I’m always drawn to the creative appeal of ornamental accents handcrafted by small artisan groups. In the absence of mass production, artistic standards come before profitability, and this idyllic approach yields unique styles and high quality craftsmanship.

At Aid to Artisans, you’ll find a variety of such items that are both modish and eco-friendly. Handmade by dedicated artisans in Ilobasco, El Salvador, the Ceramic Round vase will adorn your tabletops with a touch of rustic charm. These striking pieces resemble laced-up leather, but they aren't. Rather, they are skillfully shaped from the abundance of red clay in El Salvador and laced with natural fiber, making them 100% green. (Available at Aid to Artisans for $45.)

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As the wine industry switches en masse to the twist cap option we'll be seeing fewer wine stained corks on our table and more innovative projects made from cork (like these floors).

These solid and organic cork coasters made in Portugal from the renewable cork bark and branches will add a rustic element to your tabletop. A set of four of these cork branch coasters can be purchased from Uncommon Goods for $50.00. 

Go green: if you'd like to make your own cork coasters from those left over wine corks check out this DIY project from our friends at Design Sponge.

Image/purchase: Uncommon Goods

Sometimes I look around my kitchen and feel comforted by the warm, familiar (and mostly vintage) things I own. And sometimes, I just want to chuck it all and start over.

That's not eco-friendly, so I prefer to update things piece by piece as needed. These lovely thatched bowls are on my list. I'd fill them with all the fruits of the season - right now that would be oranges, lemons, and limes. Later on they'd become acquainted with apricots, tomatoes, plums, and pears. And just picture them with persimmons!

I like these bowls because they are airy yet elemental. They are perfect nests for fruit because they allow the air to circulate, slowing down spoilage. You could also fill them with greenery, moss, rocks, and other items from nature and arrange all three together for a dramatic centerpiece for your celebration table.

Handmade by artist Michael Aram from recycled metal. Available from sponsor Viva Terra as follows: small $69, medium $98, large $169, set $329.

The recyclers are circling.

It's the 60s all over again. Circles, swirls and dots are fashionable - take the mod clutch Allison found recently, or this recycled journal from Ecojot. But beyond style, these are practical innovations for a greener planet.

Take metal washers, for example. They're everywhere, keeping threaded screws tight behind the scenes in nigh-on every conceivable domestic situation. Countless millions get thrown away when it's time to renovate or move. They can be melted down - but surely something more creative could be done with them instead (as with soda can pull-tabs)?

One answer is in the eye-catching work of Tammy Roy at One Eighty Designs. She takes discarded metal discs and washers and turns them into items like decorative bowls and baskets and this pendant light (throwing fabulous shadows across your room). All her items are welded and made from reclaimed steel and salvaged wood.

Rather than simply reducing unwanted items into raw material once more, we like it when artful recyclers can utilize old forms, bringing  industrial ingenuity full circle.

Pictured: "Mixed Media Bowl", $85.

One of my favorite parts of creating my personal décor scheme is choosing the accents to embellish each room. But, no matter how much creative objet or wall art I stumble upon, nothing beats the brilliant hues of Mother Nature herself.

With the Bamboo Wrapped vases, you can display the classic beauty of vibrant flowers in contemporary style. These hip pieces boast a unique feature: they can be hung on empty wall space as well as placed upon tabletops and mantles. Handmade from rapidly-renewable bamboo, which grows faster than any other existing plants, these gorgeous vases are of the highest quality craftsmanship and are eco-friendly as well.  (Love bamboo? For a unique piece of bamboo furniture with a modern flair, check out our recent post about the Spring chair.) Available at the Rainforest Site for $14.95- $44.95.

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If you ask me, when it comes to embellishing my living space, the only thing better than stylish objet is stylish objet with a story behind it. These stunning, hand-painted Bamboo boxes are much more than just home décor: They are the fruits of unrelenting artistic ambition and a brilliantly creative mind.

An only child raised by farmers on the island of Bali, Wayan Genep always aspired to become an artist. With the help of his fellow villagers, Genep learned to skillfully carve and paint. When he made the decision to partner with Novica, his eye-catching crafts became available to décor aficionados like us around the world. (Set of 3 available at Novica for $104.95.)

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You come home from running errands or working a long day at the office and just like a loyal rash, there is a scattered path of daily essentials that leads from the front door to the couch in your living room and through the hall and spilling down the stairs and invading your bathroom. It's clutter.

Here's one small step towards reducing the clutter that creates a stressful home environment. The Quadrato tray by Organo Natural Furnishings is a great accent because it's both modern and natural, as well as being a convenient place to stash your keys, sunglasses and cell phone until your next trip out. Stack all three sizes for extra embellishment and choose between natural and walnut kirei board or bamboo to suit your personal entryway. Available at Organo Natural Furnishings for $51.30- $124.52.

With the ubiquity of vases available on the market today, I have been searching in vain for something a little more creative than the standard IKEA and West Elm selections. When I discovered the Large Wavy Bud vases at Hip and Zen, my search was complete. These unique vases are shallow, designed to hold only the buds and blooms. A collection of these vases would go beautifully atop a wood table or nested on a silver tray.

Handmade in Thailand, each round, white ceramic vase is embellished with intricate black and gray designs that are reminiscent of the magnificent beauty of the great outdoors. Mother Nature's vivid color palette will pop against these interesting yet neutral vases. (Available at Hip and Zen for $10.)

The busy gossip of birds, the surprising fragrance of new flowers and the sensation of a friendly breeze are all signs that spring is in full swing, and, if you are tempted to pluck a stem from its blossoming splendor every time you're outside, then these Crackled Glass balls will help you to create fresh tableau throughout your home.

Fill them with water and use them as vases to enhance any room in your home with the vivid colors of this picturesque season. This distinctive, well-priced set is versatile: when not holding flowers, the vases can easily dress up an empty tabletop, decorative tray or coffee table all on their own. (Set of 3 available at sponsor VivaTerra for just $39.)

Tumble dryers are last century's technology. You can see it when you switch them on - after an hour, the room is a clammy fog of wasted heat ....and your clothes still aren't completely dry. All this comes with a hefty hike in your household power consumption. The environmental cost? Around 7.5kg of carbon dioxide a week, according to one estimate. Yet here in the UK, tumble dryers are as popular as ever. (The rest of the world seems to have more sense).

Being eco-conscious, we're always happy to promote washing lines. But Alternative Consumer has just made us aware of another option - the tabletop spin dryer.

Why is this more ecologically sound than a tumble dryer? Firstly, it's not heating your wet clothes to dry them - it's relying on gravity (or centripetal force, if we want to get technical). Secondly, it uses much less power - 300 watts compared to a standard tumble dryer's 5,000 watts. And thirdly, it does the job in a couple of minutes, needing only a few extra minutes pegged on the line to get them crisply dry. A.U. make the additional point that since no heating is involved, the chemicals left over from washing aren't baked into the material.....

Tumble dryers get us steamed up. We prefer the Alternative.

Image: the Laundry Alternative