Design award for biodegradeable children's stool

A children's stool made from wheat starch, water, vinegar, glycerol, pea straw and grass seeds has won a design discovery award. The stool, made from completely biodegradable material, literally sprouts and grows at the end of its life.

Once it reaches the end of its life The Kids Straw Stool can be placed into nature to biodegrade, with the pea straw and grass seeds sprouting new life.

The stool is the brainchild of Dale Hardiman, an RMIT University student who won $2500 for his idea after the stool was a runner-up in a leading national design competition.

Hardiman, who is in the final year of his Associate Degree in Design, Furniture, said the ingredients cost $21.

The four key parts of the stool need to be cooked, something that can be done in a household kitchen in less than five hours, using a saucepan and oven.

“This chair is a case of cook, sit, biodegrade and grow. This helps promote health in the land. It biodegrades outdoors in five to six weeks and is ideal for children up to 10 years old,” he said.

Hardiman said that as population increased, the need for children’s furniture would also increase.

“Being able to use standard cooking utensils and cook your children’s furniture in the house, removes all transport and waste material. The entire life cycle of the product stays within a single location,” he said.

“The user needs to cook and create the stool themselves, building a relationship with the product.

“This hopefully promotes longevity until its intended life span ends and also involves the child from a very young age in creating something and teaching them awareness of their environment.”

Hardiman went to Sydney recently to present his stool to the Bombay Sapphire Design Discovery Awards, where a panel of eight design leaders chose The Kids Straw Stool as one of four runners-up from a field of 60.