Identifying genuinely sustainable and ecological paint brands requires some careful research and checking. But it’s worth it! At stake is both the health of our planet and those that inhabit your space. Here Graphenstone presents a few key pointers:
Do they claim ‘Low VOC’ levels or 'Ultra-Low'? Low VOC can be as high at 30-50 grams per litre! Low VOC is a misnomer, it’s nothing like low enough. Even low or Ultra Low VOC products can contain other harmful additives and chemicals.
What evidence does the brand offer to validate their sustainability claims? Check to see if they provide Toxicological or Ecological data, or does it simply say ’No data available’ or not reference it?
Window-dressing; does the brand highlight positives like planting trees, or removing plastic from oceans, while explicitly avoiding any reference to their manufacturing process, the paints products themselves or their carbon footprint? Some brand use these distractions to window dress to shift your attention from other more damaging, un-ecological aspects of their offering.
Are there Independent certifications available from recognised 'harm-free' product evaluation agencies? These are essential to verify claims. ’Trust but Verify’ as Ronald Reagan, US President, once famously stated.
Are the paints genuinely petro-chemical, micro-bead and plastic free? Micro-beads are so damaging to the global ecology of rivers and oceans and the scientific evidence is now clear that these tiny plastic particles are now falling globally, onto land, via ‘plastic rain’.
Do they list ingredients with no verification from recognised, respected third party product evaluation agencies? How can you know if those really are the only ingredients? Check their certifications for independent evidence to confirm that all ingredients are ‘harm-free’ and healthy.
The paint industry is one of the most polluting globally. Billions of Kilo’s of VOC’s released annually into our precious atmosphere. For every ton of paint manufactured, the WHO claim that there’s 30 tons of waste water requiring processing. Only 30% of global paints are manufactured with a water base and even these can contain plastic and petrol-chemical based ingredients.
Graphenstone is certified by the most rigorous of all the ‘harm-free’ evaluation agencies including the most widely respected and holistic agencies such as Cradle to Cradle Institute, Eurofins, Green Tag and many others. No global paints brand has more certifications in the ecological and sustainable space.
About Graphenstone
Graphenstone is the brainchild of a chemical engineer Antonio León Jiménez who dedicated himself to the idea of developing a natural, ecological and health conscious coating for the 21st century. Since the production of their initial range of paints and coatings, they have continued to work diligently creating ever more healthy and sustainable coatings for all manner of buildings.
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Designing for Sustainable Interiors: How Can Interior Design Industry Address Climate Change?
The latest panel discussion in collaboration with Grohe, hosted by SBID CEO Vanessa Brady, addressed key considerations for effectively designing interiors with sustainability and climate change in mind.
The built environment accounts for 40 per cent of the UK’s carbon emissions in 2019, according to the UK Green Building Council. Awareness over the environmental impacts of the construction, architecture and interior design industries is growing, as concerns over climate change and the sustainability of our cities, societies and lifestyles continue to rise. As a result, more clients and interior designers are seeking to incorporate sustainable principles into the design of their interiors.
The panel discussion explored the role interior designers and product manufacturers play in improving the impact of the industry and driving sustainable developments. From material selections and FF&E specification, to carbon neutral manufacturing, minimising waste and optimising energy efficiency.
Karl Lennon | Leader for Projects at Grohe
Karl has over 15 years of experience in the specification of architectural products in the international arena, acting as a project consultant on projects worldwide. Working with Architects and Interior Designers, Karl supports projects in all sectors with a strong consideration of the sustainable impact of the products supplied. Now working for GROHE for 5 years, he offers support to leading A&D firms working on many award-winning projects. He is also the author of GROHE’s RIBA Approved CPDs on Water Saving, Hygiene, and 3D Printing.
Pia Pelkonen | Creative Director at Pia Design
Following a degree in interior architecture Pia gained experience across a variety of projects as a designer and project manager at leading design studios in London before establishing Pia Design. Everything that Pia Design does has the future of our home planet at its heart and Pia and her team actively champion more sustainable ways to remodel. They reuse, repurpose and refurbish before replacing, working with the belief that longevity is the best form of sustainability and that by taking inspiration from nature, they are able to create spaces that improve with age - interiors with a green soul.
