Putting
Sustainability on the Table
Sabella
Studio, Westerly, R.I.
Even his home, a 1760s farm in Westerly, is reclaimed from the
past, so it should come as no surprise that reclamation is at the heart of
artisan furniture maker and woodworker Steven Sabella's work.
Sabella specializes in finding wood and
artifacts at consignment shops, boatyards or yard sales and turning them into
new, functional one-of-a-kind pieces for the home.
Much of Sabella's inspiration is drawn from Rhode Island's marine
heritage. He restored a teak swim platform off the back of a yacht and turned
it into a headboard. He
reimagined a salvaged mushroom anchor as a table leg.
When not using reclaimed wood, Sabella uses wood sourced from New
England such as cherry and tiger maple. Sabella even upcycles wood cutoffs
from his larger works to create cutting boards. He sells his pieces out of his
Westerly studio.
Pumped About
Working with Flat Tires
Re-Tired
Gear Bags, Sandwich, Mass.
With five sons biking competitively, Linda Keough knew her boys
went through a lot of gear, but she never thought about it until one day, when
she was out in her sons' workshop and saw a slew of flat bicycle tires.
They were Dugast tires, an expensive and handmade brand of tire
favored by cyclocross racers. The tires couldn't be repaired, but, according to
Keough, they looked too good to be thrown away.
A light bulb went off. Keough, a graphic artist who had been
making and selling handmade pocketbooks, decided to put her sons' castoff bike
tires to use. Her new venture, Re-Tired Gear Bags, was born. That was back in
2009.
"I've been stocked with tires ever since," Keough said.
"Now people will just bring them; they end up on my doorstep. Maybe
someday I'll use them all."
She even got boxes of old gears — which she now also incorporates
into her bag designs — from her friend who runs a bike shop in Norwood, Mass.
Keough sells her bags online and at artisan markets in southern
New England, including The Providence Flea.
Bay-to-Plate
Lobster
Newport
Lobster Shack Kitchen, Newport, R.I.
State Pier Nine in Newport is the new home of Newport Lobster Shack Kitchen,
an outgrowth of the Newport Lobster Shack Cooperative at the state pier on Long
Wharf, where fishermen have been selling their catch directly to the public
since 2010.
With the new kitchen facility, the public has an opportunity to
buy freshly cooked items made from lobsters landed at Pier Nine.
According to Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management
Director Janet Coit, the Newport Lobster Shack Cooperative is a powerful model
for the survival of local fisheries. By selling their catch directly to the
public, the fishermen can earn better value for their product, she said.
"All of the Kitchen's menu items including fresh steamed lobster, lobster rolls, lobster bites, lobster cakes, and hand-picked local lobster meat come straight from the lobsters plucked by fishermen in local waters and landed right here at State Pier Nine. You can't get any fresher than that," Coit said.
"All of the Kitchen's menu items including fresh steamed lobster, lobster rolls, lobster bites, lobster cakes, and hand-picked local lobster meat come straight from the lobsters plucked by fishermen in local waters and landed right here at State Pier Nine. You can't get any fresher than that," Coit said.