It takes a special kind of insight to simultaneously recognise the environmental damage of plastic waste and its potential to be upcycled and repurposed.
But then again, the brainpower behind sustainable homewares business Utilize Studios – which turns rubbish into treasures using 3D printers – is extraordinary, perhaps even more so given the founders, Matthew O’Hagan and Courtney Naismith, are just 25 years-old.
The vision behind Utilize Studios is to create timeless, New Zealand-made homewares which offer an eco-friendly way to live an aesthetic life. Using recycled PET and bio-based plastic filament from medical trays and food packaging (prepared by a Netherlands-based company), Matthew and Courtney create baskets, planters, bookends and fridge magnets in their signature-style of happy hues and tantalising textures.
Based in a workroom at Matthew’s family home in Porirua the pair have been busy designing, making, refining.
Matthew O'Hagen and Courtney Naismith from Utlize Studios. Photo by Nicola Edmonds.
“Starting a business has been a lot to take on,” Matthew says. “We’ve sacrificed seeing friends and family and any travel plans are now postponed. But it’s simply a matter of reminding ourselves why we’re doing what we’re doing.”
The answer to the ‘why’ is simple: “We were looking at climate change and all the negative things that are happening [to the planet],” Matthew says. “What’s kept us going is doing our part to use waste materials again – to show the beauty of them – and to reduce what’s going into landfill.”
Their bright idea started with a spark in 2020 when Matthew and Courtney – partners in life and now business – were completing their Master’s degrees in industrial design at Wellington’s Victoria University. Their thesis projects became award-winning designs, created by upcycling a range of waste materials using 3D printing.
Matthew was doing cool things with waste from New Zealand’s commercial fishing industry, repurposing abandoned plastic fishing gear and used buoys into uniquely-designed seating.
Utilize Studios homewares products are created from 3D printed plastic waste. Photo by Nicola Edmonds.
Meanwhile, Courtney was applying her talents to the aviation industry’s rubbish, transforming filament from Air New Zealand’s inflight coffee stirrers into stunning pendants as well as turning the airline’s soft plastic bags into beautiful home storage baskets.
Then, shortly after graduation, the pandemic struck and the duo were left wondering what to do next. “We loved what we had done at university and thought it would be a shame if we didn’t take it beyond that space,” Matthew says.
They approached a few local companies about how they could ‘utilize’ their waste, but were met with dead ends because of their youth and the fact they were new to the industry with no reputation, not to mention the general air of heightened caution as Covid-19 swept through the country.
But that didn’t stop the them. “We just focused on what we knew, which was design,” Matthew says. He and Courtney purchased their first 3D printer, affectionately nicknaming the robotic helping hand “Peter” and launched their first line of homewares.
Fast forward to just over a year later and the business has grown to include four 3D printers (appropriate names are still being discussed) with products stocked in a collection of homeware stores in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch – an exciting progression from exclusively selling online, Courtney says.
“Our work is quite tactile. We work with a lot of textures and our materials have a way of interacting with light that draws people in. It’s nice to see a physical, tangible product.”
Courtney Naismith and Matthew O'Hagen using their 3D printer at Utilize Studios. Photo by Nicola Edmonds.
New products are launching this year with an ambition of upscaling to 3D printers capable of producing larger-scale works. The pair is in conversations with KiwiFil, based in Tokoroa to supply 100% recycled filament from industrial plastic waste.
They also share a dream to expand their products internationally. From humble beginnings in Aotearoa, there’s undoubtedly more to Utilize yet.
Story by Monica Tischler, photos by Nicola Edmonds for the Winter 2023 issue of AA Directions magazine.
Explore more from AA Directions magazine while you're here:
- How to build a tiny house
- Ride the Whakarewarewa Forest Loop cycle trail
- Meet an innovative Kiwi company making sustainable, non-toxic paints