Cecilia Halling | Creative Director at Elicyon
Cecilia Halling is the Creative Director of Elicyon, with over 10 years’ experience in luxury interior design. Originally from Sweden, Cecilia specialises in highly bespoke residential interiors that are tailored to ensure each project is innovative and unique. She leads the vision for a 30 strong team, delivering projects all over the world.
Cover image credits: Interior design by LIA Design.
Silestone® by Cosentino, the leading global hybrid mineral surface for the world of architecture and design, presents Sunlit Days, the first carbon neutral collection in the quartz surfaces and engineered stone industry.
This milestone demonstrates the brand’s commitment to sustainability and highlights the excellent environmental management that the Cosentino Group has been carrying out for years. To reach this new milestone in the industry, Cosentino commits to offsetting the CO² emissions of the entire life cycle of the Silestone® Sunlit Days series. To this end, the company relies on different voluntary offsetting projects, duly certified and in the framework of the Voluntary Carbon Market. This initiative is also complemented by a partnership programme for the preservation of the seabed.
Sunlit Days is a collection of five colours inspired by the Mediterranean, the connection with nature and, above all, colour, the distinguishing feature that has made Silestone® a distinctive leader in the industry since its inception. Sunlit Days is a journey through light and colour, with a fresh style and Mediterranean tones, inspired by human values and simple and profound ways of living.
Faro White, Cincel Grey, Arcilla Red, Cala Blue and Posidonia Green are more than just the names of these five colours. They are stories, experiences and expressions. They are a tribute to the way of life of real people who have found their true essence by the Mediterranean.
Faro White represents the white of the Mediterranean and its sun-drenched walls, symbolising purity, simplicity and serenity. Inspired by the lighthouses that point the way for ships, this colour is also characterised by a silky, smooth texture. Faro White is a hymn for life loving people.
Cincel Grey is a fine-grained, silky grey, a shade that performs at its best when bathed in light. It is neutral and versatile, balanced between warm and cool. Its soft texture is captivating.
The Mediterranean breathes fire, and blood seems to flow in some parts of its geography. This is just what Arcilla Red is, an earthy red shade that makes you fall in love, tastes like wine and smells of petrichor. Essence, burst of colour, strength, passion and a lot of character. Its soft texture blends harmoniously with its beauty.
Talking about the Mediterranean means talking about the sea, its breeze, its vastness and its infinite horizon. Cala Blue is a deep and sophisticated blue colour that vibrates with the rest of the elements that surround it. Its texture feels like the caress of the sea.
The treasure of the Mediterranean Sea gives its name to this green colour that conveys the beauty of the Posidonia meadows. Energy, joy and nature come together in this proposal ready to surprise, ready to hypnotise. Its soft and delicate texture is complemented by this harmonious shade, ready to conquer.
Sunlit Days is a collection created with the exclusive and pioneering HybriQ® technology by Silestone®. This new production process is characterised by the company’s commitment to the environment, the circular economy and sustainable management. The manufacturing process of Silestone® with HybriQ+ uses 99% reused water from the production processes, 100% renewable electric energy and a minimum of 20% recycled raw materials in its composition.
Furthermore, HybriQ+ technology stands out for the new formula used in the manufacture of Silestone®, which significantly reduces the presence of crystalline silica. Instead, a hybrid formula made up of mineral raw materials and materials of a recycled origin is used. With this new composition, the outstanding mechanical and technical performance and timeless beauty of Silestone® remain intact.
About Cosentino
Cosentino Group is a global, Spanish, family-owned company that produces and distributes high value innovative surfaces for the world of design and architecture. It works together with its clients and partners to provide with solutions that offer design and value, and inspire the life of many people.
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The green oak building tradition of the Hogg family forms the inspiration behind Rachel McLane's crafted designs in the new 40-bedroom Sandburn Hall Hotel in the Yorkshire countryside.
Design-led and built to a country-style specification, the 1,000-acre Sandburn Hall estate was developed by the late Mike Hogg seven miles from York. The new adjoining hotel complements what is already one of North Yorkshire’s leading golf, wedding, events and business venues.
