Umbrella Inside Out - The Final Moment is Here!
Umbrella Inside Out - The Final Moment is Here!
With the Umbrella Inside Out Competitions, I.D. Magazine, The Sustainable Style Foundation, and TreeHugger asked for a new umbrella, and re-used umbrella couture. Designers from around the world answered. Last week, readers chose their favorite former umbrella garment. Now it's time to choose the winning umbrella!
Our final two umbrella designs take distinct Cradle to Cradle approaches. Highlights of the Pollinate include fashionable interchangeable canopies, and complete biodegradability. Rather than feeding into a biological system, the Crayella allows for easy street repair and technical upcycling. Which one is the best Cradle to Cradle design? Find out more about the designs, and comment! Choose the winner! Then RSVP to see the finalist designs in person!
Crayella Umbrella by Erin MacDonald
» See more of this entry!
Pollinate Umbrella by Mike Loveless and Matt McClanaghan
» See more of this entry!
Voting has closed. The winner will be announced Friday morning at around 9 am EST. Thanks!
Comments
Great umbrella. Fantastic. Superb engineering. I also really like the pictures. Good work!
Posted by: Zach | September 21, 2006 1:40 PM
Very nice
Posted by: Kathy Ladd | September 21, 2006 1:48 PM
An aesthetiacally pleasing AND good product.
Posted by: maaike | September 21, 2006 1:51 PM
A very nice umbrella
Posted by: Jillian Orr | September 21, 2006 1:53 PM
Awesome!
Posted by: Lisa Swain | September 21, 2006 1:53 PM
I really like the idea of a biodegradable umbrella. A superb solution to reducing waste. Nice designs too.
Posted by: Tammy | September 21, 2006 1:53 PM
Awesome
Posted by: Nikhil Phadnis | September 21, 2006 1:54 PM
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 2:01 PM
love the design and print
Posted by: kevin | September 21, 2006 2:01 PM
Good work!
Posted by: Karim Hamza | September 21, 2006 2:01 PM
Amazing - Go Matt!
Posted by: Mavis Harris | September 21, 2006 2:05 PM
Very nice design.
Posted by: Jacob Griffin | September 21, 2006 2:14 PM
Great! I love the design.
Posted by: Paula Doane | September 21, 2006 2:14 PM
Great design!
Posted by: Fabio Albano | September 21, 2006 2:16 PM
great
Posted by: great | September 21, 2006 2:20 PM
great design
Posted by: anonymous | September 21, 2006 2:20 PM
I think both designs are very creative.. I like the fact that the pollinate design is made from bio-degradable materials....The fact that the crayella design is made from recycled plastic and alluminum is a start..but when that umbrella gets tossed eventually, it will still end up in a heap for hundreds of years.
Both excellent designs...from an environmental standpoint, I'd have to go with pollinate.
Posted by: Wilson | September 21, 2006 2:20 PM
crayella rocks
Posted by: anonymous | September 21, 2006 2:25 PM
I like the fact that Pollinate has completely natural conttents and does not rely on petro-chemical parts.
Posted by: Audrey Gill Grantham | September 21, 2006 2:33 PM
I don't really believe that it would be possible for small independant shops to be set up to fix the crayella design when it breaks, however with the pollinate design the materials are natural and simplistic and the design is a lot less complicated (less breaking) so it would be easiler and healthier to fix and if the product is unfixable it can go straight into the ground where there is a lot less energy loss through the reprocessing of materials such as aluminum and plastics which are(wasted energy) involved with crayolla. GO Pollinate.
Posted by: Dude | September 21, 2006 2:34 PM
Very thoughtful, and stylish. A winner for today's buyer.
Posted by: Ray Culver | September 21, 2006 2:42 PM
So very cool
Posted by: Chris Public | September 21, 2006 2:46 PM
Go Pollinate go!
Posted by: Ryan Payne | September 21, 2006 2:48 PM
WOW!! Awesome umbrella
Posted by: elaine | September 21, 2006 2:52 PM
Both are noble efforts, but if they require assembly to use them, then parts can get lost AND they won't sell to the mass market, who, sadly, won't accept inconveniences, however minor.
