Green Design Girl

The Green Design Summit 2009 presents “Behind The Scenes...

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 20:57:00 -0400

The Green Design Summit 2009 presents “Behind The Scenes with Green Design Girl Mariela Campo.” Please click the above player to hear my interview for the Green Design Summit, recorded live via a Toronto/Denver webcast on June 24th, 2009.

I was thrilled to participate in this interview, as there are several well respected and high profile green experts taking part in the summit, including Planet Green’s Ed Begley Jr. [Living With Ed] and Graham Hill [Treehugger.com Founder]. See my previous post on the Green Design Summit for a list of featured experts.

The webcast was a fabulous experience, professionally interviewed by Green Design Summit’s Gail Doby, expertly organized by Gail and her GDS partner Erin Weir, and followed by some great live questions from our global audience. I’ve been feeling the Twitter, Facebook + e.mail love ever since. The interest in green design is indeed growing and I’m finding it all very inspiring. This summit is a fantastic idea and well overdue. Designers Gail and Erin are working hard to make it a success and I have no doubt that it will be, given their passion and the number of amazing speakers that were quick to sign on.

Topics covered in my 1hr + 15min interview include:

my start in interior, set and green design
my previous career as a Music Publicist + Radio/Club DJ
living, working + studying in NYC [Parsons School Of Design]
my work at HGTV, TLC and BBC Television
my first on-the-job TV production training with popular Designer Doug Wilson of Trading Spaces
my experience as a finalist on HGTV’s Designer Superstar Challenge
how, when + why this design girl went green
issues + challenges in sustainable design
my current fave green design companies
…and plenty more heaps o’ green design goodness

The Green Design Summit presents “Behind The Scenes with...

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 16:05:00 -0400

The Green Design Summit presents “Behind The Scenes with Green Design Girl Mariela Campo.”

:: Wed. June 24th @ 11am EST ::

The Green Design Summit is a virtual 2 day event on June 29 & 30, 2009. You’ll hear from the following all-star line-up of 13 Green Design experts and best-selling authors…

Ed Begley, Jr. - Environmental Activist, Actor and star of Planet Green’s Living with Ed - “Living Green With Ed”
Graham Hill - Founder of TreeHugger.com & Vice President of Interactive Media, Planet Green - “Greenovate”
Penny Bonda - “Mother of Green Interiors” - “The New LEED Requirements - What You Need to Know”
Leslie Carothers - The Kaleidoscope Partnership - “How To Specify Green Furnishings”
Bob Dixson - Mayor of Greensurg, Kansas - “The Story of Greensburg and How Miracles Can Come From Devastation”
Joshua Foss, LEED AP - Host of Get Green and Blueprint Green - ”Building Your Practice With Sustainable Design”
Lisa Foster - Founder of 1 Bag At A Time - “What Is Your Carbon Footprint and What Can You Do to Reduce It?”
Tom Hamilton - Senior Product Marketing Manager for Philips Color Kinetics - “Designing Energy Efficient Lighting & Maintaining Aesthetics”
Libby Langdon - HGTV Star of Small Space, Big Style, Author of Design In Small Spaces - “Visually Trick the Eye - Libby Langdon’s Ideas for Living Large in a Small Space.”
Michael Port - Top-selling Author & Business Coach -“The Think Big Manifesto - Think you can’t change your life (and the world)? Think again.”
Sarah Susanka - Best-Selling Author of Eight Books, Architect & Certified Interior Designer - “not so big remodeling”
Cassie Walker - Author of The Green Office Handbook and Founder of The Sustainable Office - “How To Green Your Office”
Robin Wilson - New York Interior and Product Designer - “Eco-friendly Design From The Foundation To The Furniture”

I’m truly excited to be a part of this amazing summit, totally dedicated to green design. Please tune in tmrw morning [Wed. June 24th @ 11am EST] for my free webcast interview, which will act as a preview to the end of month two day event. I’ll be discussing everything from working in TV set design and my experience on HGTV’s Designer Superstar Challenge, to the current issues in sustainable design and the green design companies that I think are producing exciting products for the modern home.

