At a time when upcycling of waste is picking up as a trend, Rituparna Das and Angeline Babu have created their own small world of upcycled products named 'Silver Nut Tree'. It was started five years ago when the two took a break from their respective jobs to start something together.
The duo say their biggest inspiration was their kids who, at that time, were learning about recycling at school. Their endless queries and doubts about recycling of products got the parents to put on their thinking caps and that's how they struck upon the idea of making earrings by upcycling plastic bottles. "We wanted to show them what upcycling means through example. Our kids were surprised to see how the parent product was turned into something pretty and useful and entirely different," says Angeline.
Following this, there was no looking back for the duo. They kept experimenting with new things to create something unique. Though they started with plastic bottles, the duo now uses glass bottles, CDs and PET bottles to create upcycled products.
"We use bottles to make planters, use decoupage and also glow lamps. Old CDs are used to make tealight or candle holders and cycle tyres are converted into neckpieces and other accessories for men," explains Angeline. The plastic bottles and its caps are usually upcycled to make earrings, rings, pendants and 'jhumkas'.
She believes that not being trained in art and craft has turned out to be good for them as they can explore their creativity freely rather than being limited to something in particular.
Rituparna says it was surprising to know that their products were attracting a lot of male customers who demanded accessories and other things they could use. This led Rituparna and her partner to use bicycle tubes and metal bottle caps that gave a macho element and could easily be used to make products for men. "We soon started making home decor products but here the idea was to add functionality to these and to make something that could be preserved. Hence, we started making bottle lamps," recalls Rituparna.
Explaining the quirky name, Angeline says that when they were looking for names, they were inclined towards children-centric themes as the entire concept came about from the questions asked by their kids about environmental issues and recycling. "We eventually gravitated towards nursery rhymes as they have fun names, and the fact remained that children are not worldly-wise, rather they are adventurous owing to their naivety and innocence. They leap before they think, where their world is full of endless possibilities,"says Angeline.
Rituparna chips in, "We were strangely doing the same thing at that point in time, plunging into something that was sort of alien to both of us — previously a banker and a graphic designer. We didn't know which way this would take us. However, we found a comforting semblance in our ways of thinking — a carefree child's and our's equipped with nothing but a desire to do our bit for this planet. We somehow fell in love with it instantly and decided to stick to it." The unique thing about the duo is that they infuse art into waste products and as they claim, they have upcycled a few lakh bottles from going into landfills and helped the community around them in knowing what to do when they see an unused bottle the next time. "In the long run, we want to create employment, especially for women, and teach them to do something that gives them a sense of satisfaction and financial independence," says Rituparna.
![]( "delicate A tealight holder made out of CDs")
At a time when upcycling of waste is picking up as a trend, Rituparna Das and Angeline Babu have created their own small world of upcycled products named 'Silver Nut Tree’. It was started five years ago when the two took a break from their respective jobs to start something together.
The duo say their biggest inspiration was their kids who, at that time, were learning about recycling at school. Their endless queries and doubts about recycling of products got the parents to put on their thinking caps and that’s how they struck upon the idea of making earrings by upcycling plastic bottles. "We wanted to show them what upcycling means through example. Our kids were surprised to see how the parent product was turned into something pretty and useful and entirely different,” says Angeline.
Following this, there was no looking back for the duo. They kept experimenting with new things to create something unique. Though they started with plastic bottles, the duo now uses glass bottles, CDs and PET bottles to create upcycled products.
"We use bottles to make planters, use decoupage and also glow lamps. Old CDs are used to make tealight or candle holders and cycle tyres are converted into neckpieces and other accessories for men,” explains Angeline. The plastic bottles and its caps are usually upcycled to make earrings, rings, pendants and 'jhumkas’.
She believes that not being trained in art and craft has turned out to be good for them as they can explore their creativity freely rather than being limited to something in particular.
Rituparna says it was surprising to know that their products were attracting a lot of male customers who demanded accessories and other things they could use. This led Rituparna and her partner to use bicycle tubes and metal bottle caps that gave a macho element and could easily be used to make products for men. "We soon started making home decor products but here the idea was to add functionality to these and to make something that could be preserved. Hence, we started making bottle lamps,” recalls Rituparna.
Explaining the quirky name, Angeline says that when they were looking for names, they were inclined towards children-centric themes as the entire concept came about from the questions asked by their kids about environmental issues and recycling. "We eventually gravitated towards nursery rhymes as they have fun names, and the fact remained that children are not worldly-wise, rather they are adventurous owing to their naivety and innocence. They leap before they think, where their world is full of endless possibilities,”says Angeline.
Rituparna chips in, "We were strangely doing the same thing at that point in time, plunging into something that was sort of alien to both of us — previously a banker and a graphic designer. We didn’t know which way this would take us. However, we found a comforting semblance in our ways of thinking — a carefree child’s and our’s equipped with nothing but a desire to do our bit for this planet. We somehow fell in love with it instantly and decided to stick to it.” The unique thing about the duo is that they infuse art into waste products and as they claim, they have upcycled a few lakh bottles from going into landfills and helped the community around them in knowing what to do when they see an unused bottle the next time. "In the long run, we want to create employment, especially for women, and teach them to do something that gives them a sense of satisfaction and financial independence,” says Rituparna.
