Green Architecture Posts on Crowch

🌱 A New Life for Plastic: Designing with Living Mycelium

In an era marked by ecological urgency and environmental responsibility, Chinese design studio NONGZAO is reshaping how we think about waste, furniture, and materials. Their latest innovation uses mycelium, the root-like structure of fungi, to transform ordinary plastic furniture into biodegradable, low-impact design objects. Instead of producing new pieces from scratch, the team grows living organisms directly onto existing plastic chairs, stools, and lamps—subverting the lifecycle of industrial products.

This natural process results in completely unique surfaces, rich in texture and shaped by the unpredictable growth of the fungi. Mycelium doesn’t just look organic—it is organic, forming a skin over industrial objects and slowly reclaiming them for the earth.

🍵 Waste to Wonder: Coffee Grounds and Rice Husks as Substrate

One of NONGZAO’s greatest achievements is turning agricultural byproducts into growth media for fungi. Their substrate blend includes used coffee grounds and rice husks—two materials often discarded in bulk in farming and food production. These components are rich in cellulose and lignin, essential nutrients that stimulate mycelium to expand, attach, and thrive.

This process repurposes biological "waste" while reducing methane emissions from organic decay. The result is a dual benefit: carbon absorption and plastic transformation, all achieved through natural cycles.

🪑 Iconic Forms, Radical Materials: Reworking China’s Red Chairs

In regions like Guangdong, red plastic chairs have become a symbol of urban transformation. Mass-produced, lightweight, and almost inescapable in public life, they embody the ubiquity and anonymity of industrial design. Yet NONGZAO sees this icon as fertile ground for creative resistance. By enveloping these chairs in mycelium, they confront the visual monotony and environmental consequences of plastic saturation in Chinese cities.

The result is an aesthetic rebellion: once-identical objects are recontextualized with wild textures, natural colors, and an organic logic that defies factory perfection. Each chair becomes a sculptural relic of the industrial age—half fossil, half future.

🌍 Design That Decomposes: Sustainability as Statement

More than a clever reuse of materials, NONGZAO’s project is a philosophical statement on impermanence and adaptation. As plastic pollution continues to rise—with over 430 million tons produced annually, most of it for short-term use—designers must think not only about form but also afterlife.

Unlike plastic, mycelium biodegrades completely in soil, leaving behind no toxins. It captures carbon during its growth, turning every object into a carbon sink. These transformed objects become artifacts of a new ethic—ephemeral design that returns to nature, not the landfill.

🌿 A Challenge to Industrial Homogenization

According to NONGZAO, the goal isn’t just sustainability—it’s plurality. Industrial manufacturing has created a landscape of sameness, where mass-produced products flatten taste and experience. Their fungal furniture is an antidote: each piece is one-of-a-kind, grown over time, shaped by temperature, humidity, and mycelium’s unpredictable nature.

By cultivating furniture with living organisms, the studio reframes design as a collaboration with nature, not domination. The results are tactile, emotional, and unrepeatable.

🔁 Circular Futures: Toward a New Material Culture

The furniture from NONGZAO isn’t just about innovation—it’s about systems. They envision a future where agricultural waste feeds fungi, fungi feed design, and design returns to the earth. This circular model is scalable, low-cost, and open to adaptation across industries: packaging, textiles, even architecture.

In a world searching for sustainable alternatives, mycelium may be the bridge between biology and design, offering not just materials—but meaning.

As the days grow longer and the chill of winter fades, I find myself drawn outdoors more and more. Spring has a practical rhythm: the earth warming, trees budding, and the steady return of birdsong. For me, it is a season to reconnect — with nature, with old hobbies, and with the slower pace that winter’s retreat invites. After months of being indoors, this is the time when gardening gloves replace thick scarves, and morning walks extend from a quick stroll to a deliberate ritual.

Spring also serves as a natural reset for health and activity. The fresh air encourages movement: cycling, hiking, or simply stretching outside. It’s not about intense exercise but about gentle, consistent activity that feels sustainable after months of winter lethargy. I’ve noticed that even simple habits, like carrying a reusable water bottle or preparing meals with seasonal vegetables, become easier and more rewarding in this season.

Finally, this season reminds me to appreciate the value of slowing down. It’s tempting to rush through tasks and plans, but spring’s steady, visible growth encourages patience and observation. Sitting outside with a book or chatting over a cup of tea becomes a meaningful pause rather than a break from busyness. The pace of life naturally aligns with the world’s cycles — a reminder that productivity and rest coexist.

Hey friends 💛

I’ve been meaning to write this for a while — just to share some thoughts that have been quietly growing in the back of my mind. You know that feeling when you walk into a space and it just feels right? Like the energy is calm, the colors are soothing, and even the smallest details — the way a curtain falls, or the sound your steps make on the floor — seem intentional? That’s the magic of thoughtful design ✨

Lately I’ve been spending a lot of time observing my surroundings — especially in quiet, in-between moments. Whether it's the curve of a handrail, the texture of old tiles, or the imperfect charm of a handmade mug — these little things really speak to me. As someone who’s always been obsessed with architecture, interiors, and all things art & design 🎨, I’ve realized something important: beautiful spaces don’t have to be big or expensive — they just have to be loved.

Architecture and interior design aren’t just for professionals or people with massive budgets. They’re for everyone — especially those of us who find inspiration in how space makes us feel. Your space is your canvas, your sanctuary, your self-expression 💫

So if you’ve been feeling a bit disconnected lately, or creatively blocked, or just craving a sense of peace — start with your surroundings. Move one thing. Light a candle. Hang a print you’ve been meaning to frame. Let your space tell a story that reflects your.

And if you ever want to talk about architecture, interiors, or even just which paint colors make you feel something — my comments are always open 💬