a blog by elemental studio

Certification: making sense of fabric labels – Part 2

In my last blog – Certification: making sense of fabric labels Part 1 – I gave GOTS, OE 100 and Oeko-Tex Standard 100 a thumbs-up. If you see any of these on a label, it’s sustainable. But that’s not the whole story. You should also be able to trust any of the following: Bluesign is

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by Laurence Katz

Certification: making sense of fabric labels – Part 1

Happy New Year – and welcome back to the elemental studio fortnightly blog. I want to return to a subject explored in my November blogs. If you read these, you’ll know I recommended certain fabric materials – and laid out which ones I think should be avoided. But what about Certification? We all know that

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by Laurence Katz

Happy Christmas – to you and your worktop!

It’s almost Christmas and you’re probably overdosing on carols, fairy lights and pine needles. So here’s the antidote – an elemental studio special edition on … kitchen worktops! If you’re the family cook, you may have spent a lot of time working in the kitchen recently, chopping, sorting, planning and arranging your Christmas preparations around

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by Laurence Katz

Foul Fabrics

In my last blog I looked at sustainable fabrics. Now for the unsustainable nasties. What sort of fabrics do I avoid like the proverbial plague? It isn’t hard to guess the answer. When considering a fabric, the equivalent of the scary soundtrack which signals the arrival of a film’s bad guy is hearing that the

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by Laurence Katz

Fab Fabrics

Hello and welcome to a new chapter in it’s elementary – the blog from Laurence Katz at elemental studio. So far I’ve waxed lyrical about sustainability, talked excitedly about sourcing, enthused about upholstery and biophilic design – and explored the worlds of wood and rugs respectively. Now the focus for my next two blogs turns

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by Laurence Katz

Simple home styling for Xmas

Christmas is coming – and two things are for sure. One, this won’t be like any other festive season. And two, my goodness we need this! After so much misery in 2020, each of us needs to ignite a spark of Xmas joy. When looking back at my childhood I’m surely not alone in remembering

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by Laurence Katz

Plastic rugs – surely not?!

As we all try to use materials more sustainably, I’m sure you’ve noticed a trend towards the clever transformation of various plastics. People use smart technologies to turn plastic waste into car seats and clothes; plastic bottles back into fuel; and hard plastics into everything from insulation to ecobricks.

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by Laurence Katz

Wood works – some practical tips

In my last blog I explored the lifecycle of wood – from sourcing to sustainable recycling. Here I’m going to dig a bit deeper into some of the practical things designers and consumers can do, to feature wood in commercial and residential environments.

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by Laurence Katz

The wonders of wood

Having highlighted the importance of natural materials in my last blog, I thought it would be useful to explore how nature’s materials can play a sustainable, positive role within interior spaces – starting with the wonders of wood.

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by Laurence Katz

Biophilic design – made real

My last blog enthused about the idea of biophilic design – introducing nature into the built environment to foster human wellbeing. So how do you do that, in practice?

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by Laurence Katz

Bio-what?! An insight into my latest passion.

You know what it’s like when you discover something fantastic: you want to tell the world. This blog may not have global reach (yet!), but I’d love to tell you about … biophilic design.

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by Laurence Katz

elementary fabrics

I want to share a love story – about Black Pop and Timorous Beasties! If you haven’t heard of them, these are examples of vibrant fabric made by small British companies. I fell head over heels for them a few years ago, thanks to a nice little plot twist.

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by Laurence Katz

an elementary hello

It occurred to me that I’ve been rather rude. This is my third blog, but I haven’t yet introduced myself properly. If we’re going to get to know each other better (and I do hope we will), I should tell you a bit about myself.

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by Laurence Katz

elementary green options

In my first blog, I set a challenge to introduce a level of sustainability to your life or business. I know, it’s a free world, so why should you listen to an interior designer?

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by Laurence Katz

elementary choices

How have you reacted to lockdown?

Terrible though it’s been (and tragic for many), the change of pace has created a real opportunity – the chance to review our lives and rebuild our businesses.

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by Laurence Katz

Cushions: let’s go green

What’s the simplest way to refresh a room? If you’re in the living room, bedroom or office reception area, the magic word may be ‘cushions’. And if you’re thinking of replacing or adding to the cushions you already have, why not make this a sustainable choice? A great way to spruce up a space whilst

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by Laurence Katz

Plans for Plants

Hello and welcome to our latest it’s elementary blog – my chance to spread the word about sustainable interior architecture and design. At Elemental Studio, we get truly excited by environmentally progressive ways of transforming spaces – and you can’t get greener than plants! If you’ve been here before, you’ll know how important it is

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by Laurence Katz