The Mill Fabrics dynamic new Felt range is made exclusively from recycled plastic bottles, turning waste into usable, functional products.

“Reduce, reuse, recycle” is the ethos behind The Mill Fabric’s new Felt range made from recycled PET Felt. With more than 12 plastic bottles in every meter, the brand can cut and package the non-woven textile with the knowledge that they’re reducing the global landfill problem.

There are multiple uses for this Felt which has a firm, stiff and strong structure, lending itself to acoustic panels, walling, screens and pinboards as well as a host of contemporary accessories such as bags, hats, notebook sleeves, placemats and more.

This new ‘green’ range comes in three trendy shades of Recycled PET Felt – “Bowtie, Cravat and Cufflink” (black, mottled charcoal and mottled light grey), which are all on point with modern decor trends.

For more info, visit themillfabrics.co.za.

Looking for more from The Mill Fabrics? Check out their Tribal Chic range.

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Created using Future Felt, a material made from recycled plastic bottles, local sustainable brand The Joinery has launched a new multifunctional homeware collection.

The homeware range, launched alongside the office and tech range, includes placemats, coasters and storage containers. “We really spent time trying to make this range multifunctional with many of our new products,” says Co-founders and Directors Natalie and Kim Ellis. “Items like storage baskets can double up as a planter.”

In keeping with the times, this range fits well into the lifestyle shift that is the “new normal”, doing more with less, while still being innovative. “Having a range that has a multi-use element means items can be swapped around to get a fresh look, like swapping out the office storage basket to style kitchen utensils when entertaining guests.”

Storage Basket/Tub

Pebble Placemat

Pairing their love of design with their love for the planet means The Joinery team gets to make products that not only contribute to growing eco design but also contribute to creating real change in empowering marginalised communities. Every creation at The Joinery is environmentally conscious and created by local artisans in informal settlements in Cape Town.

“We are feeling positive for the future of eco design,” says Natalie and Kim. “Having been operating since 2011, The Joinery has been lucky to have been at the forefront of sustainable design since our inception.”

Browse the new collection at thejoinery.co.za.

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From an eco-conscious cabin prototype and a brightly coloured space in Arkansas to mesmerising 3D animations and felt art, these are the top VISI picks of the week series – week 314.

1. Okuda San Miguel’s Rainbow Embassy

The Rainbow Embassy is artist Okuda San Miguel’s newest public art piece, converting a dilapidated Arkansas house into a bright plethora of geometry and colour. The space is now home to justkids, a global creative house and arts centre.

Images via designboom.com, courtesy of Okuda San Miguel

2. Animations by ELMØ

ELMØ, a small Parisian multidisciplinary creative studio, produces short animations in 2D, 3D and stop motion.

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bxz-0USlzkJ/

https://www.instagram.com/p/B4nJ5n3q7Ip/

https://www.instagram.com/p/Bqh9saoh3F4/

https://www.instagram.com/p/BmTW41OhkH4/

Videos via @elmotionlab on Instagram

3. Neste Nolla Cabin

Envisioned by Robin Falk and developed by Neste, the Nolla Zero Cabin was designed to have as small an environmental impact as possible. Prototyped on an A-frame design, it was erected on Vallisaari Island in Finland. With eco-conscious living in mind, electricity is solar-generated and heating and cooking is done using fuel made from 100% waste. The cabin also emits 90% fewer greenhouse gases than fossil diesel.

Images courtesy of Neste

4. Andrea Love’s Felt Animations

Washington-based independent animator and director Andrea Love specialises in stop motion animation, with much of her subject matter crafted from felt and yarn. Tiny textile stoves fry woolly eggs, all made by Andrea’s hands.

https://www.instagram.com/p/B5VO8SiA3Yz/

https://www.instagram.com/p/B573Po-g9ra/

https://www.instagram.com/p/B0lRsMrAUFl/

https://www.instagram.com/p/BvMPuy0gLTZ/

Videos via @andreaanimates on Instagram

5. Leonardo da Vinci Animation by Sentio Space

London-based studio Sentio Space created an animated series on Leonardo Da Vinci’s life for The National Gallery’s Leonardo: Experience a Masterpiece exhibition. The immersive show will be on until 19 January 2020.

Video courtesy of Sentio Space

Browse more like VISI picks of the week series – week 314 on picks of the week 131.

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Self-taught Mpumalanga-born felt artist Ronel Jordaan turns merino wool fibres into beautiful felted forms. Her latest creations, which she made for a group exhibition at Southern Guild called Colour Field last year, were informed by the geology of rocks and crystals.

What is the inspiration behind your latest felt pieces?

