Friday, February 6, 2009

Living Carpet Floors

Photo courtesy of Yanko Design. Designer: Nguyen La Chanh.
The notion of a 'living carpet' delights me to no end. Perhaps it's the science fiction lover in me thinking of Robert Heinlein's Stranger in a Strange Land [which I loved].

Imagine, then, how happy this story from Inhabitat about a living moss carpet for your bathroom made me!

Designer Nguyen La Chanh created this Moss Carpet using plastazote, a decay-free foam, and combining three different types of moss - ball, island and forest - that thrive in humid environments like bathrooms.

I can imagine the delightful springiness of the moss underfoot. It would definitely energize me for the day.

Then, there's an indoor lush carpet of living plants in Idaho that also looks to soothe the soul and toes. I discovered it in Living Floor Like Heinlein's Grass Carpet: Science Fiction in the News. The living carpet not only feels good, but it helps to clean the air and cool the house [here's the relevant passage from Heinlein's story and a reference to Kurt Vonnegut's The Siren of Titan which I haven't read]. The plants also help humidify the air as the Seattle Times article on the story titled Home addition features a floor alive with plants describes.

Serendipitously, as I can across these stories, I also realized that the header on my friend Daria Radota Rasmussen's blog Social Hallucinations captures a similar sensibility.

Can you imagine anything more delicious than bare feet on [living] carpet? It certainly enhances the visual delight associated with a carpet of flowers [see Tapis de fleurs de Bruxelles and Brussels Flower Carpet 2008] by associating a tactile experience to the visual one.

Methinks I'm ready for living carpet floors!







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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

I am a regular visitor to your site. the only reason i like your post is because its been written with a thought which is practically possible and its is associated with the relevant original pics.

CB Whittemore said...

Govindan, thank you for commenting! I really appreciate your feedback. This particular 'living carpet' concept has me reconsidering every bathroom rug I see, not to mention that I yearn for the sense of relaxation that it creates.

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