Shhhhhh. We’re having a well earned break from the incessant chitter-chatter of modern life. With communication channels fizzing at an all-time high, we can’t help thinking it would be nice to enclose ourselves into a little cocoon of quiet and escape it all for a while. These somewhat anti-social thoughts are thankfully shared by Frejya Sewell, a 2012 designer-in-residence at London’s Design Museum. Responding to this desire to withdraw rather than connect, she gave birth to the biodegradable Hush – a womb-like space designed for contemplation and rest.

With cities becoming ever more populous and co-habiting becoming the space-saving set-up of choice, Sewell’s 100% recycled wool felt creations are both timely and practical. “It is essential to continue to develop new ways of allowing people to comfortably co-exist in these increasingly densely populated environments,” she states. “By creating an enclosed space HUSH provides a personal retreat, an escape into a dark, quiet, natural space, or state of mind.” Housemates, don’t get offended when we shut ourselves away.

Whilst many city-dwellers view the countryside as something to pop to every now and then for a restorative gasp of clean air, a team of Brooklyn farming fiends are aiming to bring the wilds to urban outposts throughout New York. For three months only, Hayseed’s Big City Farm Supply will be giving frustrated countryphiles everything the bijou home farm could need. From seeds and soil to chicken and rabbit feed, the

comprehensive store also plays host to a range of workshops and events on everything from backyard livestock and vermicomposting, to seed starting and garden planning. Hayseed’s’ passionate, all-round service is enough to whip even the least green-fingered visitor into a farming frenzy – be you a back yard beekeeper or a window-box warrior, Hayseed’s has it covered (probably with a light yet nurturing mulch).

What’s that you say? You wish there were some neat way to illustrate the relentless cycle of Mother Nature in all her stark beauty, across a site of approximately 46,000 square feet (you know, give or take?). Well, if you’re in the US and you can get yourself to Georgia you’re in luck, as The Fog – a stark installation from art collaborators The Experience Collective – does just that. Weaving an impressive 16 miles of reclaimed cotton fabric and string between a wood’s worth of trees, The Fog is a tangled, hushed,

almost ridiculously atmospheric assault on the senses. Situated at the historic Savannah Ogeechee Canal, the project is is the brainchild of students and friends Emily Brodowski and Toni Dammicci  - the latter of whom literally dreamt up The Fog whilst asleep. Deliberately left unfinished and continuing indefinitely, the intention is for nature to take control of The Fog’s development. With visitors reporting a sense of wonder difficult to put into words, it’s a project that speaks for itself.

Like so many folks, us .W-ers are getting increasingly uneasy with the amount of chemical nasties sneaking under the radar and into our everyday lives. Whilst retreating to a barricaded shack in the middle of nowhere may sometimes seem the only sensible course of action, we’re thinking it’s probably a touch more practical to start small. Enter stage left Scotch Naturals – an innovative, human-friendly nail polish that’s fervently fighting the good fight.

Billing itself as ‘the premier non-toxic, eco-friendly alternative to conventional, solvent-based nail polish’, Scotch Naturals shuns the manmade murkiness found in traditional nail varnish. As well as being free of the ‘big 3’ – formaldehyde, toluene and DBP – these little beauties also shy well clear of ethyl acetate, butyl acetate, nitrocellulose, acetone and heavy metals. Available in a range of tasty shades and with a first-shop discount of 20%, a purchase is one way of giving toxins the daintily-painted finger.

Ever felt powerless to brighten up your local landscape? Is the sight of neglected spaces and relentless concrete getting you down?  Instead of feeling despondent at the lack of natural splendour, we say arm yourself with a Seedbomb or five and practice aesthetic warfare in your ‘hood. Developed by design-led social enterprise Greenaid, Seedbombs

are a low-effort, high-impact way to turn grey to green.  A heady mix of clay, compost and seeds, the spheres can be casually chucked into any spot of earth or crack of soil that happens to break through the urban decay.  Available in a variety of seed mixes and ripe for customisation, the Seedbomb is a non-violent protest for all occasions.