Skip to main content

Grain: Integrating Smart, Sustainable Design

Grain Design
Image used with permission by copyright holder
Just off the coast of Seattle, Chelsea Green and James Minola run their design studio Grain on Bainbridge Island. With a eco-friendly focus, they established Grain in 2007 with their first product: the Ty shower curtain ($30), made with a recyclable plastic that’s resistant to mold and mildew–on the DIY version ($33), you can draw illustrations with a permanent marker.

Since then, Grain has continued to make products with repurposed materials. The company is also socially conscious–as a member of 1% For the Planet, it donates 1% of sales to environmental nonprofits. While most of its goods are produced in Northwest U.S., Grain also works closely with artisan weavers in Guatemala. “The artisans are highly skilled in specific techniques they learned from their families or communities. We couldn’t find their style of weaving here in the States,” says Green, who points out the towels, handwoven on a treadle loom, and intricately patterned Ikat pillows as examples.

Recommended Videos

In the end, Grain is all about functional and innovative design. “As trained designers, that’s the first bit that we’ve got to get right,” Green says. “We start with the ideas first, and then make sure our products are as responsibly made as possible.” What caught our eyes: the fun word puzzle greeting cards ($5.50), wood-carved coffee table ($2,500) and threaded mirrors ($515).

Find Grain at various retailers, and check out its blog for updates on new products.

Kathleen Kim
Former Digital Trends Contributor
We just got a hopeful update on the second season of ‘Black Doves’
The show follows a pair of spies on a revenge mission
Keira Knightley and Ben Whishaw in Black Doves

Keira Knightley and Ben Whishaw might be back for more spying in the near future. The two actors, who starred together in Netflix's Black Doves, seem likely to be back for a second season of the series. That makes sense, given that the show has been hovering in Netflix's Top 10 ever since it was first released.

In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, show creator Joe Barton, said that the show's staff is full steam ahead on a second season.

Read more
Could the new ‘Superman’ movie save the DC universe?
This new movie looks a lot brighter and more colorful than Zack Snyder's take
David Corenswet in Superman

As an early Christmas present, we got our very first look at James Gunn's new Superman, which is set to hit theaters on July 11. The first trailer, which signals a pretty radical departure from Zack Snyder's version of the character.

The responses to the trailer online have been largely positive, with many noticing how vibrant and colorful the film looks, and also taking note of its use of John Williams's original Superman theme, which has been repurposed here for electric guitar.

Read more
‘Squid Game’ debuts a new Google-based game ahead of season 2
The game replicates the 'red light, green light' game from the first season
Squid Game Season 2 Teaser

The second season of Netflix's Squid Game, which was a massive phenomenon following its first season, is finally almost here. Now, ahead of the second season's release on Dec. 26, Googling Squid Game will get you a fun way to pass a few minutes.

Netflix partnered with Google on the game, which will appear if you tap the brown envelope that appears on the bottom of the screen. The game is a replication of the "red light, green light" came from the show's first season. By pressing the blue circles, you advance six players in pink suits while Young-Hee's head is turned. Your players must stop before she turns around, and if they don't one of them will be eliminated. Thankfully, they don't get brutally shot down and left to lay there like they do on the show.

Read more