Aside from their not-so-economical price points and the fact they may have, as TreeHugger's Sami Grover points out, undesirably weighty carbon footprints, the coffee tables and end tables that make up the Arms & Barnes eco-furniture line are real beauts that I couldn't resist sharing.

 

Each table is handcrafted from salvaged farm and factory waste — trasher wheels, saw blades, gear wheels, vents, grates, cabinet doors, and even cast-iron corn muffin dishes — carefully procured by Arms & Barnes owner Andrea Porter. The tables won't exactly blend into hypermodern green homes but that's the point ... it's all about sustainable, rustic elegance. 

 

Want to look but not touch? Luckily, Arms & Barnes has its own Youtube channel where Porter talks about her various creations and even does a bit of welding. Porter is obviously a skilled craftswoman who travels all over (here's the aforementioned weighty carbon footprints) to select striking pieces of industrial/agricultural refuse. But the eco-inspiration behind the furniture is just as applicable to those of us who aren't snatching up pieces of antique grill-work in the UK: with a little creativity and a keen eye, old and slightly tarnished cast-offs can live on as beautiful, functional objects.

 

 

Via [TreeHugger]

 

Photos: Arms & Barnes