::UPDATE:: If you missed the live webcast [which was fun and a great success!], please visit this post for an audio recording of the full 1hr + 15 min interview, which included a live audience Q+A.

Play by Wendy Walgate The quirky and colourful creations of...

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 18:54:00 -0400

Play by Wendy Walgate

The quirky and colourful creations of Toronto ceramic artist Wendy Walgate were one of the new discoveries that caught my eye at this year’s Interior Design Show.

The aptly named Play consists of white earthenware [slipcast and glazed], sitting on top of a vintage toy drum. Walgate explains that her finished collections are built within objects that “reference lost, abandoned and imagined ‘play’ sessions and memories.”

So what’s green about her creations? Walgate, who has been working with clay for over 25 years, incorporates “heavily used objects, comprised of discarded and abandoned toys from the 1950’s, such as rusty strollers, carriages, wagons” and more. Her site has some fantastic examples of her work in a variety of colour palettes, ranging from the monochromatic to the circus like.

If you’re in Toronto in July, you can check out more of Wendy Walgate’s playful sculptures in person at the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition.

The 2009 edition of the massive and prolific Interior Design Show was probably the best I’ve ever attended, thanks to an increase in green and Canadian design offerings and the expert publicity and organization of the brilliant team at Faulhaber Public Relations. I’m sure that they’re already busy gearing up for the 2010 show and I’m indeed looking forward to it.

::more Walgate posts::

Life is a Red Rebus Stroller by Wendy Walgate. Probably one of...

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 17:06:00 -0400

Life is a Red Rebus Stroller by Wendy Walgate.

Probably one of her most playful pieces yet, Walgate uses a vintage metal stroller as the foundation for this vibrant work of art. I also came across this great photo of the Toronto ceramic artist in her studio, surrounded by her eye popping creations.

Photo :: confetti*snowstorm

::more Walgate posts::

I Am Not Greedy by Wendy Walgate. The colour palette may be...

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:45:00 -0400

I Am Not Greedy by Wendy Walgate.

The colour palette may be subdued and the theme may appear whimsical, but this is definitely a sculpture with a statement. Walgate, who recycles discarded objects and features them prominently in her creations, started with a vintage cup bearing the slogan “I am not greedy, but I want enough.”

Walgate believes that the cup’s statement is “incredibly apt for these times and particularly the need to have enough meat on our plates. The centre of all our meals - the meat. How about everything else we can eat that doesn’t involve confinement, torture and killing? How about being creative with our food and using all those fresh, brilliantly coloured foods that don’t involve death?” The artist further encourages us to “Go vegetarian and try hard for vegan. It’s the inevitable way of the future.”

Photo :: confetti*snowstorm

::more Walgate posts::

Trojan Horses by Toronto ceramic artist Wendy Walgate. A real...

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 16:22:00 -0400

Trojan Horses by Toronto ceramic artist Wendy Walgate.

A real colour contrast to Walgate’s Play, Trojan Horses began with a pair of 1950’s discarded ceramic horse containers, which could have been used as bookends or planters in their day.

The artist explains: “I framed the piece with the black ceramic horses on the bottom and a large ‘Clydesdale’ horse on the top - with a golden pig on his back. When it was finished it seemed as if the contents of the horse bookends were spilling upward, similar to the surprise of the contents of the famous Trojan Horse.”

::more Walgate posts::

Mid-Century Meets Modern Dining Room from HGTV’s Design...

Tue, 26 May 2009 15:32:00 -0400

Mid-Century Meets Modern Dining Room from HGTV’s Design To Win

Series Set Stylist: Mariela Campo

Furniture: FOS [formerly in The Distillery District], Toronto, Canada.

Wallpaper: Flavor Paper, NYC + New Orleans.

