One Person’s Trash Is Another Person’s Coffee Table

Chris Schalkx
  • Whether you use them as plant pots, side tables, or catchalls for odd and ends, these playful Afterlife crates by the green-thinking folks behind Supernovas (designed by Odd Matter) are sure to zhuzh up any interior. Because they’re made from recycled plastic such as PET bottles, discarded toys, and water pipes, the color ranges (granite-like grey, electric blue) will change throughout the year depending on the waste streams available. Better yet, when your interior is ready for a redo, you can return the crates or swap them for a different color. $485, Supernovas. <a href="https://supernovas.world/product/crate/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Get it now!" class="link rapid-noclick-resp">Get it now!</a>
  • Working with Corian, a durable surface material used on kitchen counters and in bathrooms, often results in a lot of oddly shaped scraps. London-based design studio GoodWaste saves these leftovers from ending up in landfills by remolding them into sleek flower vases. Available in four different shades of white, they look a bit like raw marble, and the linear grooves and curvy concaves make every piece unique. $215, Selfridges. <a href="https://www.selfridges.com/US/en/cat/goodwaste-bra-corian-vase-25cm_R03649431/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Get it now!" class="link rapid-noclick-resp">Get it now!</a>
  • Working as a designer in the eyewear industry, Yair Neuman witnessed firsthand how many dummy lenses end up in landfills and incinerators—a small optician’s shop discards about 200 lenses every week. By compressing and molding these lenses into whimsical pendant lights, he gives this high-quality waste material a second lease on life. $665, Harth. <a href="https://harth.space/product/detail/new-lens-light-heads-lamp" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Get it now!" class="link rapid-noclick-resp">Get it now!</a>
  • They feel like wool and they look like wool, so none of your guests will guess that these hand-woven rugs by Claire Gaudion are actually made from hundreds of recycled plastic bottles. They’re available in a range of patterns (from diamonds to herringbone) and fade-resistant colors (from denim blue to muted grey), with a fair-trade certificate as an additional feel-good bonus. $520, Claire Gaudion. <a href="https://www.clairegaudion.com/collections/recycled-plastic-bottle-rugs/products/zala-denim-recycled-rug" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Get it now!" class="link rapid-noclick-resp">Get it now!</a>
  • This iconic chair proves that upcycling waste material isn’t some newfangled trend: American furniture producer Emeco has been turning salvaged aluminum into sturdy chairs since 1944. These days, the company also creates seats from recycled plastic Coca-Cola bottles and stools out of “eco-concrete” made from recycled glass. $595, Design Within Reach. <a href="https://www.dwr.com/kitchen-dining-chairs-benches/1006-navy-chair/2122.html?lang=en_US" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Get it now!" class="link rapid-noclick-resp">Get it now!</a>
  • There’s something extremely joy-sparking about these side tables by Central St Martin’s graduate Charlotte Kidger. Made from recycled polyurethane foam dust (an industrial by-product) cast in resin, they resemble crumbling Roman columns (albeit very funky ones) and can be customized upon request in a range of shapes and Pop-like colors. $3063, Pamona. <a href="https://www.pamono.com/industrial-craft-table-02-by-charlotte-kidger" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Get it now!" class="link rapid-noclick-resp">Get it now!</a>
  • These wavy tabletop lights by Danish design duo Lumière Bricoleur look more like snazzy art installations than living room fixtures, but they find their humble origins in the streets and scrapyards of Copenhagen. Created from salvaged copper, each piece is made by hand and is unique (and therefore fully customizable), and they give off a cozy, bonfire-like glow when turned on. Trash has never looked so chic. $489, Lumiere Bricoleur. <a href="https://www.lumierebricoleur.com/shop/kobberlampe" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Get it now!" class="link rapid-noclick-resp">Get it now!</a>
  • A hosiery store is an unlikely place to shop for furniture, but Stockholm-based tights brand Swedish Stockings offers just that. As a way to curb the alarming amount of waste created by discarded hose, it teamed up with furniture designer Gustaf Westman to create a series of statement tables from old stockings and recycled fiberglass. Depending on the size, each marble-mimicking table consists of 80 to 350 pairs of tights and is suitable for both indoor and outdoor use. $471, Swedish Stockings. <a href="https://swedishstockings.com/collections/innovation-tables/products/rachel-innovations-table" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Get it now!" class="link rapid-noclick-resp">Get it now!</a>
  • It’s hard to imagine that these squiggly chairs by Dirk van der Kooij were plastic fridge interiors in a previous life. The Dutch designer uses a 3-D printing robot to “paint” each chair, layer-by-layer, over the span of three-and-a-half hours. With such a commitment to a fully sustainable production process, even the plastic offcuts are repurposed into quirky coat hangers. $586, Frozen Fountain. <a href="https://frozenfountain.com/products/copy-of-chubby-chair-ember?_pos=4&_sid=46b770a09&_ss=r" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Get it now!" class="link rapid-noclick-resp">Get it now!</a>
  • These chic, brass-accented side tables by New York–based studio Slash Objects are clad in recycled rubber for a terrazzo-like look. With 280 million tires being discarded every year, there’s plenty of rubber to recycle, and the company uses the same material for trivets, mouse pads, and storage baskets at slightly wallet-friendlier prices. $1056, Slash Objects. <a href="https://www.slashobjects.com/collections/rubber-cyl-tables/products/rubber-cyl-royal?variant=31556877910114" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" data-ylk="slk:Get it now!" class="link rapid-noclick-resp">Get it now!</a>
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Afterlife Crate by Odd Matter

Whether you use them as plant pots, side tables, or catchalls for odd and ends, these playful Afterlife crates by the green-thinking folks behind Supernovas (designed by Odd Matter) are sure to zhuzh up any interior. Because they’re made from recycled plastic such as PET bottles, discarded toys, and water pipes, the color ranges (granite-like grey, electric blue) will change throughout the year depending on the waste streams available. Better yet, when your interior is ready for a redo, you can return the crates or swap them for a different color. $485, Supernovas. Get it now!

Furniture made from waste materials just keeps getting better—and easier to buy

Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest

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