Funky Find of the Week: Alberto Frias' Sleeping Pod

Designed by Alberto Frias, this modern illuminated sleeping pod, called The Transport, uses led lights by Color Kinetics. It will be available at the CA Boom show in Santa Monica (see earlier post) for a mere 10,000$

To learn more about the Transport, click here.

Alberto Frias

Elephant Poo Paper Products For You!

While surfing the net, I found this unusual product via one of my favorite sites, Notcot.

Paper products actually made from Elephant Poo. That's right...Efelump Dung Journals and Notecards.

How do they do it?

The making of paper starts with the collection and processing of the dung pulp. Elephant dung is typically full of short to medium grained fibrous materials from the elephants diet which when processed makes excellent paper:

• We collect naturally dried elephant dung from elephant conservation parks and bring it back to our paper-making factory.

• We then pre-rinse the elephant dung with water, leaving only the fibrous materials from the grasses, bamboo & fruits they've eaten.

• Afterwards, we place the fibers into a giant pot of boiling water to ensure the fibers are super clean. After this thorough cleaning, any color that we may want to add can be added.

• Natural fibers from banana trees & pineapples are added to the dung mixture so the paper will be thicker & stronger.

• Once this is all mixed together, we separate the moist fibers into small “cakes' or “wafers” of about 300-400 grams each.
• The cakes are spread evenly over a mesh-bottomed tray measuring about 60cm by 90cm.

• The tray is leaned up against a tree, angled toward the sun and allowed to dry naturally for a few hours.

• Once dry, we peel the sheet of paper from the mesh tray and start making Poo Poo Paper products.

This is how we made the hand made paper stationary and our how to make recycled paper process!


above: Journals


above: Notecards

A Brief History Of The Elephant:
The elephant can be traced back 26 million years when there were many species that had similar characteristics as today's elephants. Today, only two living species remain: the African Elephant and the Asian Elephant.

Elephants have been used in various capacities by humans over the years. They wee used in the military and for heavy labor, such as uprooting trees and moving logs. They have also played a strong role in religion: a white elephant is considered holy in Thailand ; Ganesh, the Hindu God of wisdom, has an elephant's head.

Today, elephants are facing numerous threats: the disappearance of natural habitats due to human activity, and poaching for their ivory tusks, meats and hides, to name a few. Many experts believe there is little future for the elephant outside protected areas.

Elephants used to exist in great numbers across Africa and parts of Asia but today these gentle giants are endangered. Rampant ivory poaching from 1979-89 more than halved Africa 's wild elephant populations from 1.4 million to a mere 600,000. Today, numbers may be as low as 400,000. In Asia , it is estimated that no more than 40,000 Asian elephants remain in the wild.


above: Stationery

The answers to commonly asked questions:
Question #1: Do your products smell?

This is by far the most asked question we receive! Our products do not smell at all...not like poo anyways! Our products smell like normal stationery type products although we have been experiementing with adding some nice aromas to our poo papers. We've had requests from cinnamon, lemon and coffee scented papers......we're working in this!!!!!

Our products don't smell because we allow the fresh elephant poo poo to completely dry up first then we thoroughly rinse and wash the elephant dung and all we're really left with are the fibres from the vegetation that the elephant didn't digest. That stuff doesn't stink!

Question #2: How many journals can you make from an average piece of elephant poo?

We can make about 25 large sheets of paper from a single piece (or turd) of elephant poo poo!!! That translates into about 10 standard sized journals including the front and back covers! Neat, huh!?!?!?

Question #3: Do you have other types of products?

Currently, we have over 150 unique items in our collection. Most of those items you cannot see on our website and need to go to the stores that carry our products for you to purchase. These products also include picture frames, photo albums, book marks, small storage boxes for keepsakes, gift bags and wine bags in addition to the many styles of journals, noteboxes, greeting cards etc. that we make and sell. We have many new products coming down the chute over the next few months and into 2007 so check back here regularly!

Get it here. Your source for hand made paper stationary.

Design You Could Just Eat Up: New Plasticware For Spring

Spring has sprung and that means it time for picnics and outdoor entertaining!

Good design has crept into the plasticware market and here are just a few fabulous finds.

Clockwise from upper left: Pandora Designs ornate plasticware, available in clear as well as other colors, Heavy Stainless-steel looking plasticware, Philipe Starck's fabulous new LUX dinnerware, and The Snap-a-Party by Fred.

Click on the item to be taken directly to the place of purchase.

Let Me Float This By You: Structures On Water

Okay, so the world is running out of room. Where to put the next wave of luxury hotels and offices? Why not afloat in the middle of our vast oceans?

Seems that the visionaries at Oceanic Creations already has this under development.

Temporarily named The Maya, this floating hotel is being built in Bulgaria and will be towed to Cancun. See the computer renderings below.


Above: The Maya Hotel as envisioned by OCCT

Above: The Maya Hotel at night

The following text is from their site:
"OCCT, Oceanic-Creations Composite Technology, is a State-of-the-Art Construction Technology exclusively developed for the Swedish Royal Navy by the best engineers and scientists available.

The Oceanic-Creations Composite Technology represents a new generation of technological evolution, as well as exciting new ways to apply well-proven construction technologies. Since it was originally developed for military use it has been tested for reliability, strength and safety far beyond what is required in the civilian market.

The products offered by Oceanic-Creations are constructed with a virtually non-ageing, environmentally neutral and inert Composite Material and therefore requires almost negligible maintenance.



Above: Floating Offices; the future as seen by OCCT

OCCT offers a considerable lower LCC (Life Cycle Cost) compared to traditional and old expensive constructions in steel and concrete.

Oceanic-Creations was formed in 1986 with the strive to secure the rights to use the revolutionary composite technology that now forms the base for the company.

Oceanic-Creations AB consists of business concept developers and likes to emphasize the fact that the company is a small size company with astonishing views, competence and integrity.


Above: Chairman of the board of OCCT, Prof. Christer Karlsson

The business profile of Oceanic-Creations reflects the ambition to maintain the efficiency of a small-scale organisation combined with the strength of a competent flexible international organisation, build network and international contacts.

Oceanic-Creations have striking visions and projects with large potentials, projects that lay a stable foundation for a long-term steady growth.

The activities are predominantly in the marine field but not only floating objects. The concepts and the business structures created by Oceanic-Creations are based on either unique knowledge, materials, innovations or a combination of one or more thereof.

Oceanic-Creations composite material is made of inert material and works in harmony with nature and will through Oceanic-Creations products through its technology will help protect people, properties and ecological values."

Wow, seems the future is here. (or maybe not. Since this post, the original Oceanic Creations has filed for bankruptcy).