Re-inventing Yourself During Recessionary Times

anorak table.photo
Image from Anorak

Some people are finding that losing their jobs during this recession has turned out to be an opportunity to start a new career or fulfill a long-cherished dream. It helps if you also happen to be very talented, trained in business and have supportive friends and family.

Here are some young designers who have started businesses making goods that are great-looking, ecological and sustainable. Anorak is a small new UK company that makes sleeping bags, cushions and picnic blankets.

miscellaneous anorak.photo

Anorak's creator, Laurie Robertson, studied textile design at school. She wants her products to be affordable with a low carbon footprint. Everything is made in the UK so that she can keep things as environmental as possible and support British manufacturers. Robinson believes that "in this climate people are buying things that are more functional." Her goods are nostalgic in feel, hearkening back to childhood memories of family camping adventures.

drawers berlin.photo
Image from schubladen

This landscape architect in Berlin came up with the idea of turning old drawers into new pieces of furniture. Franzisca Wodicka discovered that secondhand furniture dealers always save the drawers when old pieces of furniture fall apart. She loved the idea that they have a history and are so flexible--drawers can be turned into single shelves or doubles. Or large chests of drawers.

chest of drawers berlin.photo

She gets the drawers from antique dealers and second hand furniture dealers. The pieces are made by a local furniture maker.

Her store is called Schubladen--german for drawers. Now she has become so well-known that people sometimes leave them in the front of her shop. : schubladen Via : Guardian