Note: Neither one looks like it would stand up to a strong wind....
Posted by: Glen | September 21, 2006 2:55 PM
Well, i like the Pollinate but it's just too small. Yet as someone said, shops probably won't be set up -just- to fix the Crayella. but i can see them selling the tools and parts at newsstands.
So, go Crayella!
Posted by: Andrew | September 21, 2006 2:57 PM
Great design and looks light and sturdy.
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 2:59 PM
Really neat.
Posted by: Neal | September 21, 2006 3:16 PM
lovely!
Posted by: Annette | September 21, 2006 3:27 PM
great
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 3:31 PM
Nice design
Posted by: Amy | September 21, 2006 3:39 PM
SUPER I LOVE IT
Posted by: maggie | September 21, 2006 3:43 PM
Looks Great
Posted by: Officer's Auto Care Inc. | September 21, 2006 3:56 PM
interesting concept
Posted by: Bob W | September 21, 2006 3:59 PM
Elegantly designed. Looks very practical and goes with urban fashion.
Posted by: Babak Jamshidi | September 21, 2006 4:00 PM
The Design is Spectacular!!
Posted by: Aml El-Fizy | September 21, 2006 4:10 PM
Excellent work.
Posted by: Philippe | September 21, 2006 4:15 PM
What's wrong with getting a little bit wet anyways? Who needs umbrellas? Isn't that what newspapers are for?
Posted by: Tommy Six Toes | September 21, 2006 4:17 PM
I believe that the Pollinate Umbrella meets the object of the contest perfectly and is clearly the winner in my eyes.
Posted by: Josh | September 21, 2006 4:23 PM
Great/Innovative Design
Posted by: Naveen Kumar Gupta | September 21, 2006 4:24 PM
simple, functional, unobstrusive
Posted by: S S Ali | September 21, 2006 4:27 PM
Pollinate Umbrella is going green, returning to the beginning, but with a really good and simple idea.
Posted by: hmerino | September 21, 2006 4:34 PM
Great work
Posted by: JJ | September 21, 2006 4:37 PM
I have never witnessed a more breathtaking example of brilliance in the modern umbrella in all of my life. Simply stunning.
Posted by: J. Rutherford | September 21, 2006 4:42 PM
Why not just use the old Chinese Umbrellas?
They are enviro-friendly and is made of banboo and wax paper.
Posted by: OldFashioned | September 21, 2006 4:45 PM
Pollinate clearly met the objective of the project. The umbrella is manufactured from items that are completely biodegradable. Thanks for putting the environment first!
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 4:48 PM
Where can I get one?
Posted by: Steve | September 21, 2006 4:50 PM
You guys should be really proud of yourselves for a an absolutely amazing design. you ROCK!
Posted by: Kristin | September 21, 2006 4:51 PM
I love Pollinate. When fashion changes you can change the lid without sending the old one to the landfill.
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 4:55 PM
this is my first time to visit this site. I am a new visitor added to the site as a result of this contest.
Susan Morrow
Posted by: Susan Morrow | September 21, 2006 5:08 PM
I really liked both designs. Really great work.
Posted by: Linda | September 21, 2006 5:12 PM
Good work!
Posted by: amb | September 21, 2006 5:18 PM
Cool Design - Good Luck
Posted by: MArissa | September 21, 2006 5:25 PM
I love the Crayella design. It looks very trendy.
Posted by: Bethany Dalton | September 21, 2006 5:39 PM
I love the idea.
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 5:42 PM
The Pollinate makes the most sense. Something biodegradable takes us full circle so that we can take care of our planet.
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 5:44 PM
Very nice. I love it!!!
Posted by: Sadeta | September 21, 2006 5:49 PM
Good stuff!
Posted by: Jerald | September 21, 2006 5:50 PM
nice.
Posted by: JW | September 21, 2006 6:12 PM
Beautiful umbrella!
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 6:53 PM
good job
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 7:06 PM
it's something different
Posted by: Vicky | September 21, 2006 7:07 PM
Great Design Mike and Matt
I always new I would see your names in lights.