When Pickering-based Rachel McLane was contracted in 2018 to provide her innovative, specialist interior design work for the ambitious new build it was immediately clear that the Hogg family wanted to build on Mike Hogg's legacy.
"From day one we worked very closely with the client to incorporate the Hogg family firm's wonderful custom building heritage into the design, bringing that history, the shape, feel and emotion of that green oak frame building structure to the fore," said Rachel.
"Given the freedom to interpret their brief we have created a design that not only makes the most of the space and enhances the building, but understands and incorporates the Hogg family heritage, interests, and craftsmanship into the final design."
The new hotel's centrepiece uses natural green oak beams to frame a triple-height lobby as part of Sandburn Hall Golf Club, Grand Function Room and Tykes restaurant. Hand picked artwork is established on the walls, including photos of green oak frames and black and white prints going around the corridors and rooms. The designs also take some of their inspiration from the local area where York and the East Coast are evident in the natural colours, earthy tones, and real materials including vintage maps depicting the Sandburn Estate.
"In doing so, we were able to fulfil an important part of the brief that the rooms and spaces had to feel individual and not corporate," added Rachel.
Rachel's design vision created a unique cohesive feel across all rooms and into the common areas ensuring that the Hogg family connections to nature and craftsman trades were reflected in the room décor. Rachel commented: "The designs merge the traditional and the contemporary and aim to achieve a balance that bridges the core golf, wedding and business customer base."
The Rachel McLane team's design expertise is evident throughout the new hotel's range of 40 double and twin rooms all with dressing areas, including larger family, luxury and accessible rooms, and two luxury suites. They also all come with handcrafted built-in case goods. "We wanted the signature and family rooms to be fun, a bit urban and industrial where the raw richness of exposed brickwork and soft leather combine with cool-toned sawn grey oak flooring and built-in bespoke joinery."
Well lit, spacious and airy with eclectic pieces of furniture that differentiate between room types, the large windows of these signature and family rooms are of a natural oatmeal palette, soft grey and brick in a modern, fresh design that naturally marry the hand-crafted structure of the building.
Super-king beds and luxury, made in Yorkshire Harrison Spinks mattresses are a feature, and bathrooms are a mix of contemporary and traditional with the emphasis being on quality and timeless design. The hotel's premier rooms, including the courtyard premier, have been designed with a feel that is classic and calm with raw, untreated materials to give a fresh, bright, light and airy atmosphere. Reclaimed bricks are softened by natural cream and teal curtain fabrics with artisan hand-blocked characteristics. Elements of teal and natural weave have been picked up in soft woven tweeds and the carpet's muted tones, and the furniture has a comfortable country feel in a calm palette.
"The biggest challenge was the length of time it took from creating the fixtures and fittings specification to fulfiling the initial design with Covid-19 a constant hindrance. We found that not only were some products unavailable, but more than one company had ceased trading."
Despite the challenges of a long project Rachel says that the team has loved working on Sandburn Hall Hotel: "The client is a pleasure to work for, they appreciate high-quality workmanship, attention to detail, and above all understand the value of design and the difference having a designer on board makes to a project.
"It's also lovely being local to a project as you feel like you are contributing towards the good of the local area."
About the Author
Rachel McLane developed a wealth of experience designing for the retail sector for eight years in London and York before setting up her practice, Rachel McLane Ltd specialising in the design of interiors for professional clients with commercial interests.
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In a particularly turbulent world (enduring an ongoing pandemic) where there is so much uncertainty, striving for wellbeing in our daily lives is all the more important. Our homes now act as a substitute for offices, gyms, entertainment centres and sanctuaries to name but a few of their additional uses. As we’re spending significantly greater time in them overall, it is clear they need to work harder than ever to meet our demands, suit our needs and ease our minds. The question is - can biophilic design really help? Peter Oudejans, director of leading biophilic design studio, Oudejans Interiors shares key insights on the benefits of integrating concepts of biophilia into our interior environments.
