Green Design Girl

Marcel Wanders collection for Target. I just wanted to take a...

Thu, 17 Dec 2009 23:16:00 -0500

Marcel Wanders collection for Target.

I just wanted to take a moment to thank you loyal readers, design aficionados and supporters of all things green for continuing to avidly support my work and this site of mine.

Green Design Girl is a labour of love and even though I may not always have the time to contribute as often as I’d like, I will continue to keep it and my mission alive. That mission being to prove that it really is possible to live in a green + healthy environment that’s also modern, sophisticated and of high quality. I’m thrilled to see that the media and consumers alike are finally on board and slowly banishing the image that “green is granola.” It thankfully hasn’t been that way for a long while!

So I wish you all a wonderful holiday season and a fabulous start to the new year. Here’s hoping that 2010 is truly stellar for everyone!

Love Is A Battlefield by Pat Benatar :: 1983

Wed, 16 Dec 2009 19:22:00 -0500

Love Is A Battlefield by Pat Benatar :: 1983

The Toronto Sun :: Oct. 2009 :: Fall Colours + Biodegradable...

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 20:21:00 -0500

The Toronto Sun :: Oct. 2009 :: Fall Colours + Biodegradable Cottage Décor

Back in the Fall of this year, I had the pleasure of collaborating with Special Reporter To Sun Media, Connie Adair, on a couple of articles about sustainable design. I was the featured green design expert and had a great time researching and being interviewed by Connie for these pieces, which first appeared in one of Toronto’s major newspapers, The Toronto Sun, followed by publication in The Edmonton Sun, 24 Hrs Vancouver, The Brantford Expositor and The Midland Free Press.

This first article was published during the first weekend of October. Knowing that many Torontonians take advantage of that last mild-weathered weekend to head North and close up their cottages for the Winter, the idea was to focus on decorative items that could be left behind to biodegrade naturally without polluting the environment — or better yet, left outdoors as treats for wildlife to enjoy while us humans begin our hibernation in the city. While doing so, it was key to incorporate as many of nature’s beautiful Fall colours into the palette.

For a full colour spread of the above article [including photos of some of the products I recommended], you can read and zoom in on the text here. For a better view of the above photo [which features a biodegradable party kit; please read the article for details], click here.

I’ll be posting the second article soon, which has a focus on how to green your new city home in the most modern of ways, which of course, was a super fun and appropriate piece for Green Design Girl to work on.

Lips Like Sugar by Echo And The Bunnymen :: 1987

Mon, 07 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Lips Like Sugar by Echo And The Bunnymen :: 1987

Conversations In Design: A World Without Oil @ Toronto...

Sun, 06 Dec 2009 20:18:00 -0500

Conversations In Design: A World Without Oil @ Toronto International Design Festival [TIDF].

One of the events that I’m looking forward to the most during the Toronto International Design Festival, is Conversations In Design on January 21st. This will mark the inauguration of the much anticipated series, with an all day symposium focusing on imagining a world without oil, its impact on society, and can it actually be done?

Internationally recognized designers, architects, engineers, biologists, energy experts, filmmakers, artists and innovators, including Bruce Mau, Tord Boontje, Fritz Haeg and Dr. Dayna Baumeister will share their practical experiences in sustainable design, and dare to dream of a society that is no longer dependent on oil. I’m excited to hear these leaders challenge the audience to really think outside the box, while providing us with insight to new and alternative practices, materials, technologies and products. Jesse Ashlock, editor-in-chief of New York’s I.D. Magazine, will host this progressive event.

You can see the entire list of prolific guest speakers and purchase tickets for the WWO Symposium here.

Toronto Interior Design Show 2010 :: Sneak Peek Video I...

Sun, 06 Dec 2009 17:06:00 -0500

Toronto Interior Design Show 2010 :: Sneak Peek Video

I recently had the immense pleasure of attending the exclusive IDS Media Launch for Toronto’s upcoming Interior Design Show in January. It was an incredible event, held at the gorgeous Munge//Leung-designed AME, and once again, expertly organized by Toronto lifestyle public relations powerhouse, Faulhaber P.R.

Apart from speaking to an array of brilliantly creative members of the Toronto design scene, I was thrilled to meet one of my design idols, Marcel Wanders of Droog and Moooi fame. More on what the charming Wanders had to say in a future post, along with full details regarding all of the events + speakers at IDS and the much anticipated World Without Oil Symposium.

