Pretty Little Green Things

Posts Tagged ‘Outdoor’

I’m going to leave you for the weekend with this gorgeous table setting from Traditional Home.  While I don’t know how many elements of this table are actually green, you could easily do something like this on your own with leftover scraps of wood and china collected from flea markets and antique shops.  Have a wonderful weekend!

Photo from Traditional Home

I’m bringing you today’s post in honor of Spain’s World Cup win.  Okay, maybe that’s a bit of a stretch, but this doormat does sort of look like the Spanish flag and I was looking for a good transition into talking about The Maine Float-Rope Co. I love the colorful striped and solid designs of their Down East Doormats, but what I love even more is their green platform.  These mats are made of re-purposed float rope, discarded by lobstermen who had to quit using it in 2009 and switch to sink rope.  The problem was the Northern Right Whales were getting tangled and hurt in a rope that floats, not sinks.  In addition to recycling this unusable rope, these doormats are super durable (the rope is made to withstand salt water) and hand-woven by local Maine crafters.  I’d say these mats are an all around win.  I’ve picked out a few of my favorite colors and patterns, but there’s plenty more on their website for you to pick from.

So many options!  These are just a few.

I love the colors of this mat.  Very fresh and unique.

Here are just a few of their fun colors.

Photos from The Maine Float-Rope Co.

I wanted to share a wonderful article from the NY Times about hammocks and hanging chairs.  While the seats they’re featuring aren’t necessarily green, I just love how they described them as: “harnessing available free energy – in this case, wind or the power of one’s leg.”  If I had a hammock, I’d be harnessing my free energy all the time!

You can read the full article here.  I’ve included my favorite hanging chair from the article from Byer of Maine.  Have a wonderful weekend and stay cool!

It’s still hot in New York, but thankfully it seems a lot less humid today.  It’s a great day to sit outside and enjoy a glass of lemonade.  I usually seek shadier areas so this umbrella from Sail La Vie would be perfect if I had an outdoor patio.  It’s made from recycled sailcloths and can be customized with specific letters, numbers, logos and colors.   Sail La Vie told me that many of the sails come from Johnson Boat Works, a company that was founded more than 100 years ago.   What a great way to recycle and continue an impressive history.

Here are a few more shots of their chic umbrellas

This one was featured on HGTV’s Curb Appeal

Photos from Sail La Vie

I’ve been procrastinating writing a post today, probably just because it’s so hot in New York today and my office doesn’t have great air conditioning.  Plugging in a bunch of fans is not very energy efficient either which, unfortunately, is what we’re doing.  But maybe if we had this fan, we would only need one instead of three that aren’t working well anyway.

According to Turbo-Aire, this fan “delivers 100 percent more air and is 200 percent to 300 percent more energy efficient than conventionally designed fans with comparable horsepower motors.”  And all of this without making much noise at all.  What they say is that most fans are inefficient and just push air around, which creates noise and not a lot of breeze.  The Turbo-Aire, on the other hand, provides a strong, smooth flow of air, kind of like you would imagine a  jet engine would do. And because the flow is straight, it’s much quieter.  You can read all about the aero-dynamics of this fan on Seabreeze’s website.

Personally I like the slightly retro look of the fan.  And of course, I wouldn’t mind the breeze right now either!  If you’re on the lookout for an energy efficient fan, you can buy this one at Amazon.

Nothing says summer like outdoor BBQ’s and picnic tables.  You’ll need some outdoor tables to put that food on and to go with the outdoor chairs from yesterday, so here are some of my favorite outdoor table options.

These tables are from Maku Furnishings, a company that you might remember from yesterday’s post on outdoor chairs.  Also made from sustainably harvested teak wood from Indonesia, these tables match perfectly with their chair counterparts.

No post about outdoor furniture is complete without a picnic table.  Here’s a chic version that comes in sustainably harvested Ipe wood (as shown) or recyclable polyboard.  It’s from Modern Outdoor and sold at Feel More Human.

This next dining table comes from Sutherland, which has always made gorgeous outdoor furniture made from teak.  Now they’re venturing into recycled plastic, or Ecoplex to be exact.  The Great Lakes series comes in a variety of table and chair styles as well as powder coat colors.  I apologize for the small picture.  That’s all I have for now, but I’ll be bugging them to get me better pictures.  Their furniture is sold only to the trade, however you can usually purchase it through a design center in your area.

Lastly, I’ll leave you with this super cute side table from VivaTerra.  It’s made from thick reeds found along the shore near Guatemala’s Lake Atitlan.  Mayan villagers having been using these reeds for years to create mats.  More recently, artisan Gregorio Perez began creating three-dimensional objects from these chunky reeds, so now they come to you in the form of an outdoor piece that can be used as a sturdy stool or side table.

Beautiful summer days in New York City, make me long for large open spaces, grass and patios.  While I don’t have any of those, I can buy an iced tea and live vicariously through these outdoor furniture pieces.  I’ve put together a few of my favorite outdoor chairs and loungers for you.  Now you can enjoy your icy beverage in eco style!

I have to admit that I have a secret love for Adirondack chairs.  Someday I’ll have my house on the ocean in Maine with tons of these kinds of chairs.   In the meantime, I can admire these Adirondack chairs from Loll.  They’re made of recycled plastic (or technically HPDE) and come seven different colors, many of which are as fun and bright as these two.

These chaises are also from Loll and come in the same bright colors or as shown here, neutrals.  I love the slightly faceted shape.  Throw a couple organic cotton pillows on top and this would be a perfect place for a nap – with lots of sunscreen of course!

If natural materials are more your style, here are two teak versions from Maku Furnishings.  They’re made with sustainably harvested teak wood from Indonesia from a company with a commitment to the environment.  They’re also available with or without cushions.

This lounge chair from VivaTerra is also made from sustainably harvested teak wood.  It’s their updated, outdoor version of Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona Chair.  Very stylish!

This last chair comes from Bleu Nature, a French company from the North of France.  They comb the beaches there for driftwood and then use for their furniture.  What a gorgeous way to recycle.  And the amazing thing is that they don’t have to do anything to the driftwood, it’s already been finished and made beautiful by the ocean.