Posted by: rosemary dunning | September 21, 2006 7:16 PM
Crayella is THE engineering umbrella. Wonderful work~!
Posted by: Miles | September 21, 2006 7:21 PM
Pollinate is an interesting idea. Very eco-friendly. However, in terms of practicality, Crayella wins with a big margin.
It will be great if both umbrella can be commercialized in the near future.
Posted by: Miles | September 21, 2006 7:23 PM
I honestly like both of these designs, but I voted for the Crayella. I like the complete biodegradability and look of the Pollinate, but I don't see how it will be able to withstand strong winds with its current design. Whoever wins, I hope both designs continue to be developed and tested.
Posted by: Richard | September 21, 2006 7:25 PM
Biodegradable things mostly end up in landfills and stay there. Especially for urban dwellers, you can't just "bury" it. Crayella seems much better thought out, and the oval idea is so obvious and smart-- I'm wondering why that's never been done before.
Posted by: Julie | September 21, 2006 7:36 PM
This umbrella is not only environmentally friendly, it is also very innovative!
Posted by: Kira | September 21, 2006 7:44 PM
Pollinate is a great umbrella with lots of unique features. It is very environmentally friendly which is a good feature in today's society.
Posted by: Aspen vanWalraven | September 21, 2006 8:30 PM
Excellent design
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 8:47 PM
Brilliant!
Posted by: Alison | September 21, 2006 9:03 PM
The Crayella Umbrealla is awesome. It's simple yet chic. It's artistic and at the same time so well designed for actual use! The use of materials is impressive. Bravo, Erin!
Posted by: Judy Cook | September 21, 2006 9:06 PM
This umbrella rocks! Simple, yet elegant. Frank Lloyd Wright would have loved this!
Posted by: David Semb | September 21, 2006 9:15 PM
Simply awesome!
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 9:15 PM
The Crayella umbrella rocks! Simple, yet elegant. Frank Lloyd Wright would have loved this!
Posted by: David Semb | September 21, 2006 9:17 PM
Pollinate as a design fulfills the C2C philosophy
Crayella, although a beautiful design perpetuates downcycling-not a good option for our plant
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 9:37 PM
The book Cradle to Cradle, that started the C2C movement, that was written by one of the judges in this competition, William McDonough, is printed on polypropylene, which is the same material that the Crayella is made from. The C2C book is not printed on wood pulp...
Posted by: Lily Griffiths | September 21, 2006 10:02 PM
Some reasons why I voted Crayella Umbrella over 'the other one':
- understandable explanation and diagrams.
- guarantee of product effectiveness (coverage from rain)
- nicer and more ergonomic handle
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 10:03 PM
A very nice design!
Posted by: Anonymous | September 21, 2006 10:03 PM
Erin's design is very intuitive and innovative at the same time. Very well done! A great example of Michigan engineering at its best.
Posted by: Dennis Assanis | September 21, 2006 10:08 PM
both entries make use of new materails (new to umbrellas at least) but seems to me like crayella is just a new way of opening your umbrella. hmmm ok maybe so is pollinate. but pollinate opens up way cooler. now imagine pollinate as one of those garden picnic umbrellas and you can't say that's its not the better designed one. if only you could incorporate some kind of seed dispersing mechanism into it's spokes then now pollinate will be really living up to its name. then maybe i'll be so stealing that idea. lol
Posted by: paolo | September 21, 2006 10:49 PM
clean & beautiful design !
Posted by: paul theron | September 21, 2006 10:53 PM
Great exploration of materials and their uses. Well Designed guys!
Posted by: Ryan Kulmala | September 21, 2006 11:18 PM
Why would anyone want to spend 7 min putting together an umbrella? And what if my umbrella breaks and I can't find one of those shoe shine kids?
Posted by: April | September 22, 2006 12:05 AM
Totally cool, way to go!
Posted by: Celina | September 22, 2006 4:28 AM
I think thy where both great designs but I think that Pollinate met the goal by making it biodegradabal and uses materials from the earth to make the umbrella. Excelent job Mike and Matt.
