ReMade Mexico!

Our favorite project is back! This will be the fifth time we have hosted ReMade at Ideal and each year we are newly amazed at the innovative work our friends up on the hill produce.

ReMade is an annual design challenge tackled by the junior class of Industrial Design students at Western Washington University. The project combines sustainability and entrepreneurship, asking students to transform materials which would otherwise be discarded into functional, well-designed products. Over the course of several weeks, students design, fabricate and brand a limited number of their product. All products are for sale right here at Ideal until the end of March (or until they sell out).

This year, the students have partnered with the Entreamigos organization located in San Pancho, Mexico. Entreamigos is a non-profit focusing on creating learning spaces and opportunities for San Pancho’s children and families. One of each of the WWU student’s products will be donated for retail sale at Entreamigos’ sustainable tourist shop to raise funds for the organization. Students are also including fabrication instructions in Spanish so that these products can be reproduced and hopefully spawn cottage industries within the community. Professor Arunas Oslapas and his wife will be traveling to San Pancho in March to deliver the products and conduct workshops on creating eco-friendly products from trash and help refine existing products the group already produces. To learn more about Entreamigos, visit www.entreamigos.org.mx. 

Aidan Borer created his Bottl storage containers from recycled wine bottles and capped them with hand-turned reclaimed fir. Each is painted with a band of chalkboard paint to label the vessel's contents. Great for kitchen staples, craft supplies - you name it.

Louie Dawson's Cast Off yoyos are made using discarded office chair wheels. Dawson took apart each wheel  and reassembled with an inset made from scrap hardwood. His design uses the existing symmetry of the steel axle of the wheels to produce a top-knotch yoyo.

Kirk Turner's Familia series of vessles uses repurposed plumbing shorts that would otherwise have been discarded. Turner made three different versions of the design, and how to use them is up to you. Vase, toothbrush holder, desk organizer - the possibilities are many.  Available in white plastic or galvanized conduit tubing. Raw steel version is sold out.

The Hangware set is a series of kitchen utensils crafted from discarded wooden hangers. Designer Leon Wolfendale was able to hand-form two functional utensils out of each hanger, which he then refinished with food-safe tung oil. Sold in sets of three utensils.

Melina Edgerton was inspired by the silhouettes and striped graphics of Mexican children's toys when designing her Revolve candlesticks. Made from plastic bottle caps, she has repurposed these difficult to recycle objects into bright, playful accents for the home. Available in shades of green/yellow, blues, or orange/yellow as well as the black/white pictured.

Nick Hanlon's Splash is a bowl made from styrene spoons, forks, and knives that have been heated, pressed and formed into an array of organic forms. The new  appearance is reminiscent of a splash or cascade of water captured on film, and the crystalline look of the vessel form is unexpectedly elegant.

Rosalee Daughtry's Scrub dish scrubber is fabricated from scrap sunforager canvas and reclaimed teak. Visitors at our opening reception agreed that Scrub was as bright and pleasant as the dishes it is meant to clean, as we sold out in the first two hours.

Vinculum is a line of handwoven accessories for the home by Jonathan Mayfield. Each piece is knotted by hand using four separate strands of discarded cord and rope. The series includes a rug, a centerpiece or a set of four coasters. Mayfield spent years splicing rope for high ropes courses so has a fondness and familiarity for the material that is evident in this work. The word "vinculum" means "A bond signifying union or unitiy; tie."

Designer Mauricio Romano transformed scrap chipboard, a commonly discarded construction material, into a beautiful interactive puzzle. Cubix comes with a storage box and is available in three variations of difficulty.

For his Tortugitas, Jesse Zackery took plastic 5-gallon buckets discarded by restaurants and transformed them into irresistible toy turtles. Press on the turtle's tail and it will flip backwards, landing on its flippers. The green shell was created using the underside of plastic water bottles.

Lesedi (meaning "light" in the Sesotho language) is a candle stand made from recycled plastic bottles by Sandra Sekaba, an exchange student visiting WWU from Botswana. The plastic is transformed with strategic cuts and the addition of wood accents into a lovely candleholder that looks amazingly like glass or crystal.

Pinnacle is a modular candle set designed and constructed by Scott Broberg using rusted steel from local business Z Recycling. The bottom is backed with melamine to protect countertops and each piece has been cut to a 45-degree angle, leaving a dramatic backdrop for flame. Available as single candles or in a set of four.

Designer Matthew Lider makes use of un-recyclable plastic bottle caps with his Tapas knives. Each pre-owned blade is restored to its original luster and outfitted with a handle crafted from reground and pressure molded polyethylene bottle caps. Please note, small size is sold out.

Here are some shots from the very successful opening reception on Friday, February 1. Thanks to Paul Niemi of KGMI for these photos.

New Designs in the Shop

Orders we placed during our buying trip to New York have started arriving! It's really fun unpacking the boxes and seeing these great new designs in the shop. October will be a big month with many new lines coming in but here are just a few new objects already gracing our shelves...

Timo Tumblers are great for hot or cold beverages and the tapered shape fits well in large or small hands.

The Canetti Magnet Frame fits any size image up to 5x7", can be placed horizontally or vertically.

We are thrilled to welcome Pablo Designs to the shop. Based in San Francisco, lead designer Pablo Pardo is known for his supremely functional and beautiful lighting.

Sandy Chilewich has introduced a new line of zip pouches in a faux cowhide print textile. Easy to care for and perfect for carrying accessories or using as a clutch.

We introduce several new colors of Pleece scarves from Design House Stockholm. These are going fast and it's still very sunny outside!

Keep your desk neat and clean with these Tidy Brush organizers from UK designers Thelermont Hupton.

And the Stendig Calendar is back! This classic 3' x 4' calendar was designed by Massimo Vignelli in 1966 and has been a favorite of architects and designers ever since.

Just a few things to tempt you...we'll post again soon with more new treasures!!

Summer Fun

Happy August! Some inspiration for outdoor fun...

Anniversary Sale - July 14-15!

It's that time of year again...we are celebrating our fourth anniversary! As thanks to you for helping us reach this milestone, we are offering 20% off store-wide on Saturday, July 14 and Sunday, July 15. A few details:

• 20% off shop-wide, Saturday & Sunday only: July 14 & 15
• Valid in-shop only, during store hours (10-6 Saturday & 11-5 Sunday)
• Anniversary Sale excludes special orders, web-site purchases and prior purchases

Questions? Call us at 360-752-5522 or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it