I have been creating “rocks” for a long time. When scientists look for life, they look at rocks and their composition, by which they can tell what the conditions or situation was for the formation of these rocks. For crystals to form, certain conditions are required, with certain combinations of compounds. Crystals form when molecules gather in an attempt to become stable. For me, it resembles us: We thrive or struggle in certain conditions.

Describe the process to create your felt “Crystals”.

The concept has been brewing in my mind since 2007. First, the wool is carded (combed with an industrial carding machine) and felted into sheets. Then the sheets are dyed and steamed. In our felting process we use a biodegradable soap and we recycle our water. Patterns are designed and the foam is cut to the shapes required, and the felt panels are stitched together. The one panel has acoustic foam that has a special fire retardant applied to it. I then use other dyes to stain and paint on top of the already dyed panels.

What inspired your colour choices?

I am a great admirer of the artist Mark Rothko. While thinking about how I would approach the exhibition theme, I remembered the impact Rothko made on me when I first encountered his work at the Tate Modern in London. I became quite emotional being surrounded by his art. I then thought that this would be my entry point, and so I slowly became more confident on what I wanted to say about Colour Field, an abstract painting movement of the ’50s and ’60s. My choice of colours reflects my emotions on the day I viewed the Rothko room at the Tate.

See more of Ronel’s work at roneljordaan.com.

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British artist Lucy Sparrow is behind the fun “Sparrow Mart”, a grocery store filled with more than 31 000 felt products.

All of the wares were hand sewn by her team of five, and were all for sale, with prices starting at $5 (approximately R75). In fact, the installation, which was located at a hotel in downtown Los Angeles, had to close early because all of the products sold out.

Smiling sausages, furry cereal boxes and happy pieces of fruit are just a tiny portion of what was on offer in this whimsical display of nostalgia. Certain items were filled with beans, to correctly convey the weight of the product.

Just like a real store, “Sparrow Mart” was equipped with aisles, an ATM, tellers and shopping baskets.

Visit her website here for more information.

(h/t) thisiscolossal.com

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Japanese artist Wakuneco creates hyper-realistic portraits of cats using needle-felted wool.

These realistic 3D cats are produced using a traditional needle-felting technique.

Each portrait, made up of felted wool fur, glass eyes and whiskers, is created by repetitively poking wool layers with a needle until the fibres loosen up to create a solid shape.

Wakuneco makes sure to use a basic guide before putting the layers together to create the final piece. When the portrait is complete, the guide is cut away and the piece is placed into a wooden frame.

Follow Wakuneco on Instagram to view more of her creations.

(h/t) designboom.com

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Dutch design brand Vepa Project Furniture recently won a Green Product Award for the design of the eco-friendly Felt chair, made using recycled PET bottles.

The 2018 Green Product Award received more than 400 submissions from 25 countries, 100 of which were judged by an international panel.

Vepa’s Felt chair makes use of 60 recycled PET bottles to create each chair, all of which are made up using four layers of felt. The chairs are also available in a variety of different colours.

“The stable tub construction enables a wide variety of models,” states Vepa on its website. “Each frame has its own seating characteristics and comfort. This makes Felt widely applicable; from meeting room to living room and of course suitable for project use.”

For more information, visit vepa.nl.

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San Francisco-based artist Becky Margraf created an adorable face made from felt every day for 100 days.

Ranging from popular cartoon characters and food-inspired faces to bright, quirky creatures and art-inspired creations, each face is unique.

“Taking weird things and making them cute is a cool way to look at the world,” explains Becky in her feature on the Instagram blog. “Anytime I was out in the wild running around San Francisco, I’d look for an object that I thought would be cool to turn into a creature.”

She showcases her work on Instagram and her pieces are for sale through her Etsy store.

(h/t) boredpanda.com

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Munich-based artist Veselka Bulkan of Little Herb Bouquet creates vibrant needle-felted root vegetables that dangle from their embroidered frames.

Carrots, onions and turnips hang either alone or in bunches, with their leaves taking up the space within the round wooden frames.

Veselka finds inspiration in food and is a keen cook, food stylist and crafter, as well as having a fine art degree in painting. She also has a range of potholders, kitchen towels and tote bags.

