Organic magic at Organoid

Spy glimpses of nature and flecks of fibre through the unique surface of Organoid. This sensual material takes organic matter and transforms it into decor like no other, complete with texture, detail, and scent. Established in 2013 by Martin Jehart and Mag. Christoph Egger, Organoid blends the beauty of petals, seeds, and hay and forms them into a backing, High Pressure Laminate, flooring, and acoustic … Continue reading Organic magic at Organoid

Brasiliana Tile Collection Tribal

A History of Brazil in Wooden Tiles

Hilighting Brazilian history in a trio of wooden tile collections is the beautiful Brasiliana. Created in a collaboration between wood transforming specialists Oca Brasil and surface designer Renata Rubim, the Brasiliana Collection restores cultural heritage in the most beautiful way. Three different periods – Tribal, Colonial, and Modernist – inspire the designs, each of which is handcrafted in solid, reforested teak, eucalyptus, or valchromat (fully … Continue reading A History of Brazil in Wooden Tiles

microwave glass

Tiles made from microwaves

Waste-made tiles are always a delight, and these creations by Norwegian studio Snøhetta is no exception. These prototypes crafted in collaboration with Italian manufacturers Fornace Brioni and Belgian designers Studio Plastique have found a new potential home for materials rarey recycled. Microwave and oven glass and glass from electronic goods are widely regarded as unrecycleable due to their varied compositions, treatments, and finishes. But rather … Continue reading Tiles made from microwaves

living sea wall

Update: The Living Seawall

Back in 2019 we shared one of our favourite tile-centred eco projects – Volvo’s Living Seawall. Now, three years on (and on Earth Day) we thought we’d have a look at how things have changed. Each 3D printed hexagonal tile was formed to mimic the roots of mangroves, a species once abundant on the coast of Sydney. Fifty tiles were place along these urbanised coastlines … Continue reading Update: The Living Seawall

emily textiles

Emily Hatton Design

Another of our Surface Design Show discoveries is surface designer Emily Hatton. Based in Bournemouth, Hatton creates from the waste up, experimentally casting both household and industrial waste to assess aesthetic value and product potential. Her Abstract Waste project saw how grass cuttings, egg-shell, sawdust and wood shavings affected eco resin, with each producing a texturally varied result and unique surface pattern. As well as … Continue reading Emily Hatton Design

Alternative Tile Glaze

Five Incredible Alternative Glazes

Enjoy ceramics with a huge range of curious features and finishes with this selection of five unique, alternative glazes from around the world. 1) Metal waste The brainchild of designer Agne Kucerenkaite, the project Ignorance is Bliss only uses pigment from waste metals to colour their ceramic tiles. Due to the composition of each metal sludge mixture, every tile is unique with delightfully decorative specks … Continue reading Five Incredible Alternative Glazes

Studio Mixtura

Studio Mixtura

Founded in 2015 by Daria Biryukova, Studio Mixtura works with industries and organizations to create and design functional and benficial solutions to waste produced in manufacturing. With deep research into materials and processes for recycling, Biryukova is working to minimise pollution and maximise the life of items created, used, and wasted during production. Luckily for us, many of these recycled materials have found a new … Continue reading Studio Mixtura

OTT Korean glaze

Recycling spent ceramics back into production is an important aim to increase the sustainability of mass produced tableware and tiles. Though we’ve covered the work of Hanneke de Leeuw of Fabrique Pu which makes use of discarded vases, mugs, and plates, today’s feature takes the process a step further. The unstable nature of glazed ceramics complicates recycling as the fired materials become impure. Finding a … Continue reading OTT Korean glaze

Fabrique Publique

Recyling Ceramics

We’ve covered a lot of repurposed waste here – from shells to slag, paper to plastic, and from tea to pee, and today we add another to that list -ceramics. Though it may seem like an obvious step in eco design, repurposing waste from ceramic production isn’t straight forward, mainly due to the complications various glazes pose. [mepr-show rules=”23028″ unauth=”message”]Since 2017 Hanneke de Leeuw of … Continue reading Recyling Ceramics

matteo brioni raw earth

Raw Earth

Natural design is all the rage. Bringing us a sense of comfort and working to ground us in a world flipped on its head, there’s really something to be said for organic shapes, textures, and materials. Seeking a connection with the environment is something humans have done for millenia, as is finding ways to use the ground beneath our feet to construct spaces that keep … Continue reading Raw Earth

pretty plastic

Pretty Plastic Cladding

Heralded as the ‘first 100 per cent recycled cladding material’, these tiles designed by Dutch studios Overtreders W and Bureau SLA are created from PVC construction waste (including windowframes and downspouts). This innovative cladding, called Pretty Plastic, covered its first building early last year. Though first developed in 2017 for the People’s Pavilion at Dutch Design Week, it wasn’t until last year that they received … Continue reading Pretty Plastic Cladding

Sunflowers, Salt, and Seaweed

We’ve taken a look at various surfaces made from unusual materials – notably tiles from salt created by Chilean architect Mále Uribe Forés, sunflower surfaces from Thomas Vailly, and algae infused tiles from the Bio-Integrated Design Lab – and today we’re sharing something that utilises all three – Frank Gehry’s tower for the Luma Foundation in Arles. Continue reading Sunflowers, Salt, and Seaweed

Five tiles made from reclaimed materials

We’ve collected all the recycled plastic tiles here, and all the unusual reclaimed material surfaces we know of here, and now we’ve combined the two with a collection of five tiles made from a whole host of waste materials. 1. Silicastone from Alusid Using 98% minimum of glass, ceramics and mineral waste, Silicastone from Alusid form tiles and all manner of surfaces. The random waste … Continue reading Five tiles made from reclaimed materials

Trashpresso

A curious contraption aims to reduce plastic waste by eliminating complexity. Two units (one 40ft container housing the processing line and one 20ft solar cell unit) make up a recycling line capable of upcyling up to 50kg of waste each hour. This system, known as Trashpresso, takes three simple steps to transform plastic bottles into tiles: size-reduction, purification, and reshaping. Firstly the machine shreds plastic … Continue reading Trashpresso

Sunflower Surfaces

An unexpected source of sustainable building materials is being explored by Eindhoven-based designer and founder of Studio Thomas Vailly Thomas Vailly. Collaborating with scientists from the Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Ingénieurs en Arts Chimiques Et Technologiques (ENSIACET) laboratory, Vailly has focused his efforts on transforming bio-waste from sunflowers into design solutions. Continue reading Sunflower Surfaces