Zero Waste Life - TV series

 Meet people around Japan who strive for a life without waste under the traditional philosophy of "MOTTAINAI," which values cherishing the things we have.

Link to the series: https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/tv/zerowaste/

Why You Should Not Throw Away Used Tea Bags

By Top home remedies

Prepackaged tea bags make it so easy to enjoy a cup of tasty tea. Whether it is green tea, black tea, chamomile tea, peppermint tea or any other herbal tea, drinking a few cups daily provides many health benefits.

Herbal teas have antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, astringent and antibiotic properties.

But did you know you can get many additional benefits from those little tea bags after you’ve had your tea? Instead of just throwing them away, you can use the damp, small tea bags in your beauty regimen and even gardening.


Here are the top 10 uses of used tea bags.

1. Treat Mild Acne

Used green tea bags can help protect and beautify your skin in a number of ways. In fact, they are one of the best home remedies for mild acne. The catechins in green tea have antibacterial properties that help fight acne-causing bacteria.
A 2009 study published in the Journal of Drugs in Dermatology suggests that green tea lotion can be an effective and safe treatment for mild acne.
Another study, published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology in 2012, concluded that epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) in green tea helps modulate intracellular molecular targets and inhibit p. acnes bacteria that causes acne.

1. Brew a cup of green tea and set the tea bag aside for 30 minutes.
2. Place the used tea bag directly on the affected skin for 5 to 10 minutes.
3. Rinse off your skin with cool water.
4. Do this twice daily until you have acne-free skin.

2. Fight Aging Signs

Green tea has anti-aging and antioxidant properties that help improve skin complexion and elasticity. It even delays signs of skin aging, such as sagging skin, sun damage, age spots, fine lines and wrinkles.
A 2003 study by the Medical College of Georgia notes that green tea aids skin rejuvenation. It can be used to treat skin diseases and wounds.

1. Transfer the contents of 2 used green tea bags into a bowl.
2. Mix in 1 to 2 teaspoons of raw honey and a little lemon juice.
3. Apply it on your face and neck area.
4. Allow it to sit for 5 to 10 minutes, then rinse it off with lukewarm water.
5. Use this face mask once or twice a week.

Note: This face mask may not be suitable for people with sensitive skin.

3. Eliminate Bad Breath

You can enjoy fresh, minty breath using a soothing and mild mouthwash made with peppermint and green tea bags. The antiseptic and antibacterial properties in these teas help fight bad bacteria in the mouth that cause bad breath.
Also, a 2014 study published in the International Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery noted that a green tea mouth rinse could be an appropriate and effective choice for controlling pain associated with acute pericoronitis.

1. Steep 2 or 3 used tea bags in a cup of hot water for 10 to 15 minutes to brew a weak tea.
2. Let the tea cool down.
3. Mix in a few drops of tea tree oil.
4. Use it as a mouthwash 2 times a day to fight bad breath.

4. Make Your Hair Shiny

Used black or green tea bags can add shine to dry and dull hair. The antioxidants in the tea promote hair growth as well as prevent common problems like dry scalp and dandruff.

1. Rebrew 2 or 3 used tea bags in 2 cups of water and allow it to cool.
2. After shampooing your hair, use the weak tea as a final hair rinse.
3. Massage your scalp for 5 minutes, then rinse your hair with plain water.
4. Allow your hair to air dry to enjoy smooth and shiny hair.
5. Use this hair treatment 2 times a week.

5. Soothe Puffy and Irritated Eyes

Any kind of tea bags can help soothe puffy and irritated eyes. Tea has anti-irritant and antioxidant properties that help reduce swelling around your eyes and relieve tiredness and inflammation.
Furthermore, it helps restore the natural glow and spark of your eyes.

1. Put 2 used tea bags in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
2. Lie down and put the chilled tea bags over your closed eyelids.
3. Leave them in place for 10 to 15 minutes.
4. Repeat a few times a day.

