To prove that germs aren't all bad, Paris-based studio Bold-design came up with an activity kit that uses bacteria to turn sand from the beach into stone souvenirs (+ slideshow). More »
Memorabilia Factory
by Bold-design
Tag: sand
Memorabilia Factory
Dezeen archive: sand
Dezeen archive: this week one of our most popular stories was about a robot that builds architectural structures from sand (bottom left), so our latest archive is all about sand. See all all the stories »
Stone Spray Robot by Anna Kulik,
Inder Shergill and Petr Novikov
Students from Barcelona's Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia have built a robotic 3D printer that creates architectural structures from sand or soil (+ movie). More »
A Sign in Space by
Gunilla Klingberg
Stars are printed in the sand by a tractor as it drags a giant roller back and forth across the beach, then left to fade at the mercy of footsteps and the tide in this installation by Swedish artist Gunilla Klingberg. More »
Plastic bottles filled with sand used
to build houses in Nigeria
Dezeen Wire: discarded bottles sourced from hotels, restaurants, homes and foreign embassies are being filled with sand and used as bricks to create curved-walled houses in a Nigerian village - BBC
The bottles are bound together with mud resulting in durable walls that are sustainable, cost-effective and provide insulation from the sun's heat. The resulting buildings are also bullet-proof – a useful benefit in an area plagued by violence. An estate of 25 houses is currently being built with plans for a school to follow.
See our previous story on a house made from sand bags in South Africa.
Desert Storm by Nir Meiri
Time Elapsed by Philippe Malouin and Lobmeyr
Vienna Design Week 2011: a rotating arm deposits spirals of quartz sand on the showroom floor at crystal company Lobmeyr in Vienna this week, thanks to Canadian designer Philippe Malouin. More »
Sand by Yukihiro Kaneuchi
These vases made of sand are shaped according to the principles of an old Japanese game. More »
Dezeen Screen: The Solar Sinter
by Markus Kayser
Dezeen Screen: this movie by Royal College of Art graduate Markus Kayser shows his Solar Sinter 3D-printing machine at work in the desert, making glass objects by melting sand with sunlight. Watch the movie »
Night Night by Vanessa Hordies
Stockholm 2011: ECAL graduate Vanessa Hordies has created this bedside lamp that works like an hour glass to gradually dim the light by covering it in sand. More »
Food and design videos:
Design Academy Eindhoven
In this short interview we conducted as part of our Food and Design report for luxury kitchen appliances brand Scholtès, Design Academy Eindhoven chairwoman Anne Mieke Eggenkamp presents graduate projects involving food, including this system that uses sand to keep vegetables fresh (above). Update: this project is included in Dezeen Book of Ideas, which is on sale now for £12. More »
Microclimates by PostlerFerguson
These conceptual cooling units by London designers PostlerFerguson would be made from 3D-printed sand. More »
Casa Areia by Aires Mateus Architects
Dezeen are in Venice for the opening of the Venice Architecture Biennale 2010 where Lisbon firm Aires Mateus Architects are exhibiting these houses with sandy floors, photographed by Nelson Garrido. Update: this project is included in Dezeen Book of Ideas, which is on sale now for £12. More »
Ecolodge by Laetitia Delubac and Christian Félix
Paris architects Laetitia Delubac and Christian Félix have completed a holiday home and guest house in Siwa, Egypt. More »
Sand-bag houses by MMA architects 4
Design Indaba 08: here's a new set of photos showing progress on the first sand-bag house being built at Freedom Park in Cape Town, South Africa. More »