Fall 2012

Eco-Choice Awards By Sue Marquette Poremba

Most Innovative

Winner – Flora flower vase from Iskin (Buenos, Aires, Argentina)
iskin.com.ar

Iskin is an Argentinean company with a strong emphasis on design. The company specializes in contemporary jewelry, using materials like leather, felt, rubber, wood and wool to integrate art with design.

Gabriela Iskin, the company’s designer, has always placed an emphasis on designing versatile jewelry pieces and her foray into other ranges of products also implements this philosophy. The winner of this edition’s Most Innovative Award, the Flora vase, makes an empty soda or water bottle not only versatile but also a work of art.

The product gives new use to empty water or soda bottles by transforming them into attractive flower vases. It is made of 100% organic wool sourced from local farms, and hand-stamped with water-based ink. The Flora vase is simply sewn, making it easy to disassemble for recycling.

NOTABLES

Mirror sieve from Europe2 You (Roswell, GA)
europe2you.com

This product was created from found wood sieves that were used in the early-mid 1900s for sifting flour. Broken screens are replaced with distressed mirrors and sustainable willow branch to repurpose this item into a unique tray or decorative wall art. Europe2You’s intricate and extensive sourcing network has helped build relationships and create jobs which contribute to individual towns, villages and communities throughout the continent.

Woven paper ribbon from Tesoros Trading Company (Austin, TX)
tesoros.com

This product repurposes discarded paper from an environment in which it would normally be burned or thrown away. The ribbon is a continuous strand of reused paper which can easily be recycled and pulped without disassembly. Tesoros works exclusively with suppliers that pay artisans and workers a fair wage for their work.

Sue Marquette Poremba

Sue Marquette Poremba is a freelance writer based in State College, PA. She specializes in technology, engineering, energy, and IT security topics. She has also published over a dozen essays and is the author of a book about the Philadelphia Phillies.