save the world by clubbing
as a follow-up to my post on the opening of greenhouse in soho last week, i wanted to give a full-fledged shoutout to the piezoelectric dance floor at club surya in london. yes, it sounds like something out of an episode of get smart or batman (the original one with adam west), but i am kicking myself for not thinking of this sooner! the brainchild of club4climate (you must, if you do nothing else of importance today, check out this website because it will blow you away) founder andrew charalambous, a.k.a. “dr. earth,” the revolutionary flooring uses quartz crystals and ceramics to transform clubbers’ dancing into electricity.
dr. earth offers free entry to any clubber that can prove he/she walked or used a bicycle to get to his clubs, although i’m not really sure how - perhaps a heartrate reading? surya also has its own wind turbine and solar energy system with plans to surplus power to local citizens.
the non-evil dr. is also planning to open a club4climate party island where eco-clubbers can gather to “save the world lying down and sipping cocktails next to the pool.” it will undoubtedly be expensive to attend a bash there, but i can’t wait until 2010, the slated opening date, to see what eco-innovations the island will reveal.
“unless we stop preaching to people and use an inclusive philosophy we’re never going to create the revolution to combat climate change,” said charalambous to reuters.
“it’s also about creating avenues of thought. imagine what you could achieve if big corporations adopted this kind of initiative.”
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a peek at simon doonan’s eco-chic holiday windows and a brief history of barneys
barneys unveiled its groovy holiday windows this week as an homage to the 50th anniversary of the peace sign. simon doonan, creative director at the tony department store found his inspiration for the psychedelic 60s vignettes after reading tom brokaw’s new book, Boom! Voices of the Sixties: Personal Reflections on the ’60s and Today.
the whimsical windows showcased the work of designers like derek lam, diane von furstenberg, donna karan, doo ri, three as four, and narcisco rodriguez displayed amidst multi-colored afro-piks, hippie flowers and painted butterflies. but the outfits, which were contrastingly neutral and subdued, were not just pretty on the outside - each design was cut and sewn with a clean conscience, using sustainable fabrics from the earthpledge futurefashion initiative.
select designers (three as four, derek lam, rodarte, zero maria cornejo and behnaz sarafpour) crafted their creations using Ingeo™, a revolutionary corn-based biodegradable and sustainable fabric. although Ingeo™ is not a household name yet, its applications are gaining steam in the mainstream. case in point: i recently spotted target bedding that proudly displayed the Ingeo™ name. oh target - be still my heart.
here are some pics of the windows, but i highly recommend that you check them out for yourself if you’re in the area!
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if you’ve gotten this far, you probably won’t mind reading a couple of interesting facts about barneys that i picked up from wiki:
the company began in 1923, when barney pressman (i had no idea!) opened his first store with the $500 raised by pawning his wife’s engagement ring. i certainly hope he bought her a new one after that.
the original slogan was “no bunk, no junk, no imitations.”
barneys was originally a discount retailer.
barney pressman claimed to be the first manhattan retailer to use radio and television, beginning with “calling all men to barney’s” radio spots in the 1930s that parodied the introduction of the dick tracy show.
mr. pressman used women encased in barrels to give away matchbooks with the store name and address. and once chartered a boat to take 2,000 of his customers from manhattan to coney island.
the apostrophe in barney’s was dropped by 1979, and about 1981 the removal became official. (The removal of the apostrophe would be short lived–it was reinserted around the end of the decade.) i think this statement might need to be amended as i have not seen a “barneys” with an apostrophe on the official website or any recent flyers or ads.
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why is this a site?
swyyne has always been an experiment for me. with all of the other super eco sites out there, i've been feeling like i want to contribute something just a bit different. so for now, here are my random musings.
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