For now, enjoy the above sneak peek at what we have to look forward to in January. That time of year is usually my busiest, but it’s also one of the most exciting and inspiring. I can hardly wait.

NOW Magazine's Holiday Gift Guide

Sun, 06 Dec 2009 16:34:00 -0500

NOW Magazine's Holiday Gift Guide: Holiday Gift Guide by Toronto’s NOW Magazine. I’m...

Shipping Container City in London, England. Shipping container...

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 00:09:00 -0500

Shipping Container City in London, England.

Shipping container living: The spark that ignited Green Design Girl.

[segment kicks in @ 0:26]

For the full scoop on where, when + why this design girl went green, please check out this article here.

Beauty*2 by Ladytron :: Witching Hour :: 2005

Tue, 01 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0500

Beauty*2 by Ladytron :: Witching Hour :: 2005

Shoppers going green, despite struggling economy.

Sun, 22 Nov 2009 16:46:00 -0500

Shoppers going green, despite struggling economy.: An optimistic article from USA Today.

On a design high

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 15:02:00 -0500

Yes, I’m way overdue for a post on this beloved site of mine. I’ve been a busy Green...

Bobo Wing Chair with Reclaimed Tarp Thanx to designsketchpad for...

Sat, 24 Oct 2009 14:14:00 -0400

Bobo Wing Chair with Reclaimed Tarp

Thanx to designsketchpad for turning me on to Bobo, an Atlanta-based company with a variety of furniture pieces made using reclaimed objects. They’ve given a new twist to several classics, including the Bobo Wing Chair, made with vintage tarp from South American trucks. Also amongst their reclaimed offerings is the clever Pigeon Basket Coffee Table, literally meshing the rustic with the modern.

If you’re a fan of classic, vintage and eclectic pieces in soothing neutral palettes, Bobo is worth a look.

Prefab Love + The Origins of Green Design Girl

Mon, 21 Sep 2009 14:57:00 -0400

Prefab Love + The Origins of Green Design Girl: One of the most popular articles on Green Design...

Dirty Sticky Floors by Dave Gahan of Depeche Mode [The...

Fri, 04 Sep 2009 17:16:00 -0400

Dirty Sticky Floors by Dave Gahan of Depeche Mode [The Passengerz Dirty Club Vocal Mix]

My anthem for the long weekend.

Green Design Girl on HGTV’s Designer Superstar Challenge IV A...

Mon, 24 Aug 2009 17:20:00 -0400

Green Design Girl on HGTV’s Designer Superstar Challenge IV

A group shot of myself [bottom centre] and my fellow contestants.

I just added the Facebook Fan Page widget to the left margin of Green Design Girl’s home page, making it super easy for fellow design lovers to join other creative folks on my newly redesigned Facebook Fan Page. There you’ll find a new Wall of rotating design pix to comment on and a Discussion Board where we ask questions like “Who’s your favourite Designer?” and “When is that Philippe Starck reality show airing in North America?!” [I’m personally dying to see it]. Feel free to jump in and start your own design topics.

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

Boeklampen by Michael Bom of Atelier Bomdesign. The Netherlands...

Mon, 17 Aug 2009 21:05:00 -0400

Atlas lamp by Michael Bom of Bomdesign.

The Atlas book lamp in action.

Blaze

Blaze and its amazing detail.

The elegant Moment 5.

Love this Moment 5 close up.

Moment 6 is possibly my fave.

Tempest casts a beautiful warm glow.

Pegasus. As if on fire + taking flight.

Luce. The sconce fully reinterpreted.

Boeklampen by Michael Bom of Atelier Bomdesign.

The Netherlands based Bomdesign is one of those Dutch companies after my green loving heart. My modern green design loving heart, to be exact. Regular Green Design Girl readers know about my fierce love for the clever masters of Dutch quirk, Droog and Moooi, so it should be no surprise that I am equally smitten with Bomdesign.

Based in Rotterdam, Bomdesign was founded by Michael Bom and Antoniet Deurloo, whose specialty is to take found objects and other used consumer goods and recycle them, converting them into modern, thought provoking pieces, each being truly one of a kind. They’ve been known to use discarded vinyl records, billboards, juice and milk cartons, umbrellas and books… which brings me to this post.

