out under the fluorescent lights of your local gym? Then head to Warsaw. Jakub Szczęsny of Centrala has designed a floating island that purifies river water, powered by completely by the human energy created on exercise machines. Win win.

DIY - Wineglass Lamps

Super clever use for extra wine glasses. Go here for complete instructions.