Upcycling ocean waste, Bloomscape's new merch, and two new founder stories

Home Catalog 009. In this issue: A new sustainable furniture brand that's upcycling ocean waste, Bloomscape's new merch drop (a must-have for any plant parents), and two new interviews in our Behind the Brand series: 

• Find out how Branch, an office furniture startup, pivoted as COVID-19 closed down workplaces, and;
• How Spark is aiming to reinvent the home grilling experience

Have a great Sunday, 

• Sandbox Ceramics: Handmade ceramic tidbits for your home
• Jiggy: Puzzles worth framing
• Tappan: An online gallery that supports artists on the rise
• Gardyn: Grow fresh vegetables year-round in your home

Privacy Pop's new Bed Tents for naptime, bedtime, playtime and alone time. Dims Eave Desk is now available in Ink Black. Bloomscape drops a new collection of plant merch and apparel, including a Tote, Dad Hat, T-shirt and sweatshirt (pictured below). Parachute's new Honeycomb Duvet Set. Quiet Town is hosting ‘A Quiet Auction’ in aid of No Kid Hungry. Cancelled Plans exclusive JoJo Fletcher x Etsy Tan Lines Candle. 

We've published a couple more Behind the Brand interviews with Branch Furniture co-founder Greg Hayes, and Spark Grills founder Ben West:  

“Historically you've had two choices — either high-quality furniture at exorbitant prices, or cheaply made office furniture at really low cost. There was really no in between,” said Hayes, who founded Branch in 2018 to make high quality office furniture accessible to everyone.

But when COVID-19 shut down the economy, the company had to make changes. “Our pipeline just literally went to zero,” said Hayes, reflecting on how Branch was impacted when offices across the United States closed down in March. “We had to pivot pretty quickly.”

Read the interview here >>

Ben West fell in love with cooking with wood and charcoal while living in Nairobi. “We’d escape into the backcountry all the time and that’s really where I fell in love with wood and charcoal cooking,” he said. “The flames drew people in and created flavors unlike anything I had tasted before.”

West wanted to bring those flavors to his home cooking and rekindle those fond memories of the endless Nairobi nights in his backyard, “but it was basically impossible” he told me. “We all know that charcoal tastes better, but it’s messy, takes forever to light and is hard to control.”
 

So he started out on a journey to rethink charcoal grilling from the ground up: “I was curious what it would be like to redesign the whole grill, and to get this flavorful way of cooking back into the mainstream,” he explained.  

Read the interview here >> 

Yesterday was Earth Overshoot Day, the point where scientists say we've used all the ecological resources the planet can produce in 12 months.

Each year Overshoot Day is getting earler. Except for this year where COVID-19 has caused a temporary decline in emissions. As the new normal begins to take shape, there could be small things we can all do to live a little more sustainbly and build simple, greener routines.

A few ideas for the home:

• Try just-add-water cleaning products like Blueland
• Switch to eco-friendly toilet paper
• Try to fix or upcycle old items instead of thowing them out

• Green Apps: 6 Apps to Help You Live a Cleaner, More Sustainable Life [Ree]
• In Praise of the Simple Routine [NYT]
• How to Live With Less, From People Who Live in Tiny Houses [Real Simple]
• Quick Tips on How to Avoid Emotional Burnout [Brooklinen]
• 30 Easy Ways to Make Your Home the Comfy, Cozy Haven You’ve Always Dreamed Of [Apartment Therapy]