"Man around South Africa"

So I had one of those coach potato days yesterday and as I sat glued to the BBC lifestyle channel (one of my favourites) I came across a show called "Man around the globe". Here a guy from New York is assigned to a specific country in search of true authentic pieces. But heres the twist... these pieces have to be completely original and fresh, that New Yorkers have NEVER seen before. Country of choice for this episode: none other than beautiful South Africa! Now even though SA has TONS of local talent, this New Yorker was on the hunt for unusual, quirky, cutting edge design. Well, boy did he nail the brief and find just that...:)

True to form, South Africa gave this New Yorker a taste of true raw local talent at its best, proving to be at the forefront of innovation... Green innovation that is. So innovative in fact that Michelle Obama just had to have one of these pieces for her lounge in the white house!

Magpie has been making headways with their hi-low qirky "Bespoke" chandeliers made of recycled plastic bottles and barbie legs and "blomme" pompom- like lightshades.

The range is fun, colourful, ,socially-conscious and creatively- brilliant. Designed for those with a green conscious ness and good sense of humour- I absolutely love it!

Have a closer look... 

Heres my all time favourite... this Blomme lightshade called "chicken bum".... haha 

Design Indaba Expo Coming Soon

The Design Indada kicking off on 26 to 28 February 2010 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre is said to be bigger, better and GREENER this year than ever before! 

A premier showcase of high-end, homegrown design talent, the Design Indaba Expo is the only 100% South African celebration of our country’s best creative talent across all the creative industries – craft, product, industrial, fashion, film, animation, graphic, jewellery, publishing, ceramics, new media and architectural design.  

“With all the excitement around the 2010 year, exhibitors have signed up enthusiastically and are optimistic about South Africa being in the world’s eye,” says Mike Purdham, manager of the Design Indaba Expo. 

Some Eco-designs to look out for…

Reused lights... Philippe Bousquet showing off his new collection of lights, "After Dark". Based on the rules of no welding and no new materials (other than the bulb and wiring).

New made rubbish... I love Heath Nash’s creative innovations like these light shades made from plastic waste. And the fact that hes from the University of Cape Town, well I love him even more:)

For more info on the Design Indaba visit www.designindaba.com

Eco-Glam your Room ... GREEN Style;)

Give your fave old pieces of furniture a new lease on life with these fab GIY (green it yourself) tips.

a bit of sanding, great choice of fabric from the Lou Harvey range and studded embellishments made my old stool stand proud again

This dresser of mine had seen better days, from coffee cup stains to burn marks from my hair iron to scratch marks from my teething puppy ... a RE-INVENTION was needed desperately.

so i "GIY'd" it -

sanding the top back to the original wood, added a touch of varnish and french-techniqued the drawers and legs using eco-friendly water based paint ..... and Voila!

......a Gorgeous Green Room!