I first saw photos of Michael Bom’s Boeklampen [Book Lamps] floating through the blogosphere in 2007. I remember thinking that his Pegasus model brought to mind the works of one of my favourite lighting designers, Toshiyuki Tani. Fast forward to August 2009: I picked up the new issue of elemente magazine [which has the brilliant, Pritzker Prize winning Architect Zaha Hadid on the cover!], and was thrilled to see a great feature on Bomdesign on page 24. No doubt there will be a renewed interest in these amazing, uniquely handmade book lamps now.

If you have access to the current issue of this Canadian magazine, they’ve got some incredible images of both the Blaze and Tempest models. Michael Bom explains that he developed the book lamp over a 3 year period of experimentation and trial and error, before it evolved into what it is today. He’s always been inspired by “how books are put together, how the architecture of a book makes it really strong and durable.” He’s also keen to “make thrown away material beautiful and useful again.”

Like I said: A modern design company after my green loving heart! I’ll be featuring more works by Bomdesign soon.

In The Round by luflic at Interior Design Show ‘09 and Radiant...

Mon, 10 Aug 2009 17:42:00 -0400

In The Round Chair by luflic

In The Round Chair by luflic

In The Round Table @ IDS Toronto '09

Close up of In The Round Table

Designer Brent Cordner flips tabletop...

...@ Radiant Dark '09 in Toronto...

...to show its beautiful dark side.

In The Round by luflic at Interior Design Show ‘09 and Radiant Dark by MADE.

I’ve been trying to catch up on posts from the first half of 2009, during which I attended several design events and exhibitions that blew my mind [and overloaded my camera!].

luflic, creatively directed by Industrial Designer Brent Cordner, is one of the Toronto design companies that immediately caught my eye at the massive Interior Design Show and the cutting edge Radiant Dark exhibit by MADE.

First off, a mention about the company’s unique and clever name: “Luflic is the Old English word for ‘lovely.’ It is pronounced ‘loo-flick’. It was originally used to describe a desirable or attractive person. Over time it also came to describe material objects, suggesting some similarity in our feelings of attachment to both people and things.” Who knew?! Love it!

On to the company’s smart green philosophy: “Our primary environmental stance is simple: Make furniture that is desirable and durable so there is no reason to replace it or throw it away.”

“The longer our products last, the less we will have to remake things. But just as importantly, it is necessary that people cherish the things that we make so that they are cared for and they remain in use… [so that] They are just as much keepsakes as they are useful pieces of furniture. We are trying to bring back the concept that a piece of furniture can once again become an heirloom.”

In The Round takes its fitting name from the style of knitting that is used to create these signature pieces. Designer Cordner explains that the form “is derived from the use of circular knit as upholstery. The resulting form is a continuous loop, almost an outline of a chair that is composed of void as much as it is of solid.” Furthermore, “Each striped version of the chair is unique since it is made by hand which ensures that the size and placement of colours in the composition of the knit varies from piece to piece.” Thereby ensuring that each of these true conversation pieces is one of a kind.

The “high tech meets old tech” nature of In The Round’s manufacturing process is brilliant and an aspect of this collection that impressed me as much as its finished product. Cordner’s description is just too cool to not share with you here [those of you who love reading about the process will dig this]:

“The chair was conceived as one continuous line so that a single knit sock could be pulled over the foam cushioning. The unconventional appearance of the steel frame contrasts with the traditional craft of its felt covering. The frame is made by a Canadian automotive company to exacting standards with a computer numeric controlled bending machine. We make the felted wool knit ourselves with an eighty year old hand-cranked knitting machine of the type that hasn’t changed in design since the 19th century. These diverse ways of making things come together in the same chair to form a sensibility that is at once new and familiar; a ten thousand year old way of making material combined with a relatively new computer technology.”

A huge thanx to Brent Cordner for taking the time to provide me with such detailed information and for speaking with me about his work. As you can see from the above pix, he was kind enough to actually flip the tabletop to his In The Round Table at the Radiant Dark exhibit, so as to show me the fitting and dramatic “dark side” of his beautiful and versatile creation. This was met with great approval from the guests on opening night, who smiled and cheered Brent and his helping friend on. Not an easy task to flip a heavy and fragile glass tabletop in the midst of hundreds of wine-sipping, design party fiends enjoying a rowdy weekend art prowl! We won’t soon forget it.

[note :: you can pause the slide show at any point to get a closer look]

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::