How do WE use Bamboo?

[Tropicana]

I am amazed at the variety of ways in which people in Asia use Bamboo, even in places like Japn where they don't grow a lot of it. It's used for flooring, window trim, cutlery, dishes, lamps, waste baskets, fences, fountains, gates, and much more. I don't recall seeing such a variety of uses in Jamaica but maybe I just wasn't paying attention.


Here are some examples:

http://www.garden-gifts.com/dbento.htm

http://www.garden-gifts.com/bfence.htm

http://www.garden-gifts.com/bamboo.htm

So, how do WE use bamboo? Did we use it more in the past? If so how?

[Tropicana]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?

Here is more:

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Quote:</div><div class="ubbcode-body"> Bamboo is now a common flooring material, Funk said. According to Bamboo-Flooring.com, bamboo flooring is durable, can be harder than oak and is less expensive than hardwood flooring. For maintenance, frequent gentle cleaning is recommended — and no high heels.

Because of its strength bamboo is still used in Japan and China as scaffolding in high-rise building construction, Funk said, and it's also an art material, for ikebana basket work, for example.

Its fast regrowth makes it a sustainable plant that can be harvested repeatedly after it's cut. In a favorable habitat, it could grow as fast as 1 foot in 24 hours, Funk said, and it grows back to full size in a few years. Usually stems are allowed to mature, up to about seven years, before being harvested again.

Because of bamboo's versatility and wide range of uses, industry figures are hard to come by. A representative of Wood and Wood Products said the magazine does not track bamboo imports or use, but other sources speak of increasing use.

Morris Saintsing, a partner in the South Carolina-based clothing company Bamboosa, said that two years ago when it was founded, early in 2005, Bamboosa was the first company to make its own bamboo fabrics (from imported yarn and fiber) in the United States. Since then, he said, speaking by phone, "We've experienced tremendous growth, and we have plans for significant growth over the next three years."

For furniture maker and designer Tucker Robbins, bamboo is "the No. 1 best material for the environment," in addition to being beautiful.

"I've been passionate about bamboo for a long time," Robbins said, speaking from his Long Island, N.Y., studio. "I've been looking at it for five years or so, looking for ways to make it a centerpiece rather than an accessory material in my collections."

Now he says, he has a new bamboo line ready to introduce: "I've created a bamboo floor, bamboo cabinets and screens, and an art piece." He said his company uses bamboo from the Philippines and from China.

Kaight, a purist fashion store on Manhattan's Lower East Side, has dark-stained bamboo-wood floors, and bamboo-wood countertops piled with whisper-fine, soft-handling bamboo knits. Other clothes in the store are made from similarly wholesome fabrics ranging from organic cotton to pure cashmere. The bamboo-fabric clothes owner Kate McGregor sells range in price from $54 for a T-shirt to $400 for a woven knit dress.

"I put in the bamboo wood because of the whole philosophy of the store," McGregor said, recalling how she set up Kaight, which opened August 2006, and whose business card calls the store "smart, ethical, eco-friendly."

</div></div>

http://www.salisburypost.com/lifestyle/288973390998512.php

[Tropicana]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?

Traiditional Japanese Bamboo Floor lamp:



Bamboo flooring:



Examples of bamboo use in traditional Japanese rooms:

[Tropicana]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?

[Gen]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?

How do we use bamboo ? well fuss ting if is imported bamboo I am sure we use it a lot but if it is local then no we don't use it.

[yardy]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?

Bamboo is also been use to weave fabric now...the fabric is 100% breatheable......

[ILP]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?

my floors on the 1st level of the house are bamboo.
we didnt get them for the mood the floors would create. We got them because they were asthetically pleasing and they have turned out to be energy friendly.

[yardy]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Style Diva</div><div class="ubbcode-body">Bamboo is also been use to weave fabric now...the fabric is 100% breatheable......
</div></div>

Bamboo fabric is a natural textile made from the pulp of the bamboo grass. Bamboo fabric has been growing in popularity because it has many unique properties and is more sustainable than most textile fibers. Bamboo fabric is light and strong, has excellent wicking properties, and is to some extent antibacterial.

Bamboo fiber resembles cotton in its unspun form, a puffball of light, airy fibers. Many companies use extensive bleaching processes to turn bamboo fiber white, although companies producing organic bamboo fabric leave the bamboo fiber unbleached. To make bamboo fiber, bamboo is heavily pulped until it separates into thin component threads of fiber, which can be spun and dyed for weaving into cloth.

Bamboo fabric is very soft and can be worn directly next to the skin. Many people who experience allergic reactions to other natural fibers, such as wool or hemp, do not complain of this issue with bamboo. The fiber is naturally smooth and round without chemical treatment, meaning that there are no sharp spurs to irritate the skin.

Bamboo fabric is favored by companies trying to use sustainable textiles, because the bamboo plant is very quick growing and does not usually require the use of pesticides and herbicides to thrive. As a result, plantations can easily be kept organic and replanted yearly to replenish stocks. The process of making unbleached bamboo fiber is very light on chemicals that could potentially harm the environment.

In textile form, bamboo retains many of the properties it has as a plant. Bamboo is highly water absorbent, able to take up three times its weight in water. In bamboo fabric, this translates to an excellent wicking ability that will pull moisture away from the skin so that it can evaporate. For this reason, clothing made of bamboo fiber is often worn next to the skin.

Bamboo also has many antibacterial qualities, which bamboo fabric is apparently able to retain, even through multiple washings. This helps to reduce bacteria that thrive on clothing and cause unpleasant odors. It can also kill odor causing bacteria that live on human skin, making the wearer and his or her clothing smell more sweet. In addition, bamboo fabric has insulating properties and will keep the wearer cooler in summer and warmer in winter. The versatility of bamboo fabric makes it an excellent choice for clothing designers exploring alternative textiles, and in addition, the fabric is able to take bright dye colors well, drape smoothly, and star in a variety of roles from knit shirts to woven skirts.

[Tropicana]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?

I am talking about what we grow locally. How do we use it?

[Pepper]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?

Cho, me come een here tinking it was a different topic. But me click from di forum page, not di gd page. Mek me respond, fore me get accused of hijacking. [img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/rolleyes.gif[/img]

ANyways...bamboo is strong and cheap....although from the prices some places charge for bamboo you would never know that. It grows very fast, so once you have a root, more bamboo is close behind.

[RichD]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?

[img]/forums/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/704555_dwl.gif[/img]

this remind me of when mi read dat chippies (di banana chip ppl dem ) haffi import banana fi mek dem chips

[Pepper]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Tropicana</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I am talking about what we grow locally. How do we use it? </div></div>

Do we grow that much to have extensive use?

[annshan2]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?


i tink dem use bamboo fi wicker furniture

[Tropicana]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?

Yes Style Diva, it does seem to be a very versatile and environmentally friendly. We're lucky we grow it so easily and it's properties are now recognized worldwide.

[Tropicana]

Re: How do WE use Bamboo?

<div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Pepper</div><div class="ubbcode-body"><div class="ubbcode-block"><div class="ubbcode-header">Originally Posted By: Tropicana</div><div class="ubbcode-body">I am talking about what we grow locally. How do we use it? </div></div>

Do we grow that much to have extensive use? </div></div>

Not sure. I know the Japanese don't grow a ton of it but man they use it everywhere.