“Most Indian households use a rounded terracotta drinking water vessel — a matlo — that cools water to 14° below ambient temperature without refrigeration. Our matlo is a slip-cast version which has evolved to incorporate filtration and could be batch-produced from a mould. We propose it as an environmentally sound alternative to bottled water and electric coolers.” Via indianbydesign, photo via dezeen.

This evolved version of the traditional matlo is a prototype by designers Doshi Levien. It’s not in production yet, but when it is I’d like to have one. It gives water a better taste, prevents all that horrifying plastic waste, and also means you’re not drinking all those pseudo-estrogen chemicals that leach into water from plastic containers. Until then, does anyone know if it is possible to buy a traditional matlo in North America? If so, where? It seems as if the term “matlo” is not that universal. Vancouver has a South Asian population of 300,000 yet I can’t find one of these, which makes me think they haven’t been imported here.

It’s pouring rain and cold in Washington so it doesn’t seem very solar. But it was fun to see all the solar, off-the-power-grid houses in the Solar Decathlon competition sponsored by the U.S. Dept of Energy. All my photos of the houses are here; more information is on the website here. Germany won, Illinois second, California third. There were two submissions from Canada, one each from Cuba, Spain and other US states. Above, Cornell University.

Below, Team Germany, Winner.

Above, Ohio State. Below, Team Minnesota.

Above, Team Illinois, 2nd place. Below, Team California, 3rd place.

The new building for the BC Cancer Agency is a good addition to Broadway, one of Vancouver’s most ridiculously unattractive streets. The building’s most obvious feature is its round windows which are meant to reference the glass petri dishes used in cancer research. And they’re functional – you can actually open the window in your workspace and the glass ventilation shutters direct air flow. The beautiful 15-storey spiral staircase is designed to resemble DNA’s double helix structure, and the cover of the building’s roof deck is shaped like an amoeba. This type of clever thematic allusion can be very tiresome (remember postmodernism) but here it’s subtle enough that it’s not gimmicky. More importantly, it’s an award-winning green building. As a recent Treehugger article on the building pointed out, it’s water efficient, including the use of waterless urinals, a quarter of the construction and finishing materials were from recycled sources and are low-VOC, and the  building is energy-efficient and clean in myriad other ways. It’s not surprising that it won a LEED Canada Gold rating. The overall building shape is a little ordinary, perhaps, but the windows really carry it, both close up and from a distance. But the main idea was to create a healthy and creative environment for the researchers who work there. And they seem to like it. Top photo by slightly-less-random; below by Ruth and Dave, jmv and sabel on flickr.

More information from canadianarchitect, and click below for more.

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Furoshiki is a traditional Japanese means of wrapping presents or carrying objects in a square of cloth. It’s waste-free, it’s practical, and it’s beautiful. As an art form, furoshiki is less known outside Japan than origami, but it is just as venerable – it simply uses fabric instead of paper. Because furoshiki require no wrapping paper, tape or ribbon, they are clearly more environmentally friendly than traditional western gift-wrapping methods. Despite the fact that furoshiki cloths are themselves an art form, you don’t really need to buy traditional furoshiki squares. Even in Japan, vintage silk or polyester scarves are sometimes used, or even fabric remnants – any fabric with a certain amount of drape will work. And anyone can learn to tie furoshiki – even kids, who are actually really good at it. There are some amazing videos demonstrating easy furoshiki tying methods here. What furoshiki are especially brilliant for during the holidays is wrapping bottles of wine. It lets you avoid buying all those toxic, lacquered disposable wine bottle bags, and it looks much more thoughtful. And furoshiki can be used year after year – just tie them differently every time, or re-gift them.

Furoshiki actually means “bath spread” and derives from the Edo period practice of using them to bundle clothes while at the sento, or public baths, but furoshiki were also used on a daily basis to transport bottles, clothes, gifts and other goods – and they are still used this way. Try it! It’s much easier to carry a square of textile with you, folded up in your bag, than it is to carry around a big spare canvas shopping bag, so it’s great as an emergency replacement for plastic. We’re on the verge of a plastic bag ban here in Vancouver, so this will be a good thing to know how to do. There’s a really mod Japanese government Ministry of the Environment poster guide to the many practical forms of furoshiki here.

Photos from Flickr: bottle by fleegle, geometric furoshiki by djbebe, instant shopping bag or purse by MrsTools, rabbit bottle furoshiki by sfennell, and gift boxes by vaneea and clamoring. For many more ideas, just search for furoshiki on Flickr.