Biophilia, simply stated, is the human connection to nature that assists us in attaining wellness in our lives. Have you ever noticed how calm and uplifted you can feel when walking in the woods, strolling along the beach or simply sitting in a park? That’s the ‘Biophilia’ effect. In rural settings, this connection can be more obvious, but as more of us live in densely populated, urban environments, this connection is slowly being lost. That does not mean however, that we are unable to embrace nature’s beauty at home. There are numerous ways to live more meaningful, holistic lives and in practice this is about re-establishing links with nature to create healthy environments for life and work.
“It is the simple core truth that humans need a connection to nature to be content”, according to Sally Coulthard, author of the book Biophilia. It is the notion that humans need to feel connected to their natural environment not only to survive, but also to thrive.
Research undertaken over the past few decades has shown that biophilic design can improve cognitive function, physical health, and psychological well-being with benefits that include:
According to architect Claudia Bonollo of Monamour Natural Design, “our mood and our capacity for communication are influenced by a combination of physical, mental and sensory factors. Therefore, an environment that involves all the senses makes us happier and more receptive,” she says.
Oliver Heath Design, has found that the inclusion of Biophilia to the design process can increase productivity by 8% and rates of wellbeing by up to 13% in an office environment. In healthcare settings, pain medication was shown to be reduced by 22% and in the education setting, rates of learning can be increased by 20-25% where biophilic designs have been incorporated.
And finally, Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing weighs in with “I shall never forget the rapture of fever patients over a bunch of bright-coloured flowers… People say the effect is only on the mind. It is no such thing. The effect is on the body too.”
With regard to interior design, Biophilia is considered more of a lifestyle than a design trend. It can be applied across the entire spectrum of interior styles from contemporary to classic and has a place in all areas of interior design, be it in a residential or commercial setting. Eco design and green architecture are very closely related concepts with a focus on environmentally-friendly design practices that are good for people and planet, just as Biophilia is focused on the wellbeing of humans through their connection to the natural world.
Biophilic design has three key threads that together make a space biophilic:
1. Being in a space that has a direct, physical contact with nature; 2. Being in a space that reminds you of nature through the use of natural items; 3. Being in a space that connects to natural rhythms and outside spaces.
There are numerous key elements of biophilic design which include incorporating a few or all of the following:
Take the example of firelight and candle light, which have slowly decreased in domestic settings as the use of heating (central and otherwise) and of course, electric light, now almost completely dominate in the modern home. Yet the ‘red’ light that emanates from firelight and candlelight plays an important trigger in the body’s preparation for rest and relaxation, making us feel calm and cosy.
In a study by the anthropologist Christopher Lynn, he measured people’s blood pressure and how sociable they felt after watching a log fire on a screen. One group watched with sound, the others no sound. The results found that those that watched with no sound showed little benefit, but those that experienced the audio and visual effects of the fire, had significantly reduced blood pressure, felt more mindful and focused on the present and were increasingly communicative and sociable. [1]
Including such a simple yet multi-sensory element such as a fireplace within the home can make a significant difference to the wellbeing of the individual. Just imagine the other benefits and sensations a real fire provides, such as the soothing radiant heat and comforting wood scent. And this is just one simple addition in the whole armament that nature and Biophilia can provide.
Biophilia is still deemed to be in its infancy within the interior design profession, despite being based on one of the most fundamental connections humans have with their environment. But with the current focus very much on the recovery, both physically and mentally, from a global pandemic, never has there been a better time or more crucial need to draw upon the healing powers of nature to improve our wellbeing.
Interior designer's approaches to home design should now be looking to design sustainably with nature at its core for the creation healthy, happy homes that are better for people and the planet. After all, it truly is all about creating nature-inspired spaces to support our health and wellbeing.
References:
[1] Lynn C.D. The Psychophysiology of Fireside Relaxation. American Journal of Human Biology 25 (2013). 265-265
Projects photographed are undertaken by Oudejans Interiors Ltd. All photos are credited to photographer Glenn MacKay.
About
As a leading biophilic design studio, Oudejans Interiors feels it is vital to live more sustainably, in an increasingly connected manner to the natural world. Their motivation for designing spaces is to consciously straddle the line between nature and interior architecture. From creating a living wall to redecorating with natural hues, incorporating biophilia into living spaces is an effective way to restoratively transform them, whilst boosting body and mind.
