modern clock designs

source

Clocks are a functional necessity in our homes and offices, so why not use them as an opportunity to add an interesting design element? There are some great modern clock options available and also excellent ideas on how to make your own if you are so inclined. If you have a great clock, turn it into the focal point of your room! 

West Elm

Amazon

Etsy

Etsy

Indigo

DIY painted record clock via Etsy

Clockshop

revivehome.com

DIY frame clock via Dutch by Design

eco-chic products from recycled materials

Happy Wednesday all. Below are my latest cool green design product finds. Enjoy!

This pendant light is made out of used plastic bags. Other great products as well from deepdarkafrica.com.

This beautiful table runner from designideas.net is made from scrap plastic.

Cool way to upcycle a milk crate. By workshopped.com.

 Great bamboo office accessories from Lipper International.

Cool upcycled furniture, household and office stuff from Hipcycle.com.

guest post: Design Shuffle

Design Shuffle is guest posting for me today with some good ideas for sustainable design. Be sure to check them out.

Hi, I'm Susi, a writer from Design Shuffle, a fantastic social media site that promotes designers from around the world. I am so happy to be visiting refresheddesigns today. I love that refresheddesigns also showcases designers and interior designs from around the world—very cool. My guest post is all about fashionable interiors with a green sensibility. Being fashionable and green is easy today with new products that are organic and eco-friendly mixed with vintage and antique pieces that are the ultimate in recycled goods. Enjoy!

Green sensibility is so fashionable in this interior. Vintage is a great way to be green; it is often better made than new. Plus, vintage has such great style.

If contemporary is your style, it's easy to be fashionably green. Many contemporary furniture and home décor designers are consciously choosing to go organic and green in their designs.

If you are looking to buy new furniture, chose brands and designers who are committed to green design. These fashionable furnishings are by Kristin Drohan.

Kitchen designs offer a great place to introduce green sensibility. From the materials you use for counter tops, cabinets and floors, to the plates and serving ware, there are so many gorgeous, fashionable green options.

These pillows are definitely fashionable with a green sensibility. They are “recycled” Hermes scarves turned into chic accent pillows. Tres chic!

Using natural elements, like wood and rock, in creative ways can make a fashionable green design statement in your home. Look for interesting ways to bring nature into your interiors.

For a fashionable bedroom design with green sensibility, look for organic bedding. Area rugs out of natural materials like cotton and wool, or recycled materials make for fashionable green floor covering.

Part of being green is consuming locally. Using materials and crafts people local to your area is an eco-friendly and fashionable way to incorporate green sensibility into your interiors. 

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Are you fashionably green? To check out more, visit Design Shuffle, where you can gather inspirations and connect with Boston interior designers, San Francisco interior designer and more!

find it: eco-friendly wallpaper

As a follow up to yesterday's post on my new-found love of wallpaper, here is a roundup of eco-friendly wallpapers to try. These are great because they are chemical-free and are made of natural fibres. And environmentally friendly wallpaper is paper, not vinyl, and therefore better for landfills. Plus they're so cute. 

Check out the sources of these ones at ReNest:

These colourful choices for environmentally friendly wallpaper are available at Canadian online company Saplings and offer chemical-free water-based pigment dyes.

Graham & Brown offers an eco-collection that is available online and at Home Depot. 

Home Depot also offers eco-friendly wallpaper from British Design Talent that uses100% waterbased inks, no VOC's and comes in compost-able packaging.

Another Canadian company offering green wallpaper products is Charles Rupert Designs.

Mod Green Pod offers rolls of brilliant graphic prints using water-based inks on certified organic-based cotton fabric.

Madison and Grow papers are hand silk-screened in California with water-based ink. 

So with all of these selections, it is getting easier to find a look you want while still being green. Will you go to eco-wallpapers now? 

i'm obsessed with...wallpaper

My mom will get a kick out of this. Me, the wallpaper-hater, now obsessed with the sticky vinyl-coated paper that is piled 10 layers deep in every room of my childhood home. Mom has always loved wallpaper, and changed it often when I was young. I hated cutting it, hanging it and peeling it. And I usually hated the small flowery design on it (though I remember a pink one that I adored in my own bedroom).  I swore I would never have wallpaper in my house. That was then. Now, I can't get enough of the fantastic patterns and textures that make my heart jump when I see them. Maybe it is part of my love of all things retro, but wallpaper has definitely made a comeback and I am buying in. Take a look at some of these fantastic walls and tell me you don't agree!

Sarah Richardson

Graham & Brown

Etsy

via Skona Hem

via Room Envy

via HGTV

For more sustainable designing with wallpaper, check out tomorrow's post on environmentally-friendly options. Even more to love! 

room of the week: the classic kitchen

This picture of a classic off-white kitchen is an old-y-but-goody. The cabinets are simple shaker style, the farmhouse bib sink adds immediate charm and the beadboard backsplash is easy, inexpensive and never goes out of style. Investing in a little bling through fantastic drawer pulls, upgraded faucet  and stainless steel appliances completes the look. The walls stay an off-white to keep the soft and clean look. Hits of nature-inspired greens provide the accent colour.  This is a kitchen that will stand the test of time. 

Image from Better Homes and Gardens.

global design inspiration: Italy

From time to time I showcase interiors from designers around the world in order to be inspired by trends, concepts and cultures different from our own. Please let me know if you like this idea and find it useful in giving you ideas to help break out of a rut.

These beautiful spaces are by Italian designer Carola Vannini, who embraces clean lines, natural elements and modernism, but with a sense of history and Italian heritage. I love the contemporary feel and the wood beams and brick and stone elements.