6. Soothe Sunburns and Razor Burns

Moist green teabags can soothe sunburns as well as razor burns. Green tea contains tannins with astringent and mild anesthetic properties that can help combat itching and pain.
A 2001 study published in the Journal of American Academy of Dermatology notes that the polyphenolic extracts of green tea help reduce the number of sunburn cells and protect epidermal Langerhans cells from damage caused by ultraviolet sunrays.

1. Put 10 to 12 used green tea bags in your bathwater.
2. Soak in this healing water for about 20 minutes.
3. Do this once daily for a few days.

You can also try used chamomile tea bags for their anti-inflammatory qualities.

7. Fight Toenail Fungus

Instead of discarding used tea bags, you can use them to treat toenail fungus. The tannins in tea help kill the fungi responsible for fungal infections, while its antibiotic and astringent properties relieve symptoms like burning sensations, swelling and skin irritation.

1. Chill some used tea bags in the refrigerator for 20 to 30 minutes.
2. Put the cold tea bags on the affected toenails for 15 minutes.
3. Use this remedy 2 or 3 times daily until the infection clears up completely.

8. Exfoliate Your Skin

The slight rough texture of the contents of used tea bags is great for exfoliating your skin. This helps get rid of dead skin cells, dirt and other impurities.

Plus, its antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties help soothe your skin and give your skin an incredible glow.

1. Transfer the contents of 1 or 2 used green tea bags into a bowl.
2. Add a little olive oil and honey to make a paste.
3. Apply it on your face and neck and allow it to sit for 10 minutes.
4. Gently rub off the paste using circular motions.
5. Rinse off your skin with warm water.
6. Use this facial scrub once or twice a week.

9. Protect Plants from Pests and Infections

Whether you grow plants in pots or lush green gardens, used tea bags can help keep pests and fungal infections at bay.

• Make a mild brew from your used tea bags. Allow it to cool and transfer the solution into a spray bottle. Spray it on the leaves of your indoor or garden plants.
• Also, place a few used teabags in the bottom of a pot. They help the soil retain water in addition to adding valuable nutrients to it.

10. Add to Organic Compost

As long as the bags are made of paper or muslin, rather than polypropylene, used tea bags can be composted to speed up the decomposition process in plant material. They also encourage friendly bacteria to grow, which helps prevent fungal and pest problems.

Collect your used bags in a jar and add them to your compost at your convenience.

Resources:

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19363854
http://www.nature.com/jid/journal/v133/n2/full/jid2012292a.html
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/04/030425071800.htm
http://www.ijoms.com/article/S0901-5027%2814%2900210-0/abstract
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11209110

Source: http://www.top10homeremedies.com/kitchen-ingredients/not-throw-used-tea-bags.html

Sweden Is Now Recycling 99 Percent Of Its Trash. Here’s How They Do It

Everyone produces waste, and the Swedes are no different. It’s what they do with it that is unusual. Sweden recycles and sorts its waste so efficiently that less than 1 percent ends up in landfills. But perhaps even more interesting, and somewhat controversial, is that Sweden burns about as much household waste as it recycles, over 2 million tons, and converts this to energy. But even with this amount of domestic waste, the country’s 32 waste-to energy (WTE) incineration plants can handle even more. And when Sweden runs out of its own garbage, it offers a service to the rest of garbage-bloated Europe: importing excess waste from other countries.

Source: Truth Theory

Landfill Harmonic

 A cello made from an oil can and pieces of wood thrown in the garbage; a saxophone made of spoons and buttons. These are the instruments crafted by Nicolas, a recycler with no previous experience making musical instruments, living hand-to-mouth by the garbage dump in Catuera, Paraguay. Inspired by this initiative and creativity, Maestro Luis Szaran, director of "Sounds of the Earth," formed a "recycled orchestra" with children living at the dump. "Our main goal isn't to form good musicians, but to form good citizens." Now 30 members strong, listen to the sweet sounds of these recycled instruments and the hopes and dreams of the children who play them.

