Pine trees are the world’s main source of timber and every year 600 million pine trees are cut down in the EU alone. Latvian designer Tamara Orjola is using the parts of the tree that usually just get tossed aside while harvesting wood. Orjola creates biodegradable textiles, stools and carpets made of nothing but pine needles. Her project, ‘Forest Wool’, gives new life to a by-product of the timber industry using tried-and-true manufacturing techniques like crushing, soaking, steaming and pressing.
Eindhoven-based Latvian designer Tamara Orjola researched the potential for the billions of needles left over from the timber industry. She found the dry sharp leaves to be a great alternative for all kinds of fibers including cotton and coir. She transforms them into paper, textiles and composites boards that she then uses for making furniture. The result is an elegant series of no-screw and no-glue stools and carpets that are biodegradable and compostable.
Biodegradable ‘Forest Wool’ furniture is made entirely out of pine needles [Inhabitat]