Greetings my loyal readers + Tumblr followers! Yes, I am still alive and coming up for some much needed air after an incredibly intense start to 2009. This is the absolute longest I’ve ever gone without posting on Green Design Girl [my past record was 2 weeks, I think]. I do apologize and thank you for your continued support, e.mail queries and hot tips on the green design front. My inbox is positively brimming — make that, exploding — with new green leads that I will indeed review in the weeks to come.

First, however, I’ll be dealing with the backlog of amazing design events that I’ve attended over the last few weeks. I’ve been truly inspired while travelling for design work, consulting my little green heart out, talking green with print + TV media and networking a storm with fellow design aficionados across North America… but really, I haven’t forgotten about this beloved blog of mine. Updates are coming soon.

Wishing you all a happy Spring!

Chinese Lounge from HGTV’s Design To Win Series Set...

Sat, 07 Mar 2009 15:17:00 -0500

Chinese Lounge from HGTV’s Design To Win

Series Set Stylist: Mariela Campo

Furniture: Dragon Heir, Toronto, Canada.

Got Facebook? Who doesn’t?

Join other design lovers on my newly redesigned Facebook Fan Page, where you’ll find a new Wall of rotating design pix to comment on, a fab page of Reviews and a Discussion Board where we ask questions like “Who’s your favourite Designer?” and “What’s up with Karim Rashid and his white clothing fetish?” or “What was Philippe Starck smoking when he declared that Design Is Dead?” Well, we may not be able to answer all of those q’s, but we can definitely have fun speculating. Feel free to jump in and start your own design topics.

Got comments?

Since Green Design Girl doesn’t have a comments section, the Discussions Board on my Fan Page also gives you a chance to ask q’s about any of the green designs I review here.

Thanx to the many GDG readers who have been Fan Page members for over a year now. Your support is awesome + much appreciated!

On a green quest… I’m currently looking for...

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 18:28:00 -0500

On a green quest…

I’m currently looking for sustainably sourced [preferably FSC-certified] teak, cedar and/or bamboo in the Toronto area. Please note that I am not looking for finished flooring or shingles. This is for a product design project, so unfinished planks are needed — and again, they must be sustainably sourced.

If your source is not within the Toronto area, it will unfortunately not be viable, as the further away the source, the less green the product. So I’m definitely looking for a local source.

Please drop me a line at greendesigngirl [at] gmail.com if you’ve got any hot leads for me. Thanx in advance!

Oh, and by the way, I’ll be posting reviews of IDS ‘09, Radiant Dark and The Gladstone’s Come Up To My Room event soon. I’ve simply been swamped with projects since my unforgettable Design Week in Toronto, but my posts will be worth the wait!

[photo: Japanese Masu : A square Sake cup made from Cedar]

Wow

Sun, 08 Feb 2009 16:06:00 -0500

I just survived the busiest 4 days + nights of 2009 for me so far, as Toronto’s...

The Air That Cools Your Home, Heats Up The World

Sun, 25 Jan 2009 23:43:00 -0500

I came across this striking example of advertecture via szymon. The outdoor clothier outfit...

"You can take the girl outta the DJ booth, but you can’t take the music outta the girl."

Thu, 22 Jan 2009 01:05:00 -0500

“You can take the girl outta the DJ booth, but you can’t take the music outta the...

Jane Fonda in Roger Vadim’s Barbarella :: 1968 This is my...

Sun, 18 Jan 2009 00:16:00 -0500

Jane Fonda in Roger Vadim’s Barbarella :: 1968

This is my favourite promo shot from the movie. It also happens to be the wallpaper for my Twitter profile.

Before switching careers to interior design, I worked in the music biz as a radio + club DJ and a Music Publicist [indie + major labels]. My DJ name for many years was Barbarella, christened by Neil Tennant of the Pet Shop Boys at an afterhours party in Toronto in the 90’s. I had always loved the campy flick and I thought Fonda looked super hot in it [not to mention I’m a life long fan], so I gladly accepted my new name. To this day, many in the music scene don’t know my “real” name and continue to call me Barbarella, which I can totally live with. :-)

Thanx to facepaintz for posting this photo. Happy to see Barbarella making the Tumblr rounds this evening. You can view the official movie trailer here.