• http://www.karmatube.org/videos.php?id=3704
• Source: http://www.creativevisions.org/get-involved/cap/landfill-harmonic

Landfill Harmonic
Alejandra Nash & Juliana Penaranda-Loftus

   To demonstrate that creative and simple solutions can bring powerful social transformation to the poorest communities.

    Creative Visions Foundation (CVF) provided Landfill Harmonic with production and outreach services from project inception including pro-bono legal, public relations, and strategic partnerships. CVF raised funds through individual donations and foundations and helped market the online trailer that reached more than 850,000 people. Additionally, Landfill Harmonic has been featured in other CAP member newsletters, and was invited to present at TEDx San Diego through CVF.

Too many children in the world are born into lives with little or no hope. Our film reveals a mind-boggling, inventive effort to change that - musical instruments made from trash. In the barrios of Paraguay, a humble garbage picker uses his ingenuity to craft instruments out of recycled materials - and a youth orchestra is born. Music arises and children find new dreams.

Our film will showcase the power of creativity, hope, empowerment, and community work. We began official production in 2011. We filmed some of the children who learned to play violin, flute, drums, cello, string bass, and more - all made from recycled metal drums, tin cans, and plastic pipes. Their spirits soar with each note they play.

We are returning to the village in 2012 to update the progress of three young children who recently entered the orchestra. Landfill Harmonic shows how trash and recycled materials can be transformed into beautiful sounding musical instruments, but more importantly, it brings witness to the transformation of precious human beings.

Our lives were changed in making this film so far - and with your help in allowing us to complete it, we hope to change yours.

Students Challenged to Rethink Materialism

Ohio Wesleyan free store fashion show

By Erika Kazi (edited by Mira Luna)

Sarah Jilbert, Melissa Guziak, and I were juniors at Ohio Wesleyan University when we formulated Green Week. Our school has lagged behind when it comes to sustainability efforts - only making baby steps in the past two years due to a lack of environmental awareness among our peers.

Our research about other campus sustainability programs showed us that once educated and conscious, students can easily become enthusiastic for environmental causes. We’d seen this grow at our own school - a school once without a uniform recycling program. In just one semester, we initiated a composting program at our school, redesigned the recycling program, and hosted two free stores. Our first Free Store collected items during student move out in May, and allowed students to claim items at the start of the following school year. This was a great success - we diverted 43 tons of waste from a landfill within just 2 weeks. To build on this enthusiasm, we created Green Week, funded in part by a seed grant from Shareable and OWU.

OWU Free Store

Though the week-long event was mainly focused on education, having fun and bonding as a community was an integral part. Each day of the week had a different theme to promote ‘green’ actions through playful challenges. Each activity was an opportunity for teams to earn points and three teams with the highest points earned certificates for local ice cream. The winning team won the opportunity to implement an innovative sustainable project on campus with the help of the Sustainability Task Force.

On Monday, Energy and Water Day, students won a free water bottle for sharing information about their energy and water habits.

Reusable water bottles from Camelbak given away at OWU Green Week

Tuesday was Mind Your Area Business Day, a big dinner celebration with local food, wine, and beer to create relationships between students and local business owners and encourage local consumption.

Wednesday's Waste Naught event featured a recycled art display about waste and a “Compost Challenge” - to receive a free Green Week reusable tote bag, contestants had to demonstrate knowledge of compostable materials.

On Thursday, Smoothie Moves / Social Bike Ride day, we surveyed students how they got to class (walking, biking, or driving) in order to get a smoothie and sign up with our campus bike share program costing only $1 for the semester. Students gathered for a bike ride, which earned them a reusable spork.

Friday's Black Out Day & Night / Community Free Store event was focused on reusing clothes and striving for accountability in turning lights out. Students signed a statement saying that they would be more consciously aware of turning out lights to receive “when not in use, turn out the juice” stickers, a pencil, or a spork. In order to enter a thrift shop dance party later that night, students had to donate at least one clothing item to a Free Store the following day, supported by a donation from Shareable.

