Back in the ‘good-old’ days…after the Industrial Revolution, new technologies, new materials and seemingly endless energy sources made it more profitable to create brand new products from scratch rather than repair and reuse old ones. Over time, things got so bad that manufacturers even started ‘stimulating’ the economy by ensuring that goods broke down or went out of style as quickly as possible to keep consumers coming back again and again. Of course from a sustainability perspective this is deplorable because new resources are continually needed to make newer models, and more often than not, the old product materials aren't reused and end up polluting ecosystems and clogging up landfills.
Fortunately times have changed; global climate change, the economic downturn, depleting energy sources and environmental sensitivity have caused a total shift in what we value and see as important. More recently, this has seen us being more careful with our raw materials and belongings especially with the ‘make-do and mend’ philosophy. In this blog we show you how making shopping decisions more sustainable do not mean compromising on style!
Upcycling is one better. It’s an approach to fabrication that transforms something to be thrown away into something better. It prevents the wasting of potentially useful ‘old’ materials and reduces the build-up of what we see as ‘rubbish’. The process isn’t even particularly new; Henry Ford practiced an early form of upcycling when used the wooden crates his car parts were shipped in as vehicle floorboards. It’s a philosophy still well-grounded in less well-off societies across parts of India and Africa where nothing is really thrown away. Instead materials are recovered, repaired and reused simply because there are often no replacements available and it’s cheaper than buying something new. It’s the ultimate in being more sustainable, because it reduces the carbon footprint result from extracting and processing new materials round the world.
As a number of countries see an upturn in their economic fortunes, many old houses are being newly renovated - old is being replaced with new. This is great for us here at Scaramanga. ‘One man's trash is another man's treasure’ is definitely a philosophy that inspires us when we visit the back-street recycling and upcycling warehouses. How can we not be inspired by the mountains of precious broken antique teak furniture, wooden trunks, and wobbly old wooden benches? The disused cast iron fittings and the discarded antique window frames which can all be reincarnated into something beautiful for our homes while not placing an unnecessary strain on the planet’s resources.
It’s difficult to describe the quantity (and quality) of the treasure found in the warehouses Scaramanga like to root through. A sustainable shoppers paradise!! 
Beautiful antique window frames and shutters can be upcycled into striking mirrors. The skilled craftsmanship used to create the ornate patterns on the shuttered doors of these large rustic mirror are very impressive. The detailing would have taken great skill and time. Originally, these original antique pieces started life as a shuttered window frames from an old home in Northern India. Scaramanga came across these type of window frames in an architectural salvage yard and had it up-cycled into these striking feature mirrors. Or something we love to salvage at Scaramanga is original Indian doors! these doors are beautifully ornate, full of gorgeous detail and features that would look great as a focal point in any home! The true definition of stylish sustainability.
Another fabulous recycled item we have is this wonderful colourful vintage truck sign salvaged from a lorry in Rajasthan (Northern India) which would make a great upcycled wall art hanging. A great feature for decorating a living room, hallway wall or perhaps the interior of a contemporary retail environment. If you were to travel around rural India you'd see very large beaten-up lorries and trucks rumbling about on the roads identified by these large iconic signage banners. These rainbows of hand-painted colours are amongst India's most cheerful and iconic sights.
For this Sustainability campaign we have worked with eco-conscious interior designer Alicia Storie from A Design Storie . Alicia is on a mission to prove designing interiors sustainably doesn't mean compromising on style!
Alicia spent the day with us exploring our vintage interiors and designing interior spaces she felt would look great in any home. Especially falling in love with a pair of our Antique Rajasthani Doors!
Here you can see she styled our Vintage Blue Folding table as a dining space. Not afraid to go bold with the colours, using blue doors behind, colourful curios to style the table, and of course (our favourite) lots of plants to help give the room some green and some life! Helping to balance out the blue, she used natural wooden elements such as the tall cabinet and the wooden chair to help anchor the room and give some definition.
"I love to style a space using vintage decor and furniture as mixing and matching beautiful authentic pieces allows for such a distinctive unique interior design aesthetic! - Alicia Storie
I love Scaramanga’s beautiful colourful interior products as each piece is packed with character and has its own story. The upcycling process does not erase this history and keeps this beautiful raw design identity so combining Scaramanga's products brings so much personality into a space!" - Alicia Storie
We hope we have shown how shopping with sustainability in mind does not mean compromising on design and style. Sustainability is becoming more and more entwined in our everyday life and our interiors should be no different. If you would like a little help or some inspiration on how to style your home more sustainably Alicia has offered Scaramanga customers a FREE 30 minute design consultation!! Just follow this link and let her know scaramanga sent you! FREE DESIGN CONSULTATION
Take a look over on scaramangashop.co.uk and see how our vintage furniture and interiors can add some eco-friendly inspiration for your home makeovers.
https://www.scaramangashop.co.uk/just-in-vintage-furniture-and-interiors
