2009 was the first full year that Naked Binder was up and running and we would like to take a moment to pause and reflect on the year.

When 2009 started, Naked Binder had a much smaller run of products.  The Naked Binder, the Project Binder and the Architect Binder all were made with less ring sizes, spine options and color options.  The Wrapped Binder is the only binder to have stayed the same ( Go Wrapped Binder!).

Prices also went down on almost everything.  The joys of larger production runs!

At the same time as we started a year ago in October, the economy was crashing.  While it has shored up a bit, Naked Binder has been donating to local schools (and some less local) to help students whose families are having hard times.  We have donated over 1000 binders this year and have already planned many more to go out in 2010.

who is using?

Who isn't? As the year unfolded, we noticed a lot more architects and engineering firms using recycled eco binders.  The new government push toward greener, more energy efficient buildings may have a lot to do with that. 

Designers and furniture companies also started ramping up use signaling a growth in demand for greener design, identity and, lets face it, a real lack of well designed binders outside of our manufacturing facility.

Museums, hospitals, construction (even at the new Miami Airport terminal), Burt's Bees, banks and financial institutions, churches, schools and a whole lot of individuals.

More and better product

Big changes came when we became FSC certified - admittedly, only the larger ring sizes as of today. The smaller cut board was purchased just before the mill became FSC certified and we are not going to waste it. Soon everything will be FSC certified.

We also moved to a 100% post consumer waste board.  There is no virgin wood anywhere in our board. Never was, but we raised the level of post consumer waste by 3%.  The board is clean and beautiful with amazing subtle depth of color flecks from the reused magazines/papers.

During the year, we added a full range of ring sizes to the project binders, updated the colors, and added options for both round and square spines. The Naked Binders, our most eco friendly binder, also got a boost in ring sizes. For our 11 x17 binder, the Architect binder, we stretched a machine and added a 1.5"D ring option also.

We also made created new products.  The Classic binder - wrapped in a black FSC certified paper offsetting the beautiful and colorful spine wraps - these babys look great!  They have a finger pull in the spine, nine colors and a subtle debossed line for lining up labels.

Recycled eco pocket folders and eco friendly CD packaging also came about in 2009.  We were busy.

What next?

More and better.  We are working to trim even the little waste we do produce, find better ways to get our binders to you and create new products that you need. 

We are making the two pocket folder a small spine so it holds more paper more easily. We are working on a legal size binder ( on several requests).  A half size binder is being worked on also.  Also, apparently there are not a lot of eco friendly recycled products for the scrapbook market, so we have been working on this also.  Hang in there everyone who requested!!  It will be out soon!

If you have ideas, let us know.  We are always working to make the best most environmentally friendly binders and folders that you need.  If you have needs, we may be able to create it.

More community  We will be working more locally to get kids who need them binders and supplies.  We are also donating product to environmental organizations we support to help stretch their budgets out and keep the money going toward more important items - like preserving wild areas.

Thanks for all of your support and good comments! We look forward to a great 2010 and wish you all the best in the new year.

As a last day before a holiday long weekend, it seems appropriate to just give you all some interesting things we have seen recently.

The Copenhagen Wheel - convert your bike to an electric bike which tells you about traffic and air quality.

It seems that MIT may have been doing it again as part of the Senseable lab.  This wheel collects energy from braking and uses it to give you a boost when you need one.  Attach your smart phone and it telss you air quality, traffic and your fitness.

Quick - touch your toes and test your arteries. The New York Times has an article that suggests that there is a link between your arteries and your flexibility.

TED Talk by Loretta Napoleoni: The intricate economics of terrorism  If you don't know the TED talks, they are like crack for the intellect. Amazing speeches on everything posted on the web. So who thinks about the terrorism as a an economic problem? Napoleoni claims that it is a 1.5 trillion dollar business. This used to all flow through the US money supply - but no more.  How this affects the US economy is one question.

Cool Environmental Advertising for 2009 - Treehugger has posted some of the best environmental ads of the last year.  Great stuff, provocative images.

Naked Binder is wishing you a Happy Holiday and the Excellent New Year!

We will be closed December 24th and 25th as well as December 31st and January 1st.