SBID Accredited Designer, Portview strive to positively contribute to the creation of legacy-defining spaces that work for people, businesses, communities, owners, and investors. Sustainability is an extension of this and has been driving real change across the construction industry over the last decade. The next ten years will undoubtedly see this ramp up even further as the industry aims to reduce emissions, future-proof projects and slow the rate of climate change.
To reach the ambitious targets set out by The Paris Agreement and the UK Government's goal of achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, the way construction and fit-out projects operate is going to have to evolve.
"While governments and clients have a central role to play, construction companies and specialists have the opportunity to lead this process," says ProZero Environmental and Quality Manager, Lisa Trainor. "As interior fit-out specialists, we can integrate sustainability into our approach while ensuring quality, budget control and delivery."
Here are some of the lessons that Lisa and the rest of the Portview team have learnt about making the construction industry more sustainable:
Companies of all shapes and sizes want to create sustainable buildings, but the planning and execution involved can be complicated and time intensive. Reaching a BREEAM excellent or outstanding rating relies on implementing sustainable working practices at every stage of a project. This includes resource efficiency, waste management and using the right building materials and techniques, but it also means effectively engaging all stakeholders. By setting out sustainability goals at the start of the process and maintaining an ongoing dialogue, we can ensure clients, architects, and contractors can consider sustainability at every stage. This includes things that can often get overlooked, such as sourcing low VOC products or using electric rather than diesel-fuelled forklifts onsite.
It feels like the whole world has taken a crash-course in sustainability over the last decade, and we have seen a considerable leap in expertise among our industry and clients just within the last five years. There is still a lot of progress to make, and continuing to build in-house capability is critical.
"Clients and investors are increasingly knowledgeable about BREEAM, LEED or WELL. However, they still need practical knowledge and insights into making these goals a reality," says Lisa. "While expert consultants will always have a role to play, having in-house expertise is increasingly emerging as a key differentiator for clients. They want specialists that can provide value throughout the process, from sourcing materials to issuing commissioning certificates and providing aftercare."
Sustainability is often still seen as a tick-box, regulatory exercise by many in the construction and fit-out world. And while it is undoubtedly the case that the prospect of increasingly heavy financial penalties is a significant motivating factor, we are finding that a growing number of clients are taking a more positive view. Achieving a BREEAM 'outstanding' rating requires additional cost, such as paying to conduct thermographic surveys or making sure that all materials are fully recyclable. But the long-term benefits are likely to be significant in terms of reduced utility costs, future-proofed businesses, increased tenant demand and increased wellbeing for employees and communities. Again, engaging stakeholders early is often critical in elevating sustainability from a regulatory requirement to an exciting opportunity.
The practical challenges of transitioning to a low-carbon economy touch every part of modern life, from the way we heat our homes to the lacquers and glues we use to finish a fit-out. Sustainable design has become a niche market over the last decade, but it will only become more important and mainstream. Companies in the construction and fit-out space also need to start holding their own operations to the same standards their projects are judged by. For example, we've pledged to use only low-VOC paints and reduce our carbon footprint by 30% by 2030.
"This is not only an essential part of making sure we practise what we preach," says Lisa, "it will also help us to attract and retain talent from younger generations who may not currently see the construction and fit-out sector as a potential career choice."
Choosing the right materials and construction techniques is an integral part of sustainable design and creating local systems that support wellbeing and the environment. On the one hand, this means considering such factors as sun orientation, implementing high-efficiency electrical, plumbing and HVAC systems, as well as using more renewable energy. But it's also important to be aware of the broader local environment in which our buildings exist. This includes design choices such as using trees, plants, and grasses native to the area or installing stormwater management strategies.
Buildings also play a role in our social systems. A commercial building's average lifespan is 25-30 years, which presents some challenges for sustainable design. Either these buildings must be made with completely recyclable materials so that they can be cleanly dismantled, or the initial designs need to be flexible enough to accommodate future changes of use. The UK government is encouraging the latter through the introduction of Class E permitted development rights.
There are many other ways that projects can be more sustainable that are unique to their local contexts. For example, we have developed several closed-loop solutions that reduce waste and benefit the local community.
