Sustainable houseware made from chopsticks

I should have known better than to leave any email from a certain Chicago contact unopened for weeks. Because design news from that city – my personal favourite in the U.S.A. – is always cool. This one did not disappoint. Turns out the pitch I left to linger was to announce the launch of RENEW, a line of sustainable houseware products made from reclaimed bamboo chopsticks. As soon as I saw the picture file, I knew I’d share with my millions and millions of worldwide fans sooner rather than later. What a handsome, clever, well-made collection this is.

Its makers tout a commitment to craft, mindful manufacturing, and a minimal carbon footprint, as well as to creating jobs in local communities. Most significant for some will be that these made in the USA pieces transform single-use materials into new, durable products for the home. Design nerds will, I predict, embrace the clean lines and attractive functionality.

Things I loved? Well, all of it basically. A few things that particularly caught my eye include a double-tier coffee with a black powder-coated steel frame, butcher block surface made with reclaimed chopsticks and finished in natural mineral oil. Feet levelers adjust to accommodate uneven flooring.

Other pieces in this sustainable houseware line include a super simple shelving system that I also really dig, and a console table that perfectly balances its practical nature on a slim metal frame. It’s exceptionally leggy without the shelving shown below. I could find room, as they say, for either version. Compact c-shaped end tables also struck me as very demure, yet mindful. There are also shoe racks, hangers, benches, as well as dog crates and litter stations.

BIZ NOTE: Renew was launched by TRINITY, a California-based player in the storage, organization, and home space that looked at the 5.4 BILLION chopsticks tossed out across the globe each year and saw a line of sustainable houseware.