Bring some life into your lifeless places

We got this great little terrarium from one of our favorite new providers: Uncommon Goods (disclaimer: for free, though we got to pick what we wanted from their online store). What we liked about it was that (a) it was essentially an old wine bottle with the top whacked off (not bar-room fight style, but cleanly lasered), and (b) it seemed like the perfect way to get a little green into our office without a lot of work (or, ahem, maintenance requirements like watering). Turns out (no surprise to us of course), that we were right. (again)

The entire thing was cleverly packaged – basically a bottle with dirt, moss and a set of chopsticks. It was a little messy getting all the dirt into the bottle (best to remove keyboards, etc when doing so), but the chopsticks helped to get the right placement (these eventually become the stand to keep the bottle from rolling around). And in just a few minutes we had what you see in the picture. The packaging suggests putting in other little tchochkies like plastic dwarves or mini ewoks (your own personal Endor!), but we decided to pass.

In the end it’s a simple little thing – but it really is great for adding some green to an un-green area (like a cube or office, or even a dresser). A little piece of earth to keep us grounded.

Uncommon Goods also has a number of other green and plant-related and gardening supplies like air plant vases, herb garden kits, bansai kits and all kinds of great stuff:

cool gifts for gardeners
plant gifts

As to the terrarium – it’s $38.

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Kit to make your own bonsai: a rare deciduous mini conifer.

This little bonsai kit will allow you (or a green-thumbed friend/family member) to create their own miniature forest using this kit. It gets cooler: these trees are actually a descendent of the California Redwoods (yeah, the HUGE ones) that they thought to be extinct until someone actually found one growing in a rice paddy in China!

This is a rare deciduous conifer (so I guess it’s not, technically speaking, an evergreen), so it’s needles shed every fall. There is only one other deciduous conifer.

That’s some serious bragging rights – if you can pull off growing these suckers (pictured are 3 years old). Comes with 3 little pots, seeds (in starting “wafers”), growing medium, bonsai scissors, a rake/spade, moss seed, river stone, a cool tin to plant it in (also is a nice gift box), and of course instructions. All the plastic and steel are recycled, too.

$50

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Soft-12-sided planter for a different look

This 12-sided planter from Woolly Pockets takes a softer approach to the floor planter – and sports a new and different look. Made of recycled bottles and also being breathable, these planters can allow the roots to be aerated.

The Brian has zippers so you can fold down leaves to expose more topsoil to air or sun. Comes in brown, black, camel and peacock (blue).

$150

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Let your outdoor parties stay warm all night long...

In the summer, there is nothing like sitting out having a barbeque with friends. But when the sun goes down, it may get a little chilly. The answer: a fire pit. This little cast iron number from DWR has a nice design that also serves to keep the fire oxygenated and dissipate heat efficiently.

Now you can sit out until the wee hours talking about important stuff, like how maybe these ancient myths about the “gods” bringing fire to man was really just aliens bringing us technology. Or humans from the future. Or… Hey man, can you throw another log on the fire?

$112 – $375 depending on the size

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Light up your garden, DWR style

These pots will light up your garden. Made from 100% polythylene, they are recyclable (for whatever that’s worth) – and durable for outdoor usage while also being lightweight so you can actually move them around a bit. They are built with a special drainage system to optimize the health of your plants.

And of course, there’s the light. Compact fluorescents conserve energy, but offer enough light to illuminate a section of your garden or walkway.

Cool.

They start at $375 and are all on sale now until they’re gone.

(Also: that picture looks like a certain hotel in LA, no?)

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Better than tiki

These Lighthouse Outdoor Torches from DWR are supposedly inspired by the lighthouses of Scandanavia. They are meant to burn high and proud (“like a bonfire” says the designer, Christian Bjørn) even under winds (so it’ll be great down by the beach here in Santa Monica).

Say goodbye to those ratty old tiki torches. These torches have ceramic bodies and a polished aluminum burner that can be filled without having to remove anything (it’s a good idea to put the flame out first though)

Uses any outdoor lamp oil.

$90 – $230

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The ultimate outdoor relaxation vessel

Awesome way to chill all summer long. If you have a pool, this is a no-brainer. Imagine the things you could do on this. Just imagine…

Good stuff, right?

Yeah.

Made by Neoteric Luxury, it’s a (heavy duty weather resistant) wicker-wrapped steel frame, so it can handle the weather, and the wrap around top will protect some of the strong rays. But not all. Comes in a multitude of colors and is filled with a quick drying foam, 5 inches thick.

Bottom line: it will take the weather.

All you need to worry about is the cocktail and getting your work done so you can really relax.

$6,000 (view not included)

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Send a living card?

Here’s a cool idea: cards that grow. Postcardens. Think of all the cards, sent and received, that end up in the garbage, bringing only a momentary laugh or smile. Imagine if you could send a card that endured. Here’s a great idea by London based A Studio for Design.

The postcarden folds out into a 3-D landscape. You sprinkle a little water in the appropriate base area, toss in the seeds and wait a few days. The resulting cress can actually be eaten, if you like (it’s actually a variety of mustard: Lapidium Sativum.

The postcarden comes in three varieties: the Victorian botanical garden (pictured), the green city and the backyard garden.

$13

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Re-treaded Planters

One of the largest waste disposal problems in the world of trash is the car tire. They alone represent 2 percent of our waste. Think of all those old tires. They used to burn them, but the smoke is full of all kinds of nastiness. They can recycle them into new tires and asphalt and a host of other things, but it’s generally not happening as fast as we use them: an alarming 290 million tires per year in the US alone.

Fortunately, there are a few pioneering souls looking for ways to reuse them. We’ve seen the sandals. Here are some planters. These are great, and unlike some ridiculous examples of “green” furniture we’ve seen (one old tire stool in a Los Angeles furniture we saw was $300), these prices actually reflect that the materials are, well, free.

2 for $32.

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Bring some electricity to your garden

This little outdoor table is solar powered…which means you can sit out and work on your WordPress blog. Or you can recharge your new iPad without getting off your butt. Of course if there’s a power outage or some kind of apocalyptic situation it’s always good to have a live solar panel (120V AC power with included converter…).

Its construction: teak + stainless steel + solar panel. Easy to clean, just hose it off.

According to NY Times, the price is a mere $2k.

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