100% Design London: Flooring made of old belts, deer horns turned into mosaic tile

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The Dutch publisher Materia, which architects and designers such as Zaha Hadid, Renzo Piano and Frank Gehry call upon for the latest on building materials, presented an eyeful of innovation at the 100% Design show in London. Among the displays: Ting’s handsome, hard-wearing leather flooring crafted from vintage belts that have been cleaned without chemicals and shaved for uniform width, above left. The tiles are available by the square meter and also can be used for walls, tables or bar tops.

Sustainable choices included Brazilian coconut tiles, above center, made by Ekobe from Bahia coconut shells. The natural resin found in the material helps it to resist decomposition by microorganisms and insects. The small squares have concave shapes, are subtly varied in color and, when put together, form a surface with no discernible seams.

Interesting mosaic tiles could found throughout the show. Above right: Cubo tiles made from thin slices of tree branches or deer horns, then filled in with translucent resin.

-- Kristin Hohenadel, reporting from London

Photo credits, from left: Materia, Materia, Kristin Hohenadel