We are part of recycling schemes for Correx, Plasterboard and Armstrong Ceiling tiles. Used materials are collected from our sites and re-manufactured; reducing raw materials, carbon waste and skip space.
We donate waste wood from our projects to a local college's carpentry department within our local community, providing a new use for materials that would otherwise be destined for landfill. We also work with The Turnaround Project, who have created a workshop out of the wood we've donated. We've also recently partnered with Tools for Solidarity – who take our old tools, refurbish them and send them to Tasmania and Malawi.
Developing these solutions not only helps to reduce the impact of every job we complete, but it helps to strengthen community relationships, allowing us to lead the sustainability conversation from the front.
Part of what makes the challenges of sustainability so intimidating is their scale. The narrative around the topic is often focused on the bigger picture, and goals like the UK achieving net zero emissions by 2050 can feel daunting. As with any large project, it can be difficult to know where exactly to start. In reality, seemingly small wins can begin to create the momentum for change when taken together. Organisational leadership has a really important role in educating stakeholders and making sure that construction and fit-out companies lead by example and hold themselves to account. Effective education drives changes in behaviour that help contribute to the larger goal of transitioning to a low-carbon economy.
"Although it may seem small, an onsite worker stopping to quickly check whether a paint is low VOC before applying it shows that people are beginning to think differently about the way they work," says Lisa.
The construction and design industry is at the heart of making our towns and cities more sustainable. By taking a proactive approach to driving change rather than reacting to it, we can help clients create amazing, future-proofed spaces with social and environmental benefits that ripple outwards. We can also help them differentiate themselves in a crowded market and make sustainability the norm.
Discover the latest sustainable products for interior design, here.
Market expectations and perceived building standards are holding back the country's progress to construct net-zero buildings, according to the UK Green Building Council, UKGBC. The organisation would like to see developers adjusting investor and owner-occupier expectations about green buildings and this should be set out early in a development's narrative.
It is often said buildings were completely fitted out to maximize appeal during the leasing stage, resulting in over-provision and waste as typically incoming occupiers remove final fit-outs.
UKGBC head of business transformation Alastair Mant said: "Achieving the necessary reductions in embodied and operational carbon requires large scale changes to how buildings are designed, constructed, and operated. There are many barriers along the way and we must work quickly to identify them and the corresponding opportunities to overcome them."
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SBID Accredited Partner, KI Europe has published new Environmental Product Declarations (EPDs) for its portfolio of UK-manufactured products to help customers meet their sustainability objectives. Valid for five years, these documents help to achieve credits towards SKA, BREEAM, LEED and other certifications and standards.
KI’s furniture helps the world leading organisations create happy, healthy, high performing working and learning environments for their people; bringing together good design, advanced engineering and sustainable resources.
An EPD is a standardised and verified way of quantifying the environmental impacts of a product based on a consistent set of rules known as a PCR (Product Category Rules). Conformant with ISO 14025 (ISO 14025:2006 Environmental labels and declarations - Type III environmental declarations - Principles and procedures), these cradle-to-grave EPDs are concise and include environmental information and life cycle assessments (LCA) which have been conducted by Giraffe Innovation Ltd. LCAs cover materials, production, distribution, use, through to end of life; helping specifiers and customers to confidently make more sustainable procurement decisions.
Jonathan Hindle, KI’s Group Managing Director, EMEA, comments: “Sustainability is a top priority for a growing number of public and private sector projects. These EPDs show our commitment to tackling our shared issues such as climate change, carbon footprint and environmental impact. Additionally, analysing the environmental performance of our products over their lifetime can help us to develop even better products and processes in the future.”
KI’s products manufactured in the UK with third-party verified EPDs, published on Environdec (www.environdec.com) include:
Additional KI products including bespoke items have self-declared third party reviewed EPDs that have been produced by using the same calculator and standards.
With 'renew, repurpose and replenish' at the heart of her work, award-winning interior design consultant and SBID Accredited Designer, Rachel McLane has just completed the Bike & Boot – Scarborough’s newest hotel. As well as the design and fit-out of the 65 bedrooms, Rachel's Yorkshire-based designers have created eye-catching common areas including the bar, residents’ lounge, film club and restaurant.
