Sustainable homewares made on a corner block

Heart-warming beauty lies in businesses built from humble beginnings and handmade products crafted with care. Natalie Lane who has turned her passion project into a thriving business from a corner block in Brisbane has never looked back.

After returning from backpacking around India, Natalie printed her travel photos into an album to relive the moments from her trip. Years later, she rediscovered the album on a bookshelf and was surprised at how few times she had viewed it. Flicking through the pages, Natalie found it hard to pick only a couple of photos to frame, and wished to display the whole album and change the page at any time. Within that split second, the idea for a book frame was born.

Formally an industrial designer, Natalie combined her skills with her environmental passion to design an artisan range of sustainable frames. “I was eager to work in a business where values of respecting the environment would be part of the company culture and would be a guiding light for decision making - so I started one,” she says. After developing a successful prototype, Natalie launched her environmentally sustainable business, Corner Block Studio in 2015 with her debut product The Book Frame - a wooden adjustable hanging frame to display an open book. Soon after, The Record Jacket Frame and Card Frame evolved.

Living sustainably has always been an integral part of Natalie’s life and instilling environmental values into every aspect of her business is no exception. Natalie sources two groups of timbers for making the frames, recycled hardwood and new pine. She works with experienced timber mills to acquire high quality reclaimed timber from de-commissioned buildings including bridges and homes, and process them to premium quality standards. “Using recycled timbers is not an easy option, we choose to use it anyway because we think it’s important to protect our bush lands and forests,” Natalie explains. Every hardwood frame is designed to showcase the timbers natural characteristics and details of its former life such as small nail holes or a squiggle left by a creature. “It’s a joy to discover these unique features as we make each frame,” she says.

Using her business to share her environmental values, Natalie is careful about the materials she chooses and aims to create modest, long lasting designs with minimal impact on the planet.  Natalie chooses to make her products from timber for its natural, re-purposing and decomposing qualities. “Timber is not energy-intensive to process, compared with alternatives such as plastic and metal, and net carbon dioxide intake of a hoop pine plantation is of great benefit,” Natalie explains.

The future is exciting for Corner Block Studio as Natalie works on designing and creating prototypes for new products. While she is gathering feedback, choosing materials and preparing to hand-make the first release in early 2018, we’re eagerly waiting with anticipation.

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These eathically made sustainable undies are mighty good

Imagine if your undies were ethically made, environmentally friendly and came with a carbon offset. This was the idea for Hannah Parris and Elena Antoniou, founders of Mighty Good Undies, an ethical and sustainable underwear brand that supports communities and offsets carbon emissions from the production of each garment. 

With a decade of experience in public relations working with many brands from luxury to fast fashion, Elena started to feel there was something devastatingly wrong with the whole system and wanted to do something about it. She was drawn to develop an ethical brand that not only produced good quality garments but empowered consumers to make better choices for the planet.

Hannah, an accomplished social science researcher specialising in environmental impact, was already working in the ethical textile space and had made strong connections with internationally recognised organic and Fairtrade suppliers and production mills. She had met with organic cotton farmers and makers, and through this was able to see a positive side of the fashion industry where the production of environmentally friendly garments could sustainably support its producers and suppliers. Together, the powerhouse duo set out to create an environmentally friendly brand that encompassed high ethical standards, and in April 2016 Hannah and Elena launched Mighty Good Undies. 

With transparency at their core focus, Hannah and Elena choose to only work with trustworthy and certified farmers and manufactures to produce their garments. Their manufacture, Rajlakshmi Cotton Mills, has a partnership with cotton producers, Chetna Organics, and together the companies have Fairtrade and Organic cotton (GOTS) certifications for all Mighty Good garments. Their Fairtrade factory commits to Fairtrade benefits for all workers in addition to offering subsidised housing, educational fees for all children up to university level, free transportation to and from work, subsidised meals, medical care, interest free loans, annual bonuses and guaranteed yearly pay rises. “When you support a Fairtrade brand, it means quite simply someone was paid a living wage in a safe environment,” Elena explains. 

Hannah and Elena strive to be as conscious as they can in every decision they make. One of their core philosophies is to not use plastic packaging, instead they use certified organic cotton draw sting bags. In addition to this, they have matched up each pair of Mighty Good Undies with an internationally certified carbon emissions offset. For every garment sold, Mighty Good company purchase 1 kilogram of carbon emissions. “This is just another small way of us trying to look at our business holistically and mitigate any damage we may cause through our business,” Hannah says.

Eager to expand their range and tackle other eco-issues, Elena and Hannah are in the process of developing a washing bag that mitigates microfibres in the washing machine, a problem that has increased with the excessive use of synthetic fabrics. What mighty good work!

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Tim Silverwood - a passionate advocate for protecting our oceans

Growing up in an environmentally friendly household, Tim Silverwood developed a keen interest in sustainability throughout high school and later furthered his environmental pursuits at university and through a career in conservation. Tim spent many years throughout his twenties travelling, but it was a trip around Asia that awakened him to the true impact of plastic pollution and waste. “I was shocked and devastated to witness rivers choking on trash, beaches covered in pollution and waste being dumped directly into mountain streams. I realised that waste and pollution were serious issues and only getting worse, I wanted to do something to turn things around,” says Tim.