.: brianconnor I see that Stéphanie Marin’s eco.friendly...

Sat, 17 Jan 2009 14:14:00 -0500

.: brianconnor

I see that Stéphanie Marin’s eco.friendly Livingstones are being shared on Tumblr again. I posted info and a variety of pix here, back in March of ‘08. She has some fun and floaty space dividers, too.

The Genesis † House was [controversially] designed by Planda and...

Thu, 15 Jan 2009 02:16:00 -0500

The Genesis † House was [controversially] designed by Planda and built on a cliff in California. The shape was inspired by the cover of an album by a Parisian group called Justice.

Thanx to simko for sharing this incredibly inspiring video of the new Genesis House in California. If you’re a Justice fan, you’ll immediately recognize the white cross that this home’s design was based on. The making of that 3D model took me right back to my school days at Parsons, but I’m pretty sure I’ve never seen AutoCAD used this way before. Seriously. They made AutoCAD look sexy?! A miracle indeed. The editing job on this vid is nothing short of brilliant.

On today, Green Design Girl’s 1 year anniversary on Tumblr, I’m celebrating with Justice. And some very cool architecture. Hit play above + join moi. :-)

Tumblr peeps are early adopters...

Wed, 14 Jan 2009 01:24:00 -0500

Tumblr peeps are early adopters...: Tumblr: The little blogging platform that could. And most...

HAPPY HOLIDAYS from Green Design Girl! A huge thanx to my...

Sun, 21 Dec 2008 16:04:00 -0500

HAPPY HOLIDAYS from Green Design Girl!

A huge thanx to my readers + fellow bloggers for your support and interest in my work and this site over the last year. Green Design Girl will reach its young 1 year mark this January, and even though I don’t always have the time to post as much as I’d like to, this site will indeed carry on. Being a bona fide “blog hobbyist”, it’s all about quality and not quantity when it comes to posting on GDG, so you can bet that whenever I do publish an entry, I’m a true fan of said product, designer or organization. I once read “Friends don’t let friends read bad content.” I should get that printed on a t.shirt.

Currently, I’ve got a backlog of entries that need to be written re: IIDEX/NeoCon ‘08 and a few other green gems that I’ve discovered over the last few weeks. Let’s not even talk about my overflowing inbox… but rest assured, I’ll be getting to all of it, eventually.

For now, enjoy the holidays with your loved ones, my design aficionados. May you have a truly fabulous and successful 2009 ahead.

[photo: Boutique Sofa in “Deer” by Marcel Wanders @ Moooi].

Quik House by Adam Kalkin. Just when I thought I couldn’t...

Sun, 21 Dec 2008 13:41:00 -0500

Quik House by Adam Kalkin.

Just when I thought I couldn’t have a bigger design crush on the master of shipping container homes, I come across these timely gems on Adam Kalkin’s site:

Holiday Songs [which include recordings of Edelweiss both before and after the use of anti-depressants] and an RIP note for Bettie Page, one of my fave iconic ladies, who sadly passed away recently.

For more vids + pix of Kalkin’s work, check out the “Shipping Container Lust” section of my sidebar links, where you can also read about how I got hooked on all things prefab + container.

Revive by Green Solutions @ IIDEX/NeoCon '08

Mon, 17 Nov 2008 20:25:00 -0500

Revive: A Green Solutions Program @ IIDEX/NeoCon Canada 2008 I had an opportunity to meet and...

Top 100 Networks For People Who Want To Change The World

Thu, 13 Nov 2008 04:34:00 -0500

Top 100 Networks For People Who Want To Change The World: Thanx to sunnyspeaks for sharing the above...