OWU Give and Take free store

Reflecting on the excitement around Green Week, the campus’ reaction was the greatest proof of the impact that we made. It was hopeful to hear students encouraging their peers to recycle and carrying the free water reusable bottles, and to see the administration's awe of such a successful event. Some students, as cheesy as it sounds, mentioned that Green Week changed their lives. In one case, a student approached me and explained that by getting the water bottle she gave up drinking soda, speaking to local businesses encouraged her to be more conscious about her food choices, and the bike ride made her join the bike share program. This student is now trying out being a vegetarian and is excited to be helping to fix the recycling program in her residence hall.

Encouraging students to take a step back from the dominant materialistic culture and get a feel for a more genuine and sustainable lifestyle allowed the importance and benefits of living in an eco-friendly manner to be understood in a real way. It was such a hugely successful event that nearly everyone was affected even if it was just by seeing the waste display on our main walkway. In total, we estimate that 1,900 people were influenced by our event, based on the number of students that participated in the challenges.

Thumbs up for Green Week!

Students, faculty, and staff responded so well to our initial effort that we are confident that next year will be even better and our community will learn even more. There are already other students on campus interested in taking charge of Green Week, so as we graduate, the program will continue on.

http://www.shareable.net/blog/the-greening-of-ohio-wesleyan-university

A Guide for Technology Selection and Implementation of Urban Organic Waste Utilisation Projects in Cambodi

Policy Report "A Guide for Technology Selection and Implementation of Urban Organic Waste Utilisation Projects in Cambodia"

This report describes and analyses the current situation of urban organic waste management in Cambodia through field surveys and interviews.The authors introduce various organic waste utilisation technologies that have been implemented in neighbouring and other developing Asian countries to assist technology selection.In addition, the authors provide guides for selection of appropriate technology for and implementation of urban organic waste utilisation projects in Cambodia.
>>PDF download(2.9MB)

 

 

10 Ways to Solve the Jobs Problem

by Fran Korten

Imagine a no-holds-barred “summit” that comes up with ideas to solve both our job and environmental problems. What might it come up with?

Photo by Alex Ferguson

As the midterm political season heats up, one word on every politician’s lips is “jobs.” And for good reason. People are hurting—they can’t pay their mortgages, send their kids to college, pay their dental bills. Young people are wondering if they have a place in the work world.

So the economic pundits cheer when car sales go up, housing starts rise, consumer confidence strengthens. But as the oily ooze in the Gulf tars yet another beach, we all sense something is terribly wrong. We can’t keep tearing up the planet to keep ourselves employed. There must be another way.

So—imagine a no-holds-barred “summit” that comes up with ideas to solve both our job and environmental problems. What might it come up with?

Here is my starter list. You can add your own ideas in the comments to this article on the YES! website.

 1. More farms, less agribusiness. Agribusiness substitutes chemicals and machinery for labor and employs remarkably few people. Small organic farms are far more productive per acre and bring the people back.

 2. More repair, fewer products. Instead of tossing those shoes, that toaster, that computer, let’s fix them—and employ repair people in the process.

 3. More recycling, less mining. Ray Anderson of the Interface flooring company says we already have enough nylon to meet the world’s carpet needs forever. The same may be true for aluminum, steel, copper, and other easily recyclable materials. We just need good systems for recovering them.

What if we stopped subsidizing advertising with tax breaks and focused on educating people to lead satisfying lives?

 4. More renovations, less construction. Our nation has 129 million housing units. We build new ones and let old ones deteriorate. How about renovating what we have and in-filling our cities to use existing sidewalks, gas pipes, water mains, and roads?

 5. More restoration, less destruction. Whether it’s forests, Superfund sites, or oil-laced wetlands, it’s time to restore. Some restoration can even pay for itself, as in restoration forestry where folks make products from the fire-prone, small-diameter trees normally considered too small to market.