To make up for this, we will have a

sale

next week from December 24th through January 1st -

for you 20% off all of our binders and 15% off all of the folders!

Enjoy and Be safe out there! 

Naked Binders are made from 97-100% post consumer waste binders board with no plastics, no vinyl and no toxins. As a bare board binder, these are easily recyclable, easily indentifiable as green and yet well designed enough to be an elegant addition to you bookshelves or portfolio.

Bare board binders offer unique design opportunities - a blank slate for your ideas, labels, drawings, screening or foil stamping. Left on it's own, these eco friendly binders are minimalist expressions of good design.

Worried about strength?  If you buy something, you want it to last.  These binders were designed to last ten years. To test this we had the binder flexed 50,000 times. Not only did it not fail, there was no discernible difference in the binder.  Our bare board Naked Binders survived two rain tests with no problem so we ran them through a dishwasher.  We dried them flat and they look and work great.

Often people perceive vinyl as stronger - after all it is covered in plastic. Unfortunately, almost ever vinyl binder you have ever bought has fallen apart at the hinge. 

We guarantee that will not happen with a Naked Binder under any normal circumstance.

Naked Binders - raw bare board binders offer a recyclable non-toxic alternative to a vinyl binder.  Eco Friendly. Sustainable. Well Designed. A much better alternative to teh vinyl you have been using.

Naked Binder is happy, elated and proud to announce that it's evironmentally friendly binders are FSC Certified!

At this point, the in the binders for 8.5x11" paper all of the 2" and 2.5" ring binders are FSC certified as are the 1.5" Architect Binders.

The board for the smaller binders was purchased just before the mill got their FSC certifiecation, so is not claimed.  Soon all of our products will ahve the FSC certification on top of being the best looking, working and strongest sustainable binders on the market.

What is FSC?

The Forest Stewardship Council was created to change the dialogue about and the practice of sustainable forestry worldwide. The FSC standards represent the world’s strongest system for guiding forest management toward sustainable outcomes.

For those companies who manufacture or trade certified products, a different form of certification applies. Again, to assure the credibility of claims on products, it is important to track materials as they leave the forest and become products down stream. This “chain of custody”(COC) certification process is quite simple. Like any inventory control system, COC allows products to be segregated and identified as having come from a particular source—in this case, an FSC-certified forest.

While all of our binders are made with 100% recycled and 97-100% post consumer waste, this certification shows that we can prove it. No green washing. Never did, never will.

Imagine a FSC certified folder.  Close your eyes... oh wait,  never mind that... it is made from a beautiful 97% post consumer waste, is 100% recycled and recyclable, shows your green chops as well as your ahead of the curve design sense.

OK, reopen your eyes, it is here!

Label it, write on it, leave it pure, these 100% recycled pocket folders are the best. You can easily buy labels right on the site - all full bleed print to the edge labels so the only limits are your imagination.

Make your next presentation, your next grant proposal, your next song or folder for tax receipts everything it could be: Green, beautiful and Recycled.

Now you can get great deals on overstock, discontinued colors, sample production runs and more!

Get the same high quality environmentally friendly binders at sweet deals.  These bare board binders are made to the same specs as every Naked Binder, able to be flexed 50,000 times without change, strong, beautiful and well designed.

Save money and the environment with the Naked Binder discount bin.  The product offerings change every two weeks so keep checking for new products, sizes and styles.

David Carson commented that there is no away any more.  We used to throw things "away". 

Where is that?  The landfills are filling up, the ammount of stuff we throw "away" has exponentially increased. Products that tout convinience are wrapped in plastics, packaged, wrapped again and sold 10 times the size of the product. New products come out making the one you bought last month obsolete.

So where does all this stuff go?

If you are in Cairo, this section of town where the locals recycle, fix and repurpose and...let it sit. All this is garbage. In most places in the US, Canada and Europe you will never see this because your garbage is carted away and sealed into a dump. Or sent to far off places. Some of it goes on ocean journeys (remember the NY garbage barge in the 80s?).

Out of sight, out of mind is a theory that works to a degree. Yes, your city is pretty clean. Yes, you can keep doing whatever you want and buying whatever you want and throwing "away" whatever you want... or can you?

As our landfills fill and new ones are harder to open (do you want to live next to one?) we must address a few key issues. Recycling is foremest.

