Wednesday, March 28, 2012

Art on the Atlanta Beltline

It's that time again!  The Atlanta Beltline has posted their annual (going on their 3rd year) call for artists to bring awareness and publicize the city effort to build trails and transit along a historic 22-mile railroad corridor to connect 45 neighborhoods directly to each other.  We participated last year by contributing a chess concrete table.  The table was made from reclaimed wood and poured concrete, and each chess piece was made from leftover dowl pieces from past projects.  We dipped some dowls into black paint to differentiate sets and capped off the queen and king pieces with. . . . well, bottle caps.  We handpainted and acid etched the chess board and built in minimalist seating.  We're not sure how much actual chess playing occurred as the table was in a more remote place off of Warner near Adair Park in SW Atlanta but we enjoyed being part of the event, nonetheless.  And who knows, maybe truly engaging games did take place. . . we'd like to think so.

This year we are thinking of moving away from furniture and changing it up a bit.  Perhaps a mural?  We'll keep you posted as we brainstorm a bit more and as we get closer to the deadline of April 16th.

Click here for more information about the art call.  Below are some pictures of the chess table from last year.

First photo courtesy of Atlanta Beltline and Christopher Martin


















Thursday, March 15, 2012

Inhabitat Feature: MDC Interiors' Glow Table Is a Cool Recycled Pallet Wood Creation

This post has been long been due.  MDC Interiors' Glow Table was featured in Inhabitat on Feb 8, 2012.  Time got ahead of us and thus we are only posting now (although we definitely tweeted and facebooked our heart out in Feb regarding the news).  Either way, we were very excited to be highlighted by a great eco-blog that always provides inspiring and innovative ideas.  Read the feature below or here.  The amazing photo was taken by Karen Shacham.



MDC Interiors created this uber-cool Glow Table from recycled pallet wood, concrete, glass, pine, and steel. The concrete combined with a narrow pallet strip provides an industrial feel along with a warm and earthy presence, and the natural opening in the pallet wood creates a perfect place to hold your favorite drink. A set of accent lights under the glass illuminate the beverages atop, and a dimmer switch is attached to change the light setting

Read more: MDC Interiors' Glow Table Is a Cool Recycled Pallet Wood Creation | Inhabitat - Green Design Will Save the World

Tuesday, March 13, 2012

The Next Cool Event

This post is a little late but figured better late than never.  MDC Interiors was invited to attend "The Next Cool Event" through Re-Inspiration, an ecletic gift store in Atlanta that sells great recycled products.  Many of the artists (ourselves included) are local and partner with the store to sell our eco-products.  We currently have the "Weathered Mirror" and "Balance Table" at the store.  They also have a scoutmob deal happening now through September 9th in which "mobbers" can receive 50% for up to $40 in purchases.

Back to "The Next Cool Event."  The event is intended to allow the design industry to showcase their creative skills and in the hopes of catching the eye of people in the design and film industry.  It was a great event and many organizations really went above and beyond with their designs and decorations.  This year's theme was based on popular movies.  Below are some pictures. 

Paris on Ponce's exhibit for "Marie Antoinette" was one of our favorites.  We would guess the exhibit was made mostly with recycled materials; the skirt and the wig were made from paper.  It was even more striking in person (courtesy of Michelle Putnam).

Courtesy of Paris on Ponce
Karen Shacham, Michael Carpenter, Brooke Schultz, Michelle Putnam,
and Mona Patel in front of Re-Inspirations' exhibit.


Additional photos of exhibits (courtesy of Brooke Schultz)





Sunday, March 11, 2012

Chairish the Future 2012

We participated in "Chairish the Future," an event held every year by the Furniture Bank of Metro Atlanta at the Puritan Mill.  The organization requested artists "adopt" unfinished chairs to create into art pieces which are then auctioned (silent) off at the event.  We found these cool high back chairs which we refinished, and incorporated sketching and yarn designs into the base of the chair.  Lastly, we sealed the chairs with wax.

"Into Flight" Chair

"Jellyfish Chair"

Below are additional pictures from the event and our favorite light pieces from the night, which were part of a design competition for local design companies.  The pieces were donated and included as a part of the silent auction.



















Lighting made from local business cards:

Lighting made from conduit:

Additional lights:

Thursday, March 8, 2012

MDC Interiors' Living Table Doubles as a Bonsai Tree Planter

The Living Table was featured on Inhabitat!  We are very excited and happy to say that we just sold a piece today to Rev Russell May, who does great work with the community in Winston-Salem, NC as a part of Anthony's Plot.  Could not have asked for a better week.  The write-up is below.


MDC Interiors‘ nature-inspired Living Table integrates a bonsai tree into the table as a design element. The table is made with concrete and incorporates a hand painted design, etching, and recycled wooden block legs. The table has a ground niche used to house and grow a bonsai tree. In the Japanese culture, bonsai trees represent the harmony between man, nature, and the soul whereas Buddhist monks associate bonsai as a symbol of honor and prestige. Combining natural elements with furniture is not only aesthetically pleasing, but also brings a sense of calm and tranquility to a room and allows us to appreciate and incorporate nature and the environment into everyday activities.


Read more: MDC Interiors' Living Table Doubles as a Bonsai Tree Planter | Inhabitat - Green Design Will Save the World 

MDC Interiors Featured In Treehugger



















     MDC Interiors was recently featured on Treehugger!  Exciting news as we love Treehugger for its inspiration and great and innovative ways to incorporate sustainability into our lives.  As Treehugger puts it, they are "partial to a modern aesthetic, [we] strive to be a one-stop shop for green news, solutions, and product information."  The write-up is posted below or go directly to the article via this link.

Via Treehugger: Handmade Coffee Tables from Reclaimed Wood Come with Built-In Gardens
(by Alex Davies)

I'm a big fan of using design to work greenery into home furnishings, and these two coffee tables are great examples. Designed by Mike Carpenter's MDC Interiors, the Balance and Maka models each have a center section that's filled with green moss and river rocks. Best of all, both tables are handmade, mostly from reclaimed materials.

Carpenter uses discarded wool pallets (which are showing up just about everywhere) and split rail wood that he purchases from a company that collects it from condemned buildings and construction sites. Carpenter keeps things local, too. The pallets come from nearby his Atlanta home; the split rail company is located 45 minutes away.


MDC Interiors lists sustainability as a key tenet of its philosophy, writing:
In an attempt to reduce the impact production and consumption have on our life, MDC Interiors strives to create positive change through eco-friendly design solutions.

The company offers murals, seed bombs, jewelry and art in addition to furniture.
I'm impressed by the look and feel of both designs, and only have one real concern: How do you water the plants, considering the layer of glass that covers them?

Updated:
I spoke to Mike Carpenter regarding my last concern, and it turns out he's on top of it. He wrote in an e-mail:
The green moss in the Balance Table is dried out so no need to water, and for the Maka Table, simply lift up the glass and mist the succulents. There is space between the glass and table so air can circulate