🌍 Mad materials: mushroom chairs, bacteria tiles and far beyond 🙃
Plus a breakfast recipe, soul-boosting playlist and collective tips of the week
Today we’re reclaiming all the words – mad/crazy/bonkers/crackers [*insert your own here, there are loads] – and using them to describe some of the most pioneering, planet-positive, lightbulb-moment materials being dreamt up by boundary-pushing brains all over the place.
While last week we marvelled at how human ingenuity is leading to so many sick* [*there’s another reclaimed word] reimaginings of ‘waste’, now we’re turning our gaze to all the entirely new stuffs and substances being created.
We're talking about lower-impact alternatives concocted via surprising new combinations and discoveries – see Radiant Matter, Stella McCartney's glimmering BioSequins made from plant-derived cellulose, above; OttiMat, the mat made from human hair that’s used to clean up oil slicks; or BioBasedTiles, the first sort to grow with help from bacteria. Keep on scrolling for four more fine examples. And existing, effective materials are also being adapted for further use through brilliant brainwaves: think bendy solar panels.
Our main takeaway on these freaky*-chic matters [*and there's another]? The earth has an abundance of resources we can deploy to address our issues – we just have to use our creativity, our spark, our mad, mad minds, to suss out how best to use them.
We’re working with what we all have at BRiMM, too. Making the things we can’t give up – shopping, travelling, eating! – work harder. Or should we say… play harder? Because, by embracing more of the clever things that bring us joy, that energise and inspire us, we might also just patch up our beautiful green marble that bit faster.
Are we… mad/crazy/bonkers/crackers [*insert your own word here, once more]?
Proudly. Because it’s the only way to veer off the overly-beaten path.
Tune in, team up and let's turn the tide.
Team BRiMM
x
PS - don’t miss our first ever poll, below. Any follow-up thoughts, however quick, are hugely welcome – to help us make sure we're making BRiMM what you want it to be :)
Designer Jonas Edvard is a key player when it comes to pushing at the boundaries of organic, renewable materials. Based on the island of Amager, near Copenhagen, his ‘holy trinity’ of playthings are mushrooms, seaweed and limestone: check out his crazy-unique chairs made from the first two and his lovely limestone lamps in this great Imagine5 interview.
While regular faux-furs might be better for all real-life fluffy animalkind out there, the plastics and petrochemicals they contain are not so great for the world at large. Thankfully, Paris-based biomaterials startup BioFluff has invented the first plant-based, just-as-shaggy equivalent, made from nettle, hemp and flax – and collaborated with Stella McCartney via its luxury materials arm, Savian. This Dezeen piece looks at how Ganni is also incorporating the strokeable stuff (as well as leathers made from bacterias – oh yes).
Fermented veg made to look and taste like sausages and such may not sound so out-there, but it’s a lot better than the lab-grown, processed-powder-heavy mad ‘meats’ that have received so much attention in recent years. Founded by butcher and smokey barbecue king Neil Rankin in 2019, Symplicity Foods dreams up plant-based alternatives that taste so good they’re used by restaurants like Dishoom (see more from them below) and top chefs like Tom Kerridge. Find out where to try them near you via its site.
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Hotel, Mike founder and ‘metaphorical travelling botanist’ Harriet Murphy seeks out natural magic to use in her body and skincare brand, so far spanning bacteria, plant cells and yeast. It’s about all of us (formerly Haeckels), meanwhile, has partnered with ‘nature-collaborator’ Shellworks to use new plant-based material Vivomer for its packaging: 100 per cent home compostable, it biodegrades entirely within a year. See how it’s made using microbes (as are cheese and beer, no less) via this beautifully designed explainer.
Typically known for its legendary bacon naans, Dishoom also excels at super cosy oats with this supreme banana and date porridge recipe. Make enough for two to really warm the soul.
MUSIC FOR CLIMATE OPTIMISTS
This week Charlotte's stepping up to spin: here are the tracks she thinks you really need to hear to start your February just right…
FROM THE COLLECTIVE
Maia’s become slightly obsessed with the London Vegetable Orchestra – “The Titanic theme tune played on a carrot is particularly special” // Jaz introduced us to The Chillie Kids Club on Portobello Road, run by two former-fashion industry insiders turned vintage-store owners, which shows children how to upcycle clothes via regular workshops (the next dates are over half-term) // And Sam shared Rivet, a cool cause “partnering with brands, influencers and NGOs to fund and amplify social change projects led by young people all over the world.” Neat
WHAT’S BRiMM AGAIN?
We’re building a shop, journal and collective to prove that living within limits isn’t living less – and to put the profit to work for the planet.
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Carbon maths
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