recycling

Tiny homes, but not as you know them: architecture for the imagination

Four years ago Elizabeth Woollard’s trip to France and Italy inspired her with visions of old architecture, flaking paint, interesting doors and vibrant colours. From this fertile ground her creative outlet Tiny House was born. Why houses? Elizabeth says we often find ourselves pondering “I wonder who lives there, I wonder what they do?” She sees her tiny creations, made from recycled New Zealand timber, as big builders of the imagination.

Respecting our resources: the Christchurch team working to save timber from landfill

A small but dedicated salvage team based in Christchurch, The Silvan started out life as an art gallery and café. When their building was lost in the 2011 earthquakes, the team came back fighting, shifting their focus to saving and repurposing beautiful timbers, hand salvaged from damaged buildings. Founders Debra and GT believe in minimising waste and reusing everything they can to make pieces that are practical, beautiful, and full of soul.

Kahurangi style – the creative and sustainable jewellery of a Mohua maker

Jewellery maker Anna Quartly of Pigeon Thomas says that the inspiration for her work comes from living off-grid and self sufficiently. With the beautiful natural vista of Kahurangi National Park visible from her Golden Bay/Mohua home, she finds she is able to stay focused on what is important. She loves to create pieces that are special – one of a kind – working with natural materials that are simple, pure, and renewable.

“Starts with a drawing, ends with an object.” Short stories from Bearwood Workshop

Joe Wright of Bearwood Workshop handcrafts his beautiful wooden homewares and sculpture – all made from sustainable and recycled New Zealand native timber – from a little tractor shed in Glendhu Bay overlooking Lake Wanaka. After years of working as a designer in many different disciplines, running his own consultancy and clocking up the air miles with large corporations as clients, he decided to shed it all and go back to his roots. His days are now spent following his passion: designing and making simple, beautiful, sustainable items that will stand the test of time.