The Challenges of the Water Hyacinth furniture

These days designers are more and more challenged to find environmentally friendly materials to use indoors and outdoors and water hyacinth furniture seem like the perfect fit. Water Hyacinth weed is plentiful in the rivers of Bangkok and it now is a...

Tiling TIMBER

A few evenings ago, at dinner, I find myself dazing out of the conversation and just looking around at the restaurant I was in. The floor inside was a simple concrete finish but outside the terrace was wood decking. I suddenly realised why I was fixa...

The Science of Renovating Occupied Buildings

It is usually assumed that designers have an easier job renovating a building than designing a new one. Through so many years of doing both new projects as well as renovating others, there is nothing further from the truth. In building renovation we ...

How did the Miss Sissi Lamp become so successful?

The Miss Sissi Lamp designed for Flos is one of the most iconic lamp to ever been produced during the 90’s . This injection molded polycarbonate lamp became a successful product which signified a bold change in the art movement. Flos, a successfu...

Sinking Maldives Survival Plans

The Maldives is sinking, scientists predict rising sea water levels will submerge it by the turn of the century. So if you were the Maldivian government, what would you do to ensure the survival of you nation, your 1,190 islands of white sand and cr...

Sinking Cities

I am sure, like me, you are also following the news of the Maldives islands rapid sinking levels and their soon to be disappearance. Last year, I have seen the horrible flood in Bangkok  the worst I have ever seen in my 25 years living here. I saw t...

The Environmental Cost of New Waterfront Development

Human settlements developed  and expanded  near water for centuries, When roads were primitive, water was a source for food, agriculture, transportation, materials, trade, people well being and prosperity. No wonder that most of the world greatest ...

No more incandescent lights in sight?

Remember my article on the development of lights throughout history? Well these days, one light in particular has been in the news lately, the incandescent light bulb! Few years ago, a ban was invoked at a federal level to many countries of the EU; s...

Bamboo

  The Bamboo plant has been receiving a lot of hype as being  green and sustainable and designers who are eco-conscious have been trying to incorporate this age old plant  into their designs and products. Bamboo has been used in Asian products and...