RESTAURANT WASTE reincarnated into natural glass
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Dear Friends,
The Home Of Sustainable Things was set up back in 2018 to seek and develop design ways to transit us to a more sustainable way of living and alleviate the pressure on the natural environment already pushed to its limits. Yet we wanted to create with style, to have a positive sensation capable of progress. We wanted you to enjoy, even love our output, in other words, we did not seek charity but rather implement design that fits the criteria and has the potent to take us there.
Fast-forwarding to 2022, we are still here, preaching and doing what we love most! And although we have been able to provide a practical response to some resounding questions such as "can we manufacture ethical alternatives without further depleting natural resources?", there is plenty more to do to increase our impact and unite the progressive minds around the world, pushing and wanting the change.
We are therefore ever so pleased, every time we introduce a new designer, a new range and their insight of the better world tomorrow! And today, it is no different as we are pleased to announce our latest addition "From The Ashes" - a range of natural glass by Benedikt Peirotén from Studio PeiPei .
Glass is often portrayed as a sustainable material as it can be recycled endlessly but a closer look would reveal a manufacturing process that is not as straight-forward and harmless as portrayed. Making glass would normally require large energy consumption as well as another two main components – Sodium Carbonate and Calcium Carbonate whose sourcing also has an impact on the natural habitats. Similar to other mined materials used in various industrial processes, the availability of these ingredients is changing dramatically due to climate change and over extraction caused by unnecessary, bloated production.
Studio PeiPei’s “From The Ashes” glass is therefore perhaps the primary insight of what glass production might be in the very near future, replicating the use of these components with alternative, sustainable sources as the range explores unlimited supply chains and incorporates waste with no value to anyone else.
By using ashes from wood-fired restaurants, pizzerias, grills and barbeques, and seashells from seafood restaurants, the studio replicates the roles of these components in glass production. Potassium Carbonate extracted from wood ash is a forgotten flux used in the past and seashells consist Calcium Carbonate mainly, also contributing towards the formation of limestone and when finely ground, it gives glass its strength and durability. Importantly, these are ingredients available in volumes and are almost always disposed as waste. The increasingly scarce quartz sand has not yet been replaced but in contrast to concrete which is the other large consumer of quartz, natural glass can be recycled endlessly.
“From The Ashes” range uses harmless additives and therefore, it can be ground to sand and returned it to source closing the loop entirely, which sadly is not the case with the majority of other glass produced.
The range is made without the use of casting moulds so each object is handmade and unique. All items are made with the studio own, ashes-shell-sand recipe, consisted of 40% waste for the lighter objects and a minimum of 80% waste for the dark-coloured objects.
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Stages of processing waste to make glass.
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Ash is collected from wood-fired restaurants, pizzerias,
grills and barbeques.
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Seashells collected from seafood restaurants are crashed and grounded.
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The mouth-blown vases are made without the use of casting
moulds for unique results.
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And just as we bid to say "we will be back with more good news soon", i would like to leave a little topic with you to debate on "what really is luxury and what is a luxurious product"? Do send us your thoughts and insights!?