BALANCED DESIGN offers a line of hand printed fabrics, 100% New Zealand wool tufted area rugs, and accents.Described as modern, graphic, and whimsical, the designs have been also been called “happy” and are purposely colorful as well as eco-friendly. Color is exciting and can help us use our buying power to make more eco-friendly choices. Because I wanted the option to use vibrant color, I understood that I was going to have to strike a balance between the green-est possible solution and good design. I use the word “green-er” to describe the company. There are no pure products. We are all striking this balance.Continuing the tradition of American made crafts, the designs are created in the Providence, Rhode Island studio and manufactured in the textile mills of Fall River, Massachusetts, once the center of textiles for the USA. Fabrics are hand screened in an old Rhode Island textile mill. All of the line is made in the USA, including our tufted wool area rugs.In 2007, I was one of several designers included on the panel discussion for the exhibition “hauteGREEN” in NYC and called by Inhabitat.com a showcase of the “75 emerging stars of green design”. Also in 2007 and 2008 we were included in the exhibition “SUSTAINABILITY: DESIGN FOR A BETTER WORLD”at the Jacob Javits Center. Since then, our products have appeared in numerous publications, including books, the New York Times, Metropolis Magazine, the “GREEN” lounge at the 2008 Academy Awards, in numerous blogs, on “DESIGN STAR” on HGTV, and on ABC “World News with Diane Sawyer”.-Melinda Cox, designer