COAT HANGER CHAIR - MILAN DESIGN WEEK

I don't know about you but I find my plastic coat hangers snap pretty easily that I am slowly converting them all to timber.  So I dont know how this Coat Check Chair by Joey Zeledon is going to stand (or sit) up to the wear and tear of daily use.   Plus I dont really trust myself not becoming a tangled mess in the hangers on the back.  Funky and colourful idea but I don't see this new design taking off.  Do you?

pic source 1 Design per day

4 WAYS TO RECYCLE YOUR DEAD BIKE

We love the environment, we love being healthy and we love riding our bike so here are 5 ways to recycle your bike and bike parts when you upgrade to that shiny new model.

LIGHTING

Bike chains are usually dirty horrible things that leave grease marks on your legs and a place to get your pant leg caught up in.  Usually you curse at them when they fall off when you cant get the damn thing back on but these chandeliers by Carolina Fontoura Alzaga are stunning.  Not only has she given these much sworn at items a new lease of life but she has created a traditional look by creating  sculptural talking pieces.  They maybe too heavy for delicate interiors but I think they have a place in many modern homes, even warehouses of today.

FURNITURE

Who would have thought bike rims and bike tubes could look so comfortable!  I think I'd like that chair to sit on the side of road races so when some-one breaks down I can ask them to 'throw a rim my way'. On second thoughts, I could end up wearing it after that remark.  Bike Furniture founder Andy Gregg has spent many years on the bike and in bike shops so it looks like he worked out where to unleash his frustration to make beautiful furniture that otherwise would have ended up on the scrap heap.

OUTDOOR FENCING

On a trip to Bright we came along this fence made from recycled parts.  There is a great bike track that cover Wangarratta, Beechworth and Bright so all I can imagine is there were a few of those who abandoned  the trip and decided the wineries or bakeries were a better option.

JEWELERY

I have seen some very ordinary necklaces 

made from a solid bike chain but these pieces 

actually have some style and class to them. 

Re-cycled Accessories are having a special at 

this moment and donating $6 to the Japan relief for 

every pair of earrings sold.

ITEM OF THE WEEK

Sometimes there is a piece of furniture that leaves you breathless for all the wrong reasons.  This lounge chair by Jack Hopkins has been been described by  Todd Merrill Antiques as 'unrestrained artistic expression'.  I just find it creepy and would give me nightmares

$30,000 dollar recycled chair?

On March 12 Simone LeAmon was announced the winner of the Victorian Furniture Design Award. An artist with a raging passion for fast cars and motorbikes presented her Lepidoptera chair, with more layers than a Sara-Lee pie this chair to become the winner over fourteen other designers. The chair was constructed from scrap material from the automotive industry. All materials for free and a bonus of $30,000. I'd like a piece of that! Do you think it is worthy of such a major prize? Reading about Simon's past exhibitions and passion she is a woman who intends to be in the industry for a very long time. My favourite though is her custom designed racing gear featuring graphics and tattoo like art. This is a woman who knows her direction.