 6. More bike paths, fewer highways. They both cost money, but one is good for our health and good for the planet. What’s not to like?

 7. More local businesses, fewer megastores. Locally owned stores employ more people per goods sold and you can often talk to a decision-maker about your purchase.

 8. More dishwashing, fewer throw-aways. What if we got rid of all the disposable containers in fast food restaurants? At my friend Ron Sher’s Crossroads Shopping Center near Seattle, the food court vendors share a common crockery supply. No trees needed. It works.

 9. More education, less advertising. Let’s face it. Advertising is about making us feel inadequate for something we don’t yet have. What if we stopped subsidizing advertising with tax breaks and focused on educating people to lead satisfying lives?

10. More clean energy, less fossil fuel. Here we do need new stuff—wind turbines, solar panels, insulation, passenger trains. Politicians are providing some—though not enough—funding for these sources of “green jobs.” It’s the other items on this list they’re not even talking about—but need to.

You may be thinking that my list isn’t realistic because these options cost more or depend on government funding. But that’s partly because governments subsidize oil, agribusiness, nuclear plants, ports, highways, advertising, and other unhealthy choices.

So the next time you hear a politician talk about jobs, try comparing the solutions offered to this list. By breaking out of the narrow range of options that keeps policy discussions stuck, we can create jobs that not only sustain families, but also build community and restore the living systems of our planet.

---

Fran Korten wrote this column for A Resilient Community, the Fall 2010 issue of YES! Magazine. Fran is publisher of YES! Magazine.

• http://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/a-resilient-community/10-ways-to-solve-the-jobs-problem

Recycling in art and architecture

The Bottle Wall

Introducing the Bottle Wall, a peculiar form of stained glass. You won't see any mention of bottle walls or bottle houses in the stately and academic tomes of stained glass history. But stained glass it is, and it deserves recognition.
anonymous bottle wall - posted on Flickr

be prepared for lots of pictures...
I became interested in the bottle wall phenomenon most recently through a TV show. Rare Visions & Roadside Revelations is a program exploring outsider art and roadside attractions. It's produced out of Kansas City and so far over 60 shows have been produced in about 10 years. The tone of the show can be fairly described as goofy, but the art that is shown is often amazing and always interesting, and they have visited many sites with bottle walls and bottle houses. So I started researching.

Early History

I don't claim to be an historian, so this will be brief. You will find much more information in the bottle house section of Debra Jane's website on Roadside Attractions.
Bottle houses began as a practical necessity. In remote mining towns where building materials were scarce, someone got the idea of using bottles as a material for building the walls of a house. Such was the case with one of the most famous early Bottle Houses, the Kelly Bottle House in the gold mining town of Rhyolite, Nevada. Because it was located in the desert there were almost no trees, hence no wood. But being a mining town there were 50 bars in close proximity, hence lots of empty bottles.
The Tom Kelly House - Rhyolite, Nevada - circa 1906

The look of these early bottle houses tended to be more mundane, owing to their utilitarian origins.
By the middle of the 20th century there was a little more 'art' put into the structures and the motivations were more eccentric and personal, such as in this house built as a playhouse.
The Doc Hope House - Hillsville, Virginia, 1941

The Bottle Wall, revisited

I received so many positive responses to the Bottle Wall piece that I thought I would do a brief follow up.
Starting with this amazing photo of the artist Charles Stagg in his home in Vidor, Texas.

Photo credit to 'Scott Eslinger/The Enterprise July 31, 2005'

Individual Bottle Houses

Charles Stagg's 'A.V. Stagg Art and Wildlife Preserve'

Charlie Stagg is an East Coast educated but Texas born and bred artist who created this house starting in the 1960's. From his home in Texas he has created his artwork and built onto this house for some 40 years.

