Friday, April 11, 2008

Aye, There's The Rub(ber)


When you consider that "Americans throw out 300 million automobile tires a year", you gotta commend anyone who thinks outside of the box -- or at least the gas-guzzling SUV. So with all that rubber just taking up real estate in landfills around the world, what's a socially-conscious industrial designer to do? Apparently, the answer is "make rubber tubs". Don't take this the wrong way -- we LOVE anything to do with recycling -- but if there's nothing uglier than an old, bald tire, it would have to be, well, a tub made from old, bald tires masquerading as chic utilitarian ware. And just in case you want to add insult to injury, get out your checkbook because THREE of these babies are gonna set you back $150 -- $350 for a trio if you opt for the slightly more appealing tall boys. These tubs were made in Egypt and we've always had to wonder about the egyptians, but I guess if you introduce the globe to the concept of 9-year-old boy kings overseeing your entire civilization as well as the building of pyramids, might as well blaze the recycling trails with something like this. (Source: Design Within Reach)

1 comment:

PFehlig said...

I always thought rubber playground mats, as well as other types of flooring, were a great use of recycled tires.
But, hey, anything that keeps them out of the landfill/incinerator, right?