{"id":18755,"date":"2015-07-06T16:12:21","date_gmt":"2015-07-06T20:12:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/wordpress-367309-1145705.cloudwaysapps.com\/?p=18755"},"modified":"2015-07-06T16:12:21","modified_gmt":"2015-07-06T20:12:21","slug":"turning-reclaimed-wood-into-design-studio-quality-furnishings-artas-designs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/articles\/turning-reclaimed-wood-into-design-studio-quality-furnishings-artas-designs\/","title":{"rendered":"Turning Reclaimed Wood Into Design Studio Quality Furnishings: Artas Designs"},"content":{"rendered":"
While I’m a big fan of reuse and repurposing<\/a>, I generally don’t think of items made from reused materials as something that come out of a design studio. When I think of barnwood furniture, etc., I tend to think of outdoor workshops and sales stands on the side of the road, or at local events. But Steve Hanley show us<\/a> that reused materials can still be design magazine quality: Maine’s Artas Designs<\/a> takes used wood and other materials and turns them into furniture and furnishings for restaurants, retail stores, and other commercial clients.<\/p>\n Take a look at Steve’s Green Building Elements post below, and then let us know about other design studios reusing materials.<\/p>\n Former presidential candidate H. Ross Perot was once asked how to become successful. \u201cFollow an immigrant around and do what he does,\u201d Perot replied. That advice would work especially well if you chose Tadas Mikuzis and Art Timofejev, who were born and raised in Klatipeda, Lithuania. In 2001, they emigrated to Maine and started working\u00a0with friends at\u00a0Utopia Designs. There they learned how to transform wood, steel and other salvaged materials from old aircraft hangars and century-old barns into furniture and fixtures.<\/p>\n \u201cI found that building furniture and putting my hands on materials and coming up with new designs was what I wanted to do,\u201d Timofejev tells Mainebiz<\/a><\/em>. Though he trained as a civil engineer, \u201cI didn\u2019t want to spend my days in front of a drafting board.\u201d In 2010, the pair founded Artas Designs and hired two employees. Putting what they had learned at Utopia Design to work, they started by\u00a0building booths, tables, and chairs for the Flatbread Co. pizza shop in Somerville, Mass., which was housed in a former bowling alley.<\/p>\n <\/a>That job led to a story in Design New England<\/em> magazine. Soon after it was published, they started getting calls from buyers from all over North America.\u00a0\u201cPeople like the fact that these materials are not ending up in a landfill, and they\u2019re getting a nice piece of furnishing in their bars and restaurants,\u201d says Mikuzis, who trained as an electrical engineer. \u201cPeople really value the fact that there is a history behind the materials, that they might have something in their home or store that\u2019s from a 120-year-old barn in Cape Elizabeth.\u201d<\/p>\n Their products came to the attention of\u00a0John Soule, retail store visual merchandising designer for L.L.Bean. Soule tapped Artas to build shelves, counters and display cases for high traffic areas of the company\u2019s flagship store in Freeport.\u00a0\u00a0Artas built chairs, racks for\u00a0shoes and clothing, and directional signs. One of the displays they built even showcases L.L.Bean\u2019s original pair of hunting shoes.<\/p>\n \u201cArtas delivers a high quality product using honest and simple materials,\u201d says Soule. \u201cTheir work demonstrates integrity, great design sense, resourcefulness and a clear focus on being a good business partner. We love to work with Maine companies when we are able. And we love even more when they share our environmentally friendly ideals. Using a local company affords the benefit of collaborating face to face, and our store design is better for it.\u201d<\/p>\nArtas Designs Makes Furniture From Reclaimed Materials<\/a><\/h3>\n