"We were fortunate with the Bike & Boot as the building was once a row of Georgian terrace houses and retains much of the original architecture. Even now, the envelope of the building remains true to its heritage," said Rachel, who heads up a close-knit team of specialist designers experienced in concept design, design detailing and space planning for the hotel, residential, retail and leisure industries.
"It made no commercial sense to strip back and re-plaster the walls. Rather than hiding the faded grandeur of the original building, we have worked with it and given it a new lease of life."
"My attitude is not to be overly precious; interior design is not about me forcing my ideas onto a client and their customers. Instead, it is about creating something that works for them and enhances their business. It is about producing the best solution we can, for the budget – but that does not mean holding back on quality or design. And good design does not have to cost the earth."
Striving to be local as far as possible, Rachel employed craftsmen and suppliers from the area who were passionate about harnessing their skills to revitalise this once grand feature of the Scarborough seafront. This work has included bespoke case goods, re-upholstering furniture, sourcing local photographs for bedroom doors, creating graphic blinds using original railway poster designs and producing wall mounts featuring bicycle seats and handlebars instead of the traditional taxidermy heads. Other bespoke items in the hotel on Cliff Bridge Terrace include clocks made of brightly coloured bicycle bells and flip flops. Bespoke lighting was created from old bike wheels and crates, and a bespoke handle for the residents’ lounge is based on the ampersand between the 'Bike' and 'Boot'.
A Georgian inspired colour palette was used to paint over the old anaglypta wallpaper giving the rooms a new identity and feel, and the team also designed and commissioned wallpaper based on activity maps of the area and recreated posters of original postcards of Scarborough from its heyday as a fashionable spa resort.
The design and installation of the Bike & Boot's new hotel bar shows all of the company's green, recycling values coming through by giving a second life to the metal back-bar of an old venue in Leeds at the same time as commissioning a Harrogate based company to produce the joinery elements to Rachel McLane's designs.
"If you have been walking or cycling all day, you want to be able to relax and feel at home," said Rachel. "The team sourced the bar furniture with that in mind - some of it was new and some of it was pre-loved and repurposed. An old chair can be upholstered by a skilled tradesman, and by choosing fabric of the right quality and design, the result looks great and provides the luxury of comfort.
"Renew, repurpose and replenish is an ethos at the heart of our work. I believe in avoiding sending things to landfill or bonfires whenever possible, and I am glad to say we have done our little bit with some of the bar and restaurant furniture at The Bike & Boot. This has also helped to reduce our carbon footprint in shipping in new products," added Rachel, who worked on the concept of the Bike & Boot for two years with its directors Simon Kershaw and Simon Rhatigan, and for the last nine months with the local refurbishment contractor Infiniti Roofing & Construction.
SpeakEasy with Patrick Folkes
In this episode of the SBID podcast, host Grant Pierrus talks business and sustainability in interior design with entrepreneur and founder of The Graphene Company, trading an innovative and ground breaking line of natural paint.
Patrick explains the origins of the Graphene Company and how the process of combining Graphene and minerals developed to create this new healthy and high-tech range of ecological paints.
As a globally certified sustainable paints company with credentials in environmental performance, cradle to cradle practices and social responsibility, Patrick shares his approach to achieving genuine sustainability throughout the entire product lifecycle.
Shedding light into the concept of what "eco paint" really is - he talks green washing in the industry, how levels of VOC impact biophilic design and the integral role of lime in air purification. Discussing the future of the paint sector for interior design, he explores the importance of health considerations, ecological characteristics and indoor air quality in the industry.
Tune in to the whole conversation to discover more.
Patrick Folkes
Patrick Folkes has focused his career on a range of financial and entrepreneurial activities. He began in 1980 when he was involved in derivatives broking and gold and silver bullion market-making in London and New York. In 1990, he founded his own fund marketing and advisory firm, Folkes Asset Management. Later, in 2016, he founded The Graphene Company, trading Graphenstone Paint UK with its innovative range of sustainable, healthy and high-tech ecological coatings that are air-purifying and free of plastic and VOC.
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