Likes & Likes

Putting spent soda bottles to good use! Made from exactly one hundred and eleven recycled plastic Coke containers, the 111 Navy Chair is the result of a collaboration between Emeco and Coca-Cola, available only through retailer Design Within Reach.

Coke describes the collaboration as such:

The goal of the 111 Navy project was to alter consumer behavior by illustrating the value of rPET with beautifully designed and everyday products - ultimately encouraging more recycling.

The plastic version of the iconic 1006 Navy Chair, introduced in 1944, took four years of research and testing in order to retain the same attributes of the original version. Engineering and tooling design began in 2008, with the first prototypes being made in 2009.

For the first time, the chair will be available in a range of “earth inspired” colors, as opposed to the standard aluminum of the original.

Find out more at the collaboration microsite here, and view DWR’s page here.

I’ve always had a soft spot for New Balance sneaks, especially after just recently retiring my last pair to house/yard duty after many years of faithful service. I’ve always been partial to their darker, more subtle colorways.

Just saw that NB is set to debut a new take on their classic 574, using an innovative and enviromentally-friendly construction method:

Used for technical clothing, tents and industrial fabrics, sonic welding is an environmentally friendly alternate to sewing or gluing. The process of heat and pressure application to the seams of pattern pieces fuses the shoe together cutting out waste and crafting the sonic welded shoe to be airtight and watertight.

This interesting technique gives the shoes a slick, one-piece appearance. I’m definitely down for trying on a pair…

What happens to the banners that hung from streetlamps in Center City, welcoming visitors to Philadelphia and promoting cultural events? They usually pile up in storage. But now, Philadelphia’s Center City District has found a way to recycle them as hand-made tote bags - no two are alike.

All manufacturing is done right here in Philadelphia by two nonprofit work rehabilitation programs: the banners are cleaned by Philacor, a vocational program in the Philadelphia Department of Corrections, and then another non-profit vocational program, Baker Industries, makes the cleaned banners into the totes.

Currently, the bags are available at Open House at 107 South 13th Street, the Pennsylvania General Store at the Reading Terminal Market, and the PAFA online and retail store at 128 North Broad Street.

A friend forwarded this to my attention. It’s a new shop called Big Green Earth Store on Philadelphia’s South Street where you can bring your own empty bottles and refill them with locally-produced Sun & Earth (of Ben & Jerry’s co-founder Ben Cohen fame) natural cleaners. You pay by the ounce. So far the list includes laundry detergent, dishwashing liquid and packs, all-purpose cleaner, glass cleaner, fabric softener and hand soap. For more information. check out their website.

I might be biased because Polar Bears are probably my favorite animal, but this public sculpture by artist Mark Coreth for the World Wildlife Org (WWF) is pretty cool.

Presented last week in Copenhagen, the life-size polar bear is sculpted out of an 11 ton block of ice, aiming to create awareness on the human impact on the climate.

As it melts (it is expected to take about 10 days), the skeleton made of bronze appears, and I cry a little on the inside.