Another take on Charles Stagg can be seen here at narrowlarry's site


A picture of his studio and his artwork. The studio apparently burned down in 2006, though most of the house remains intact.

Luna Parc

I received this image of a work-in-progress from Ricky of Luna Parc. Great idea to do all blue bottles. Can't wait to see the finished structure.

Anna's Bed & Breakfast

This is Anna's Bed and Breakfast near Tucson, Arizona.
and a part interior, part exterior shot. I like the use of the upright bottles in this one.

Rockome Gardens

Rockome Gardens is the one of the few places that discriminates as regards the brand of bottle used.
i.e. - these are all Fresca bottles.

and these are all 7-up bottles.

It does make me wonder why the Coca-Cola bottle, with it's distinct shape, has never been used for a bottle wall.
I had intended to put the Rockome bottle houses in the original bottle wall post but thought better of it since, sadly, these structures no longer exist. Acquired by new ownership and not deemed to be a part of their vision for the property (some kind of Amish-themed Park), the new owners demolished the bottle houses in 2006.

Kaleva Bottle House

John Makinen built this bottle house in the 1940's in Kaleva, Michigan with bottles from a local bottling plant. It now houses the Kaleva Historical Museum. I like the incorporated text.
Note the variety of bottles in the closeup -

I found the closeup via the amazing and wonderful agilitynut flickr pages. If you like Roadside Attractions (including Bottle Houses), this is the place to go.

The Curious Case of the World Bottle

Like many entries on Wikipedia, the Wikipedia entry on Bottle Wall is as interesting in its omissions as it is in its inclusions, but it's certainly worth a look... and it does mention the Heineken World Bottle, also known as the 'WOBO' or the 'brick bottle'. A quick backstory via Wikipedia -

As the story goes, Alfred Heineken had an epiphany while on a world tour of Heineken factories. When Heineken was on the Caribbean island of Curacao in 1960 he saw many bottles littering the beach due to the fact that the island had no economic means of returning the bottles to the bottling plants from which they had come. He was also concerned with the lack of affordable building materials and the inadequate living conditions plaguing Curacao's lower-class. Envisioning a solution for these problems, he found an architect to design what he called "a brick that holds beer."

Notice how the bottom of the bottle is recessed so that the neck of the bottle would fit snugly into the bottom.

There were apparently 2 sizes, roughly equating to the idea of the brick and the half brick.

The bottle was designed by Architect John Habraken. They did manufacture the bottle but never released it commercially. Nothing much came of it and there are apparently only one or two existing structures, on the Heineken estate, known to have been made from the bottles. Rumor has it that there are some 60,000 of these bottles in storage somewhere in the Netherlands.
[update feb 2008 - found this Inhabit.com article on the WOBO that includes this image of what is presumably a building with a wall made of WOBO bottles. No further attribution is given.]

Looking at it I'm not surprised the idea failed. It seems almost an impossible balance - the basic utility of holding beer, balanced with the idea of 'brand identity' as well as the idea of 'sound building material'. Still, it's interesting to see that it went as far as it did and it definitely strikes me as an idea ahead of its time.

How to build a Bottle Wall

I've been asked - are there any resources to let me know how to build a bottle wall? I've searched on the web and so far, no luck. Though I did find this case of a team of people trying to build a bottle wall. Though on close reading it comes off more as how not to build a bottle wall.

 

 

Grandma Prisbrey's Bottle Village

Grandma Prisbrey's Bottle Village in Simi Valley, California was created from 1956 to 1980 and features a series of 13 sheds and other small structures on a small lot of land in Simi Valley, California. Though she originally made these structures to house her collection of pencils (17,000 of them!), Grandma Prisbrey really went wild with Bottle Village, well beyond utility.
For many more pictures check these out -
Flickr set on Bottle Village by Babsomatic
Flickr set on Bottle Village by gldyas
Exterior



interior of the round house





She also had a collection of dolls. Note the beverage tab decoration of the dress.