#makersmovement #abmcrafty #dslooking #psimadethis #handsandhustle #myunicornlife #todayslovely #thehappynow #lovelysquares #creativelifehappylife #makeyousmilestyle #fiberart #dstexture #abmlifeiscolorful #colorventures #livecolorfully #foundpalettes #rainbow_wall #dsshapes #abmlifeisbeautiful #dscolor #acolorstory #colorcolourlovers

A photo posted by Veselka Bulkan (@catchtheinspiration) on Apr 9, 2016 at 3:09pm PDT

? #wearethemakers #makersmovement #dslooking #psimadethis #handsandhustle #myunicornlife #todayslovely #thehappynow #lovelysquares #creativelifehappylife #makeyousmilestyle #fiberart #dstexture #abmlifeiscolorful #colorventures #livecolorfully #foundpalettes #rainbow_wall #dsshapes #abmlifeisbeautiful #dsrainbow #dscolor #acolorstory #colorcolourlovers #colorsorganizedneatly #abmcrafty #thatsdarling #Flashesofdelight

A photo posted by Veselka Bulkan (@catchtheinspiration) on Mar 31, 2016 at 1:17pm PDT

I’m working on a new hoop design with carrot leaves while waiting the soup to cook! #workingplace #working #myunicornlife #Wandeleurspark #Flashesofdelight #petitejoys #makeyousmilestyle #Livethelittlethings #Calledtobecreative #LiveColorfully #creativityfound #nothingisordinary #finditliveit #RSblooms #prettylittlething #ThatColorProject #postitfortheaesthetic #littlestoriesofmylife #thehappynow #simplepleasures #livesimply #aquietstyle #verilymoment #foodwinewomen #thequietwinter #nothingisordinary

A photo posted by Veselka Bulkan (@catchtheinspiration) on Feb 19, 2016 at 7:35am PST

#onmydesk #carrots #workspacegoals #spring #psimadethis #handsandhustle #myunicornlife #todayslovely #thehappynow #lovelysquares #creativelifehappylife #makeyousmilestyle #fiberart #dstexture #abmlifeiscolorful #colorventures #livecolorfully #foundpalettes #abmlifeisbeautiful #dscolor #acolorstory #colorcolourlovers #wearethemakers #creativelifehappylife #Livethelittlethings #gardening #makersmovement

A photo posted by Veselka Bulkan (@catchtheinspiration) on Apr 12, 2016 at 8:50am PDT

I am so proud that @designsponge have featured me in instagram! Thank you all for your lovely comments . . . #myunicornlife #Wandeleurspark #Flashesofdelight #petitejoys #makeyousmilestyle #Calledtobecreative #LiveColorfully #creativityfound #nothingisordinary #finditliveit #prettylittlething #ThatColorProject #makersmovement #abmcrafty #dslooking #handsandhustle #todayslovely #thehappynow #lovelysquares #creativelifehappylife#Livethelittlethings #abmlifeisbeautiful #workspacegoals #onmydesk #wearethemakers

A photo posted by Veselka Bulkan (@catchtheinspiration) on Apr 5, 2016 at 8:38am PDT

These cute cross-stitched vegetables are available through her website The Little Herb Boutique, as well as her Etsy Store.

(h/t) boredpanda.com

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Textile artist Sabina Gibson creates mystical soft toy sculptures that will tug at the heartstrings of children and adults alike.

Beautiful bears, unicorns and colourful narwhals are just some of the whimsical pieces she produces.

Sabina was recently featured on the Instagram blog for her magical creatures, which range from tiny to life-size.

?mini magic? #unicorn

A photo posted by @mountroyalmint on Jan 24, 2016 at 7:01pm PST

?trunks up!? ??????? #baby #pink #elephant A photo posted by @mountroyalmint on Jan 23, 2016 at 6:12am PST

?????? nar whale tales #pastel #whale

A photo posted by @mountroyalmint on Jan 22, 2016 at 6:12am PST

fuzzy? A photo posted by @mountroyalmint on Jan 18, 2016 at 4:20pm PST

?electric fairy floss?? #ponystyle #unicorn ?

A photo posted by @mountroyalmint on Jan 11, 2016 at 6:53pm PST

tiny #swan ?

A photo posted by @mountroyalmint on Jan 4, 2016 at 5:14pm PST

A photo posted by @mountroyalmint on Dec 14, 2015 at 10:37am PST

Imagine riding to work on this @thelandofnod x mountroyalmint Llama guy? #llama

A photo posted by @mountroyalmint on Oct 14, 2015 at 9:25pm PDT

More pole pole ? @poletoko_official

A photo posted by @mountroyalmint on Sep 10, 2015 at 1:19pm PDT

? September ?

A photo posted by @mountroyalmint on Sep 1, 2015 at 12:54pm PDT

Moving to a new website is not unlike moving out of your parents basement. A little bit scary but long overdue. Thank you to everyone who’s ordered so far! Just a few bb elephants left if you wanted one …??? #elephant

A photo posted by @mountroyalmint on Jun 7, 2015 at 4:54pm PDT

hide and seek

A photo posted by @mountroyalmint on Jun 3, 2015 at 9:54am PDT

To view more of Sabina’s work, visit mountroyalmint.com.

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