Alexander Girard Prints on Plywood. Classic Graphic Art Goes Green With PLYprints.

For the first time since 1972 Alexander Girard's iconic graphics are now available as wall art, screened onto 14"x14" panels of Columbia's formaldehyde-free maple faced hardwood plywood.



The PLYprints program draws on Girard's history of printing directly on wood in such places as the Compound restaurant in Santa Fe.




Eight of Alexander Girard's classic designs are available on 14" x 14" plywood panels, including two NEW designs: Old Sun and New Sun. Each graphic panel features an iconic Alexander Girard image hand screenprinted with water-based inks on a US-made sustainably-harvested maple plywood panel.




All PLYprints include hanging hardware and have a spacer on the back that allows the panel to float off the wall. The vibrant artworks mix bold colors with the natural graining of the real wood veneers. The wood panels are responsibly made with Columbia Forest Products' soy-based, formaldehyde free PureBond® technology to create a safe and green wood based product for your home.



Three more of Girard's classic designs are available on larger 16" x 20" plywood panels, with wall hanging hardware included. This new size makes a bigger design statement with the same sustainable properties as the smaller wall hangings.



A "Give Love" gift set of six 3" x 3" blocks is also available, all with Girard's iconic "LOVE" design screened in red. Break up the set and "give love" to everyone you love. Alexander Girard (1907 - 1993) created iconic mid-century modern designs for such companies as Herman Miller and Braniff International Airways. His work married the timeless lines of the modern with the playfulness and bold color of Latin American folk art.

The estate chose to work with Columbia Forest Products because PureBond is the only widely available cost-neutral formaldehyde-free plywood panel. Girard had a long history of environmental concerns, especially about pollution, and PureBond technology offers a way to mitigate indoor air problems by eliminating the risk of toxic and carcinogenic VOC's that can be released by composite wood panels made with urea formaldehyde resins.

About Columbia Forest Products:
Founded in 1957, Columbia Forest Products is North America's largest manufacturer of hardwood plywood and hardwood veneer, a leader in sustainable forestry, and innovator of formaldehyde-free PureBond technology.

Columbia's decorative interior veneers and panels are used in cabinetry, furniture, architectural millwork and commercial fixtures. Employee-owned and based in Greensboro, North Carolina, Columbia employs more than 2,000 and operates facilities throughout the United States and Canada, and an operational network which spans the globe.

PLYprints Concept:
The PLYprints concept was developed in cooperation with Eric Pfeiffer of PfeifferLab, a San Francisco-based design and branding studio. PfeifferLab relies on Eric's penchant for simplicity of form to create useful and elegant solutions for everyday living. It's this pure design ethos, coupled with a casual sensibility that results in timeless objects rooted in a deep understanding of materials and message.

Learn more here.

Swarovski Amplify - 6 New Glowing Lanterns By Yves Behar's Fuse Project.

The AMPLIFY chandelier’s aim is to put the Swarovski crystal effect into the hands of more people through the simple construction, easily accessible light source and sustainable materials.

Designer Yves Behar and his Fuse Project designed 6 different shaped lamps, each one carefully crafted to maximize refractions on the inner surfaces. This effect can be seen on the faceted shade material, thus emulating the cut and reflective nature of the crystal inside. Each chandelier becomes its own large glowing crystal.




While the Fuse Project's previous large scale lighting sculptures have showcased the crystal in a grand scale, with this latest project they wanted to bring the notion of accessibility and sustainability to crystal lighting.

Traditional chandeliers are made of numerous lights and crystals, they wanted to change this equation: 1 crystal + 1 low energy LED light + a faceted paper shade = AMPLIFY.



Resulting in multiple beautiful reflections and rainbow color bursts… Just what is expected from crystal, but this time the effect is amplified to get the most out of just one crystal.



AMPLIFY is a beautiful single crystal light, or it can be grouped to create a bigger effect.




Each of the six chandeliers will be available in production from Swarovski in the next year. To continue to amplify the concept of accessible crystal, each of the six unique lantern shapes are housed in a flat package that echoes the shape of the chandelier it contains:

The packaging graphics are simple and illustrative to reflect the different shade shapes and components contained inside.



Fuse Project
Swarovski

Teepees & Cabins For Your Feline Friends From Loyal Luxe.

Simple and affordable ways to give your finicky feline a home of which she can be proud. Loyal Luxe designs and offers flat-packed, easy to assemble cat homes made of recyclable cardboard in the shape of Teepees and Cabins. And yes, they sell the faux bearskin rug, too.

Native American Teepee and Faux Bearskin Rug:


Canadian Cabin:




Modern and rustic simultaneously, the cute abodes- suitable for cats, kittens or even a chihuahua- come with additional adornments and can be easily customized.





Loyal Luxe was founded in 2008 by Maud Beauchamp and Marie-Pier Guilmain, two industrial designers and pet lovers who graduated from Université de Montréal. Born from the idea that products for domestic animals deserved to be different, they knew that people and their animals would be excited by the prospect of products that were more refined and daring, by products that were a perfect match with their tastes and the interior design of their home.



Buy them here

The First 100% FSC-Certified Wood Bicycle in the U.S. From Renovo & Collins

above: the Renovo R4 Pursuit model made with FSC-certified CollinsWood.

The Collins Companies has just announced that it has commissioned the first 100% FSC-certified bicycle in the nation. In case you were wondering, FSC stands for Forest Stewardship Council.

The bike, manufactured by Renovo Hardwood Bicycles, is an “R4 Pursuit” model that features a stiff, powerful and lightweight frame. All of Renovo’s bikes are custom-made – adjusting the stiffness and ride quality to the customer’s individual riding style and weight.

Renovo is one of the few companies in the world that manufactures wood bicycles (but not the only one, be sure to see Woody Bicycles ) and the only one making them with hollow frames.

Here's a few of Renovo's beautiful wood bikes and frames made with Black Cherry, Hard Maple, Birch, Hickory, Padauk, Sapele, Laminated Bamboo and exotic woods like Purple Heart, Bubinga and Wenge:








“I am proud to have used 100% FSC-certified wood on this particular bike,” stated Ken Wheeler, owner, Renovo Hardwood Bicycles. “We utilized a species combination of CollinsWood® from the Collins Pennsylvania Forest including; Black Cherry, Hard Maple, and Birch.”






Collins had this bike commissioned for one of their employees, to demonstrate their continued commitment to this mission. “Although wood bicycles are still in their infancy, we are constantly exploring new ways to have CollinsWood incorporated into everyday products and we want our customers to explore new uses,” said Cameron Waner, marketing coordinator for The Collins Companies. Waner continues, “Specifying FSC-certified wood in their projects is one of the most powerful things our customers can do to change the way wood products are harvested and sold around the world.”

The bike made its worldwide debut at the Greenbuild International Conference in Chicago, on November 17-19, 2010.

Renovo Bikes