Bamboo Group on Facebook

Well, today I did something I have been planning to do for a long time - I started a Bamboo Matters group on Facebook. I have been going blue in the face trying to tell people what a great material bamboo is - both in itself and as an alternative to wood and plastic. More than selling actual bamboo products, what is turning out to be critical is to sell the concept of bamboo itself. Instead of feeling frustrated by the lukewarm response people have to bamboo, I have decided to rededicate myself to the Bamboo Cause and double my efforts. I honestly believe that bamboo in the 21st century makes for great ecological and economic sense !! At the rate that trees are disappearing and how resource intensive plastic production is, bamboo is a great alternative - it grows fast, can be used as is with little preparation ( at least for certain things) - and inspiring me to do all this is Shahriyar - the steadfast Bamboo Man - for while I do venture into arts, crafts and culture, he has remained the quintessential Bamboo Guy !!

So to all those reading this, jump onto the Bamboo Bandwagon - let's roll ! Lets promote and adopt bamboo and leave the world a little better for the future generation !!

Bamboo Cutlery

Of late there have been many enquiries for bamboo cutlery at the store - from Australia, Slovakia and even India - for the Commonwealth Games !! Would be lovely to have an organic, fork, spoon and knife instead of the usual cold, fragile plastic stuff. I mean can you imagine eating with a golden, glowing, strong bamboo spoon and fork? Not afraid that it will snap into two like a plastic one does as you pick up a morsel ? And then once you are done with the meal, even if the cutlery is disposed, it is bio-degradable and will not fill up a garbage dump or landfill. Great idea - I would love to sell them - only if I had them !! Up until now, I have met artisans who make spoons, forks and knives - but these are all hand-crafted artisanal products. They will definitely not be able to produce in large quantities or at the throwaway prices the buyers demand . So I am still waiting for some manufacturers of bamboo cutlery. In the meantime , a picture of some bamboo cutlery - handmade in India !

Industrial Bamboo Products

In India, industrial bamboo is just beginning to make waves. Of course, China beats us totally at this game - they have had the monopoly on industrial applications of bamboo for over two decades now. We have just begun -- at least we have got to the starting line. The National Mission on Bamboo Applications (NMBA) is spearheading the effort to popularize industrial bamboo - seeking out entrepreneurs willing and able to set up bamboo industries. Currently, the industrial bamboo applications in India include

• Bamboo flooring
• Bamboo blinds
• Bamboo charcoal
• Bamboo mat board

A NEW YEAR, NEW BAMBOO RESOLUTIONS

It has been ages since I wrote on any of my blogs - prolonged dental treatments ( too much anaesthesia ), travel and simply trying to coordinate the functioning of The Bamboo Store has left little time to blog. But hey this is 2009 - a new year and time for a couple of new bamboo resolutions - so I promise to be a frequent blogger now. In the meantime, here's reporting on what The Bamboo Store has been upto

• Featured in the first ever "Luxury Travel Guide" to New Delhi published by Love Travel Guides . The book comes in a shocking pink silk pouch and is truly a labour of love by Fiona Caulfield.



• There have been many articles and TV programmes - interior design magazines, lifestyle magazines and even one on Entrepreneurship featured the Store - thanks to all the media friends who are helping us spread the word.



• Introduced Dilliwallahs to bamboo charcoal - guilt free kababs for no tree was cut for that oh! so smoky taste. Bamboo is carbonised and then briquetted to make bamboo charcoal - we even designed a special terracotta stove and pot ( chulha and handi ) to use the charcoal in - slow-cooking tasty food the way grandma used to !!

• Sold tons of good quality mats and blinds ... new designs and colours to suit every home or office.



• For the festive ( Diwali - Xmas- New Year) season, we made tons of candlestands , recycling coconuts for holders !!

Selling the concept of bamboo in saddi 'bling-loving' Delhi has been tough - but we have persevered - and may 2009 bring us BIG business !!

Bamboo in The Garden

• The Bamboo Store is launching Garden Mania: A bamboo garden accessories festival to celebrate the onset of spring. A range of garden accessories in bamboo will be available from The Bamboo Store, N-11, Rear Lane, N Block Market, Greater Kailash Part I, New Delhi-110048 throughout the month of March.
  
  Bamboo is ideal for gardens, both as a planting material and for garden furniture and accessories. Firstly it is a natural bio-degradable material and therefore scores high on the eco-friendly point of view. Secondly, bamboo has a natural charm that adds greatly to the garden’s beauty - think of sweeping bamboo stands, the wind whispering through them. Think of a melodious bamboo wind-chime adding a lovely musical note … I could go on !!
  
  Reams have been written about the invasive nature of the bamboo plant, how it takes over the entire garden, its vast network of roots and shoots spreading wide. However, all that fear is exaggerated. You can take several measures to restrict bamboo in the garden to the spaces you want it to be present –
  1. plant the bamboo is sturdy pots and bury them in the garden,
  2. line the sides of the trench where the bamboo is to be planted with tin/aluminium sheets or a layer of bricks
  

In terms of garden accessories and furniture, the sky is the limit as far as using bamboo is concerned. Here are just some of the things that can be done in bamboo which we are stocking at the Bamboo Store:
· planters
· bird-houses
· bird-feeders
· chairs
· tables
· swings
· candlestands
· flares (mashaals)
· garden umbrellas
· fences
· gazebos
· garden lamps
· deer-scares
· sculptures
· wind-chimes

You don’t have to have a huge garden to have bamboo in it. Even a small terrace or balcony will do – get some lovely bamboo plants in pots and use it as a screen. Hang up some bird feeders, bird-houses, a wind-chime, a couple of bamboo planters with seasonal or succulents and voila! Your bamboo retreat is ready. If space permits, throw in a bamboo and fabric garden umbrella, a couple of bamboo loungers and you can relax in your bamboo paradise !

IS BAMBOO HOT/HAUTE TODAY?

Bamboo is fast emerging as a “haute” design medium in the Western world these days with several top-notch design awards coming its way. Check out “HAUTE GREEN 2007” at http://www.inhabitat.com/category/nydesignweek2007/

What makes bamboo such an attractive option for home décor now? Well, there are several reasons as to why bamboo is so popular nowadays. Perhaps, the greatest reason is that bamboo makes for great ecological sense in today’s environmentally fragile world. Deforestation and excessive industrialization has taken their toll and people across the globe are battling with the ill effects of global warming and climate change. Bamboo is an easily renewable resource, capable of regenerating in a shorter time than trees. Typically, bamboos mature in 3-5 years as compared to most tree species which take anything between 12-20 years to grow fully. This makes bamboo a more sustainable resource to harvest and use regularly as replacement for wood which is becoming increasingly scarce. Given the fact that bamboo has similar strength and properties as wood, it is a viable alternative to wood for use in home, garden and office décor. Bamboo is also called wonder lumber as it does not need too many preparations to use – it can be used as is. This minimal need for preparation makes it a good choice to metals and plastics, which require a lot of resources and input to be prepared, even in the raw form.
Another reason for bamboo’s popularity is that it brings in a whiff of Nature into living spaces like no other material. The warm natural tone of bamboo, its singular elegance is a total contrast to the cold hi-tech glamour of glass and chrome, or the pop art colours of plastic. It is hard to resist the charm of a well-proportioned bamboo sofa, looking as though it has brought the fresh green outdoors inside your room.