An avid surfer, Tim felt compelled to help the ocean he loves so dearly. In 2009, Tim’s desire to change the state of plastic pollution coincidentally lead him to two like-minded people, Amanda Marechal, and Roberta Dixon-Valk. Amanda, a keen surfer, initially came up with the idea of collecting rubbish after each surf and, after consulting with her friend Roberta, a marine ecologist, together they formed the concept of Take 3. After Tim was introduced to the pair in 2009, they decided to officially register and launch the organisation in 2010.

Witnessing pollution and littering made Tim more aware of the disconnect that exists between humankind and the biosphere that sustains us. “Humans have quickly forgotten, or conveniently ignored, the fact that we are living, breathing animals that share a remarkable biome with millions of other living creatures. We are not separate from the natural world; we are part of it. The pollution from single-use plastic and other complex human-made materials marks a key moment when a species, us, is sacrificing life for future generations and countless innocent creatures. I simply can't justify the price we are currently paying in the pursuit of a convenient lifestyle,” says Tim.

Amanda, Roberta, and Tim have always known there was something special about the #take3forthesea action. “It is so simple, catchy and gives anyone, anywhere the opportunity to give back to our spectacular planet,” says Tim. They have seen huge growth in public awareness of the Take 3 message without the need for expensive advertising campaigns or media promotions. While they have directly visited over 150,000 school students and delivered hundreds of community activities, their major impact has been through social media with the Take 3 hashtag (#take3forthesea).

In 2011, Tim joined a three-week expedition to study the accumulation of plastic in the North Pacific Sub-Tropical Gyre, commonly referred to as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. “It was an incredible experience that opened my eyes to the vastness of the ocean and the scale of the plastic pollution pandemic,” Tim recalls. Seeing the problem firsthand motivated Tim and he began building his network of colleagues globally who were similarly committed to addressing the problem. This gave Tim the platform to stand up and demand changes with confidence. “I knew more than ever that change was critical and entirely possible,” he says.

Tim points out that there is no ‘floating island of plastic’ in the North Pacific nor in any of the five major oceanic gyres. “Yes, there are higher levels of plastic gathering in these naturally occurring ocean vortices, but the plastic is still highly dispersed, mostly small, microplastics, and not always on the surface, it descends deep into the water column,” he said. Tim believes the media has largely contributed to the misunderstanding of the ‘garbage patch’ which has resulted in lots of attention to bold plans to clean it up, but Tim says this is not the ‘silver bullet’ answer to the problem. “If we are serious about solving plastic pollution we have to stop the problem at the source. That means addressing our consumption, our waste production, our waste management and the leakage of our waste into the environment and waterways,” he says.

“I have always loved the expression that, we are the people we have been waiting for,” says Tim. “As someone who has been working on this issue for over ten years, I can proudly say that we have come an incredibly long way.” Waste and plastic pollution are now key issues discussed in all sectors of society in countries like Australia, the UK, and many other areas. Tim believes the only reason people are discussing plastic pollution solutions is because people have taken action themselves by liking photos on Instagram, signing petitions, sharing viral videos, watching documentaries, purchasing reusable products and picking up rubbish. “As Dr. Seuss writes in The Lorax, ‘Unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. It’s not,’ " says Tim. “So, whatever you are doing, keep it up, and do a little bit more.”

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How to filter your water with charcoal

Kishu Binchotan charcoal is an active carbon made from tree branches.  Due to its extremely porous structure, Binchotan charcoal is renowned for its ability to absorb impurities, unwanted tastes and odours from water such as chlorine and releasing beneficial natural minerals. It can also be used to purify indoor air, keep closets, drawers, and refrigerators free from odour, dampness and mould and improve the health of soil and plants.

 

Kishu charcoal is made from Japanese Holm oak, which grows on the forested hills of Kii Peninsula. Oak trees are not logged, but instead, branches are cut off selectively leaving the tree alive and healthy. To make Kishu Binchotan charcoal, oak branches are stacked inside kilns and baked at incredibly high temperatures over several weeks. Oxygen is then shut off and turned on again and its flow slowly increased. This centuries-old process turns wood into carbon, and at up to 98 per cent, Kishu Binchotan charcoal has the highest content of carbon of any charcoal making it one of the purest and highest quality charcoals available on Earth.

 

How to use Kishu Binchotan charcoal to filter water

1. Before using, boil the Kishu Binchotan charcoal stick for 10 minutes, remove and allow to and cool completely. It is now ready to be used. Re-boil the charcoal stick every two to three weeks to get rid of everything it has absorbed. Also, take care not to drop the charcoal stick as it is easily breakable.
    
2. To purify tap water for drinking, place the boiled and cooled Kishu Binchotan charcoal stick into a pitcher of water. Leave for a minimum of five hours, or overnight for best results. The charcoal stick will alkalise the water, absorb chemicals and toxins, and release beneficial minerals into the water. The charcoal stick will stay hard and not discolour the water. One stick will last for approximately three months if you boil it every second week.
    
3. Once your Binchotan charcoal stick has reached the end of its indoor life, improve soil health by recycling it in the garden. Break the charcoal stick up into pieces and mix it into new soil or apply it over a garden bed. The Binchotan charcoal will improve the movement of air and water through the sol, alkalise the soil, and reinforce trace elements.

Related: Shave waste free and save the environment; The environmental problem with palm oil; What is a circular economy?

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