Some say that 14 percent of landfill space is taken up by newspaper alone, 41% of the total landfill is paper. 8% or so are plastics.  Only 3% of plastic is currently recycled. Yard waste? About 21%. Glass? 11%. Metals about 12%.

By a quick calculation, about 85% of landfill is recyclable.

Hmm...

So, start composting and recycle.  Buy products that use less packaging, less toxic materials and are easy to reuse or recycle (or both). Be careful what you throw away - can it be used by someone else?  An old chair may be just the thing for the person down the street.  Magazines?  Does the Library need them? Clothes can go to shelters, goodwill or perhaps you can just have a clothing swap (my wife has these with friends and I hear they are super fun).

Be concious about your life.  There is no "away" anymore, so you need to take responsibility for your own waste. 

11x17, tabloid, architect, big. No matter what you call the Naked Binder sustainable 11x17 binder it is big and beautiful.

Whether you are designing a website, a LEED certified building or showing off your artwork these binders will protect your work, keep you organized and make it look even better. 

These binders are made from 97-100% recycled material and are 100% recyclable.  The 1.5 inch ring binders are FSC certified binders.

 Two things for you loyal readers today!

1. The midwest was hit by a really amazing storm.  Snow, wind, cold temperatures.  This may delay shipping of Naked Binders by a day. So if you absolutely need it thursday, that may be an issue.  If it can get out, it will, but as always the weather will dictate whether UPS can get it there.

2. The project binder has a new binder offering. As you know, the project binder is a recycled bare board binder with a cotton book cloth spine wrap. These 3-ring binders offer color along with eco friendly features like being 100% recyclable and using 97-100% post consumer waste board.

And now you can get this environmentally friendly binder with a cotton linen spine wrap!

These natural cotton/linen wraps create an elegant look while maintaining that natural and eco-friendly recycled look. Sophisticated, green and as strong as every Naked Binder is, which is to say, amazingly strong.

Sustainable, recyclable, recycled and now with a cotton/linen wrap. Check them out here!

I just want to sing the praises of the Classic Binder.

FSC certified board, covered in ecological fibers FSC certified paper with a spine wrap toped with a metal-less finger pull.

This binder is both ecologically friendly and sustainable. The Classic binder uses 97-100% post consumer waste board and is 100% recyclable.  The metal-less finger pull allows you to get the binder off a crowded shelf easily when you are using the binder, and to recyle it easily when you are done.

Did I say good looking?  The black ecological fiber paper acts to set off the color of the spine wrap making for eye-catching presentations.  Our easy to use, full bleed labels allow you to customize easily for using these in your binder bin, or around your green office.

With nine colors to chose from and four sizes, there is a classic binder for everyone and any occasion.

Houses can be built for less, on smaller lots and in odd spaces.

Today I want to showcase a few quite interesting architectural spaces that make use of interesting spaces, materials and solve interesting problems.

First, D-minution House published in arch daily and inhabitat.

Designed by SUB, studio for visionary design is a Jakarta based architecture office. SUB focuses on architecture
and design at all levels and scales. It also offers integrated design for the master plan, architectural,
landscape, interior and furniture design.

In New Orleans, one problem was how to build the houses high enough so that they would escape floodwaters -- even if they might not withstand the inundation that occurred following Hurricane Katrina in 2005. The other was how to preserve the intimate New Orleans-style streetscape where people could sit on their porches and visit with passersby.

Doug MacCash / The Times-PicayuneArchitect Thom Mayne's angual floating house.

Architect Thom Mayne, whose firm Morphosis is based in Santa Monica, Calif., came up with what is basically a dry dock boat.  This house will float up, and resettle leaving all you possesions intact.

In Poland, Architect Peter Kuczia face a different set of challenges.

The built form is designed to optimise the absorbance of solar energy. Approximately 80% of the building envelope is facing south direction. This home incorporates solar, passive solar and thermal insulation.The house consumes only about 1/10 of the average energy use of the existing single-family houses in Poland and cost about the same to build.

The design of the project was determinated by the twin goals of low lifecycle costs and a reduction in construction costs. All details are simple, but well thought out.

via arch daily

We at Naked Binder keep talking about plastics and the Pacific Gyre.  And we aim to keep talking about. 