Posted by: tim | September 22, 2006 10:01 AM
cool i love it!
Posted by: Anonymous | September 22, 2006 2:37 PM
Pollinate appears to be easier to manufacture, use, and repair.
Where does the canopy go when the umbrella is folded? If it folds in with the ribs, then it has the added benefit of collecting water in the base.
I see praise for the use biodegradable materials. Wasn't that a requirement?
Posted by: Anonymous | September 22, 2006 3:02 PM
The Cradle-to-Cradle philosophy introduces a concept called technical nutrients, "which are designed for upcycling (little to no quality lost during recycling)." (see the Cradle-to-Cradle link at top). Polypropylene plastic is an example of a technical nutrient. Biodegradability is not a requirement in the Cradle-to-Cradle philosophy, it is only part of the whole picture, and was therefore not a requirement in this contest. In fact, the book Cradle-to-Cradle itself is not biodegradable – it’s printed on polypro plastic. C2C is a refreshing approach to design, one that I admire quite a bit for its idealism intermixed with practicality; something I tried to emulate in this overall design. I encourage everyone who has commented here to read the book. Also: Plastic does come "from the earth." One cannot assume that because plastic is a more sophisticated or processed material that it is necessarily worse for the environment. Thank you for all the votes, supportive comments, constructive criticism, and thoughtful discussion. Congratulations to all of the finalists, we all know this vote-off was not the best way to decide anything between the five designs by a long-shot, but we should all feel proud that we helped increase awareness for eco-design and Cradle to Cradle design by introducing so many new people to Treehugger and this contest. I hope to see all of your umbrellas on the market someday so I can buy each one -- they are terrific. And please add Treehugger to your blogfeed and/or favorites page!
Posted by: Erin MacDonald | September 22, 2006 4:02 PM
I like the Crayella!
Posted by: Jennifer | September 22, 2006 9:21 PM
to what size does the crayella umbrellafold down to. Its length looks to of a larger umbrella when closed and of a canopy of a smaller umbrella.
The design could not compete the cost of current umbrellas and i think the vision is bit unrealistic of sole trading businesses of an umbrella.
Posted by: tom | September 23, 2006 4:14 AM
Love Tom's work...I would buy it if it was on the market!
Posted by: Rad | September 23, 2006 5:21 AM
This looks great! Let me know if it is ever brought to market....I would love one!
Posted by: Mike Gregson | September 23, 2006 9:26 AM
Crayella promotes repair and therefore longer life.
Posted by: les | September 24, 2006 12:09 PM
The Pollinate is the coolest umbrella ever! I love the interchangeable canopies! I would buy one right now!
Posted by: Kaila Levola | September 25, 2006 9:39 AM
I'm dissapointed I missed out on the voting, but both finalists have entered really innovative designs in my opinion, and both deserve the credit. Well done Erin for the most chique-looking entry!
For me though, Pollinate by Mike and Matt just about has the edge. 30inches of unmbrella is plenty, i say, and if we are all honest, ANY umbrella is hassle when it's too windy, so those previous comments wouldnt put me off too much.
The changable cover is a superb idea, and what makes Pollinate the winner. Appealling to fashion fans is a simple and fun way to spread awareness as the trend grows, which is an added bonus. The appeal for 'greener' products is widening rapidly, what with the likes of London Fashon Weeks devoting space for ethical labels, so there's no better time to add really cool accesories such as the Pollinate umbrella. Where can I get one?!
Posted by: Kerry Aspinwall | September 25, 2006 10:48 AM
First, these are cool.
Second, I like the idea of recyclable as opposed to biodegradable. Biodegradable implies limited use, and as a native Oregonian I know I will be using an umbrella for a long, long time.
Nice work to everyone. I know a lot of hard work and thought went into each design. I'm glad someone forwarded this site to me.
Posted by: Kara | September 30, 2006 4:33 PM
It's great, i love it,i'm an environmentalist
Posted by: Chinese girl | October 18, 2006 2:32 AM
I think the Pollinate Umbrella is the best design, I want to order one today.
Posted by: Josh | November 22, 2006 10:40 AM