Sadly, much of Bottle Village was destroyed in an earthquake in 1994 and its future remains uncertain.

Tinkertown

Grandma Prisbrey directly inspired other people to create their own bottle houses. Ross Ward was one who saw Bottle Village in the 60's and then went on to create Tinkertown near Albuquerque, New Mexico. The buildings house a museum of his handcarved figures and animated scenes.
Flickr set of Tinkertown by kasiahalka
Exterior of Tinkertown

In amidst the walls of Tinkertown -

Closeup of a Tinkertown wall highlighting Ross Ward's motto...

Variety of Styles

A sampling of mostly American and mostly anonymous bottle walls.
Locations cited only when known,
all gathered from a search for 'bottle wall' at Flickr
Thunder Mountain - Imlay, NV

UCM Museum - Lousiana
typical undulating form

This only said "at a food coop".

Some have taken to the bottle wall more as an ecological statement on recycling, like this Earthship house near Taos, New Mexico

Another Earthship house.

As a small feature in a house, anonymous, in the southwest I would guess.

Most bottle walls, especially the garden walls, tend to be rough and messy looking with a kind of improvised mad patchwork quality to them, with no sense of pre-design.
Anonymous American Bottle Wall

This is another wild one, a wall by an arts center in Deep Ellum in the Dallas area of Texas. I couldn't find the backstory.

and a close up shot


Yet some walls are quite neat and precise. These are often seen in the more commercial or officially public settings, like this from a Napa Valley Winery. The 'neat' walls also tend to forego the use of cement as a matrix for holding the bottles together.

Lightning Ridge

Bottle walls and bottle houses seem to be mostly, but not entirely, an American phenomenon. One striking case outside the USA is in Lightning Ridge, in the outback of Australia. It's an opal mining town that has two bottle house attractions to its credit.
One is the old Bottle House in Lightning Ridge. The standard 'postcard' view -

And a closer exterior shot, showing the bottles, which appear to make a specific pattern. The interior seems to be closed, which is pretty common in older bottle houses. Note that there does seem to be some kind of rough pattern going one here.


The other site in Lightning Ridge was started in the 70's when John and Joan Andrews created three sandstone cottages incorporating bottle walls. It's now a tourist attraction called Black Queen. The name 'Black Queen' refers to the name of the type of black opal mined in Lightning Ridge.
The most striking feature of the Black Queen Bottle Walls (and the sites say that there are some 34 of them) are the intricately designed patterns.

Contemporary Bottle Walls

Zagar's Magic Gardens

Isaiah Zagar in Philadelphia is a muralist who also incorporates bottles into walls. His major creation is the Magic Gardens.



Flickr set of Zagar's Magic gardens by 'Scuzzi'

The Bottle Chapel

One of the more recent and notable bottle walls is The Bottle Chapel at Airlie Gardens near Wilmington, North Carolina. Created as a tribute to Minnie Evans, outsider artist

Hundertwasser

Kawakawa Public Toilet

Aptly described as the most photographed toilet in New Zealand, the Kawakawa, New Zealand Public Toilet , built by the Austrian artist and architect Friedensreich Hundertwasser (1928-2000), is a rare instance of a professional architect making a bottle wall. Hundertwasser, at the end of his life, lived in New Zealand and this was among his final projects.
More Hundertwasser architecture images can be seen on the Fickr group called 100wasser.
The street view -

A bit closer -


this is the view from the women's room

You can believe from these images that Hundertwasser was the man who said "criminal is the use of ruler and T-square in architecture" and "This jungle of straight lines, which is entangling us more and more like inmates in a prison, must be cleared."
this is the view from the men's room

Market Hall, Altenrhein

There is also, finally, this building called the Market Hall in Altenrhein, Switzerland that was done 'in the concept of Hundertwasser' not long after his death in 2000.
Flickr set on Markthalle by 'briethe

Posted by Tom at 08:25 AM

 

• http://www.krepcio.com/vitreosity/archives/2007_03.html