The duo say their biggest inspiration was their kids who, at that time, were learning about recycling at school. Their endless queries and doubts about recycling of products got the parents to put on their thinking caps and that's how they struck upon the idea of making earrings by upcycling plastic bottles. "We wanted to show them what upcycling means through example. Our kids were surprised to see how the parent product was turned into something pretty and useful and entirely different," says Angeline.
Following this, there was no looking back for the duo. They kept experimenting with new things to create something unique. Though they started with plastic bottles, the duo now uses glass bottles, CDs and PET bottles to create upcycled products.
"We use bottles to make planters, use decoupage and also glow lamps. Old CDs are used to make tealight or candle holders and cycle tyres are converted into neckpieces and other accessories for men," explains Angeline. The plastic bottles and its caps are usually upcycled to make earrings, rings, pendants and 'jhumkas'.
She believes that not being trained in art and craft has turned out to be good for them as they can explore their creativity freely rather than being limited to something in particular.
Rituparna says it was surprising to know that their products were attracting a lot of male customers who demanded accessories and other things they could use. This led Rituparna and her partner to use bicycle tubes and metal bottle caps that gave a macho element and could easily be used to make products for men. "We soon started making home decor products but here the idea was to add functionality to these and to make something that could be preserved. Hence, we started making bottle lamps," recalls Rituparna.
Explaining the quirky name, Angeline says that when they were looking for names, they were inclined towards children-centric themes as the entire concept came about from the questions asked by their kids about environmental issues and recycling. "We eventually gravitated towards nursery rhymes as they have fun names, and the fact remained that children are not worldly-wise, rather they are adventurous owing to their naivety and innocence. They leap before they think, where their world is full of endless possibilities,"says Angeline.
Rituparna chips in, "We were strangely doing the same thing at that point in time, plunging into something that was sort of alien to both of us — previously a banker and a graphic designer. We didn't know which way this would take us. However, we found a comforting semblance in our ways of thinking — a carefree child's and our's equipped with nothing but a desire to do our bit for this planet. We somehow fell in love with it instantly and decided to stick to it." The unique thing about the duo is that they infuse art into waste products and as they claim, they have upcycled a few lakh bottles from going into landfills and helped the community around them in knowing what to do when they see an unused bottle the next time. "In the long run, we want to create employment, especially for women, and teach them to do something that gives them a sense of satisfaction and financial independence," says Rituparna.
At a time when upcycling of waste is picking up as a trend, Rituparna Das and Angeline Babu have created their own small world of upcycled products named 'Silver Nut Tree’. It was started five years ago when the two took a break from their respective jobs to start something together. The duo say their biggest inspiration was their kids who, at that time, were learning about recycling at school. Their endless queries and doubts about recycling of products got the parents to put on their thinking caps and that’s how they struck upon the idea of making earrings by upcycling plastic bottles. "We wanted to show them what upcycling means through example. Our kids were surprised to see how the parent product was turned into something pretty and useful and entirely different,” says Angeline.
Following this, there was no looking back for the duo. They kept experimenting with new things to create something unique. Though they started with plastic bottles, the duo now uses glass bottles, CDs and PET bottles to create upcycled products.
"We use bottles to make planters, use decoupage and also glow lamps. Old CDs are used to make tealight or candle holders and cycle tyres are converted into neckpieces and other accessories for men,” explains Angeline. The plastic bottles and its caps are usually upcycled to make earrings, rings, pendants and 'jhumkas’.
She believes that not being trained in art and craft has turned out to be good for them as they can explore their creativity freely rather than being limited to something in particular.
Rituparna says it was surprising to know that their products were attracting a lot of male customers who demanded accessories and other things they could use. This led Rituparna and her partner to use bicycle tubes and metal bottle caps that gave a macho element and could easily be used to make products for men. "We soon started making home decor products but here the idea was to add functionality to these and to make something that could be preserved. Hence, we started making bottle lamps,” recalls Rituparna.
Explaining the quirky name, Angeline says that when they were looking for names, they were inclined towards children-centric themes as the entire concept came about from the questions asked by their kids about environmental issues and recycling. "We eventually gravitated towards nursery rhymes as they have fun names, and the fact remained that children are not worldly-wise, rather they are adventurous owing to their naivety and innocence. They leap before they think, where their world is full of endless possibilities,”says Angeline.
Rituparna chips in, "We were strangely doing the same thing at that point in time, plunging into something that was sort of alien to both of us — previously a banker and a graphic designer. We didn’t know which way this would take us. However, we found a comforting semblance in our ways of thinking — a carefree child’s and our’s equipped with nothing but a desire to do our bit for this planet. We somehow fell in love with it instantly and decided to stick to it.” The unique thing about the duo is that they infuse art into waste products and as they claim, they have upcycled a few lakh bottles from going into landfills and helped the community around them in knowing what to do when they see an unused bottle the next time. "In the long run, we want to create employment, especially for women, and teach them to do something that gives them a sense of satisfaction and financial independence,” says Rituparna.