I love my KeepCup for its sustainable design. Over one year the KeepCup uses (in manufacturing) half the carbon, one third the water, and half the energy use of disposable cups (so www.keepcup.com tells me). And I suspect the comparison improves for longer than one year (they say they are made to last around 4 years). It can also act as a thermos, being able to keep my coffee hot for around 30 minutes or so. With hot liquid inside it also has a rubber sleeve to keep your hand from burning (as opposed to even more evil 'double cupping').
However, not all is hunky-dory, I have two problems with the KeepCup. My first problem is that it is so blatantly 'industrially designed'. By this I mean that it's balanced exterior, plastic finish and rubbery lid all tell me that a designer has deliberated over every single aspect of the object (as one should), however the outcome means that I have a coffee cup which does not blend in with my environment. Standing out in the crowd of my belongings isn't necessarily a bad thing, however I would only condone such behaviour if I didn't find it so ugly.
I'll make specific mention of the tiny curved piece of plastic on the lid which guides the rubber piece to be either open or closed. There are two of these pieces, one necessary, the other tacked on for the purpose of balance (unless it has a use which I am yet to understand).
My second problem with the cup is that it is bulky. The grand triumph of the disposable cup is that you can throw it away when you're done. Maybe a cup that could fold away into my bag as opposed to creating a lump which refuses to conform to the tesselation of my books?
However I do love it, and it also come in many colours.
Nicholas Avery
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I think the KeepCup is a very swish looking design. I actually read an article about them in the July edition of Living By Design this afternoon. I was confused after i read that the cup is made from plastic, making me wonder how at first this would be sustainable. But the article said that one KeepCup uses the same amount of plastic as 28 disposable cups and is obviously going to be used more than once.
ReplyDeleteI think that the KeepCup is a step in the right direction in terms of using our resources more efficiently and for longer, basically valuing them more.
I think that if the cup where to somehow fold away or flatten it would become a more desirable abject as it would not take up space in your bag!
Definitely a good piece of design.
Matt Harding
My brother recently bought an interesting coffee cup design from a little store on Glenferri Rd. It’s entirely made out of a thick silicon material. I know recently there’s been a huge shift in cooking ware, with everything from oven mitts to cupcake trays and collapsible bowls being designed but I had yet to see the coffee cup. It keeps the heat in without burning up your hands and is flexible, solving the problem of bulkiness. The other thing is it’s been designed to look like the disposable coffee cups you would generally get, with a corrugated cardboard texture on the exterior. It comes in a small range of colours but most notably a brown cup with a black lid. I definitely think this one ticks most of the boxes.
ReplyDeleteSteph Tan
Mum owns a colander that collapses and it is great for saving space in draws - especially with the array of tupperware containers one must have for that particular sized cake or for x amount of biscuits.
ReplyDeleteWomen go crazy at Tupperware parties and friends of mine have sworn that taking their lunch in
Tupperware - FLATOUT containers are "ahhmazing". I am sure over time they would release a coffee cup.
They do say:
• Virtually airtight and liquid-tight seals.
• Not intended for use in microwave ovens.
So what is stopping such a large company like Tupperware from jumping on board of such an idea? Cost? Resources? Material when hot? And if not Tupperware how come KeepCup did not think of this to begin with - has this purely got to do with us consumers and economy and all that jazz?
Motey