Photos: Cardboard furniture keeps it green

For its tables, desks and children's toy forts, Cardboard Design creates die-cut shapes that ship in a flat box and are assembled like puzzle pieces. No screws or toxic glues are involved. One piece of furniture might weigh only about 5 kilograms.

The company uses mostly honeycomb cardboard, which bears enough weight that even companies that make shipping palettes are increasingly using the material instead of wood. This type of cardboard is made with kraft paper, which includes waste materials such as cardboard boxes, straw and newspapers. Waste from the manufacture of kraft paper is returned to paper mills for reuse. Not only is cardboard already made of recycled bits, but it's also recyclable itself.

Credit: Cardboard Design