Today, we stumbled on this post by DK Designs blog, a design firm out of my old West Oakland neighborhood (go dogtown and lower bottom!). They do a log of great eco-friendly design and you should be checking them out. DK Designs. Really. Check them out.

Their post:

What is the basis for promoting environmentally sustainable design and products?  Are we going to save the earth?  Make lots of money on a temporarily sexy product? What are we doing anyway?

I can only answer for myself and Naked Binder. There are a million answers out there to this question. Some more satisfying than others.

So here is what I hope to do, and as I run Naked Binder, what we hope to do through Naked Binder.

Majora Carter speaks of a triple bottom line in community green development - development which benefits the community, the developer and the government.  If you don't know who she is, you should.  I linked to a TED talk she gave in 2006.  She has gone on to do even more.

We are looking for a triple bottom line also.   Community, Developer and Government actually work for us as well.

Community: You, the people.  The users of our products and users of our environment.  We strive to make a product which is non-toxic, non-out-gassing, long lasting, good looking and works well all while lessoning your impact on the planet.

Healthier air - Vinyl out-gasses releasing particles into the air which you then breathe. Indoor air quality is generally considered much more polluted than outdoor air.  And where do you spend most of your time?

You save money - the products last longer.  No vinyl binder in continuous use lasts longer than a year without duct tape. Our binder is designed to last 10 years. The hinge was tested to 50,000 flexes  that is 9+ years of 20 uses a day. Everyday. Plus they look good, so you want to keep them.

Support and protect wild spaces and wilderness areas.  Even before we opened, we signed up to donate through 1% for the Planet.  People need to know there are wild spaces even if you can't get there everyday.

Government:  Less Garbage, less landfill = big savings.  It is estimated that 40-80 Million vinyl binders are sold in the US alone every year.  Each binder weighs about one pound. Think of all the binders you have owned - did you shred them to get the recyclable parts out? Probably not. 40 million pounds of waste adds up.

The support for our natural resources by not using virgin timber in our board also preserves forests which clean the air and sequester carbon and uses less water and energy to manufacture.

Developer: That is me and Naked Binder.  We want to make money.  We employ people and hope to employ more.  We want to grow and find further ways to refine our processes to use better materials and generate less waste.  We want to continue. We want to further protect the wilderness and wild spaces we love.

The triple bottom line of benefits.  Green businesses are creating sustainable products for a lot of reasons.  We at Naked Binder want to be sure that we are not receiving all the benefits. We want everyone to win this race.

What makes a product sustainable is the complete cycle of it's use.  When a bare board Naked Binder is created, what it is created from, how it works, lasts and finally, what happens to it after it is done.

Step one.  You read the newspaper, magazines, shred your 10 year old tax papers, empty the mailbox of annoying sale flyers and recycle the lot.  All that paper waste (post consumer waste) goes to a recycling mill which chops it, cleans it of the plastic toys that you child put in the recycle bin and makes it into a slurry.  This slurry is spread over screens compressed, dried and becomes paper board.

Step two. The board is layered to the proper thickness by compressing multiple layers together. cut and sent to Naked Binder.

Step three. Naked Binder rounds the corners (to prevent bending) and flexes the spine into the board by pressing a 'blade' into the board.  No board is removed or cut, just flexed to allow the bend.  By crafting our binders this way, we maintain the whole strength of the board.  Nothing is lost.  This is why the Naked Binder lasts so long.  The spine will never break.

Step four.  Add ring.  If you buy the 2" or 2.5" binders, we use a EZD ring which is the best ring available.  This way if you have those 550 pages in your binder, it will never fail and drop those pages all over the ground.  A normal ring is hard pressed to carry this kind of weight.  In the smaller sizes, the weight of the paper is not going to cause ring failure.

Step five.  Use for 10 years.  They look good, they last and they become your friends. Better than pet rocks.

Step six. take a flathead screwdriver and pop the rings out, recycle rings. recycle binder.

Step seven.  See step one.

These binders are designed to reenter the waste stream and be made into binders again.  There is no loss of habitat, no virgin wood, no de-forestation, no landfill. The binder cycle is never complete: the recycled binder just keeps on giving.