San Luis Obispo Tribune/ Living/ December 21,2007

Design Notebook: Stylish bamboo fills a void on Central Coast

Question: What can you wear, sit on, cook with, walk on, sleep on and even eat? Bamboo. It’s a rapidly renewable and sustainable material that seems to yield more uses all the time.

Fred Hornaday, who for five years pioneered the use of eco-friendly hemp through his former store, San Luis Obispo’s Hempshak, opened Bambu Batu, The House of Bamboo, in 2006. He relocated the shop from Grover Beach to downtown San Luis Obispo in early November, hoping to take advantage of the area’s ample foot traffic. The store now occupies the former location of Luna Rustica on Broad Street.

Although bamboo’s sustainability (bamboo can grow several feet in a day) is what inspired Hornaday to open the store, he is content to keep that fact somewhat in the background. “At the Hempshak, the eco-thing was more in your face. Here, we have great products that just happen to be sustainable,” he said.

In fact, most of Bambu Batu’s customers seek out the material for its look and feel, not primarily for its green qualities. Bamboo textiles such as towels, sheets, clothing and even underwear are popular for their silky, supple texture. Bamboo offers an alternative to cotton, which requires the heavy use of pesticides and chemical defoliants when growing. Bamboo fabric is made by converting plant cellulose into a type of rayon; it’s naturally hypoallergenic and has anti-microbial and anti-bacterial properties.

The minimalist, subtly Asian style of Bambu Batu’s kitchen products makes them popular with people who like a contemporary look. The store carries everything from sculptural sushi plates and salad bowl to simple, utilitarian items like the “spork,” which has a fork one side, a spoon on the other and is small enough to carry in a pocket for impromptu noshing.

Bamboo fountains and wind chimes offer Zenlike simplicity. Bamboo floor mats, available in sizes up to 6-by-9 feet, have the warm look and feel of a bamboo floor without needing installation.

Hornaday also sells furniture, a staple in Asia for thousands of years. “It has a nice natural look and is really versatile,” he said. “It works well with tropical, Hawaiian, even modern styles. ”

Most of the pieces work both indoors or out, including chairs, lounge chairs, tables, screens and folding bookshelves.

While most of Bambu Batu’s furnishings have a light bamboo finish, many feature darker stains or patterns achieved by burning the material. Other varieties of bamboo are naturally variegated.

Hornaday is adding more sophisticated pieces, worlds away from the primitive look we might associate with bamboo. These more upscale furnishings are set to arrive in January.

However, many are quite content with the irregular, natural look of bamboo, incorporating it into their casual, tropical-style decor. For these folks, Bambu Batu offers accessories to complete the island look including rattan, pottery, palapas and tropical accessories.

Hornaday has also launched a Web-based mail order service to offer many of his products, with the exception of furniture and some larger items, to customers around the world.

He is confident that a store dedicated almost entirely to bamboo will thrive in San Luis Obispo. Proof of his fortitude is the store’s name; bambu batu is the Indonesian name for a specific variety of bamboo. “It’s the biggest, strongest variety, ” said Hornaday, “the best for building solid foundations.”

BAMBOO TIPS FROM FRED HORNADAY

PROTECT YOUR BAMBOO

Bamboo is sturdy enough for outdoor or indoor use. But to extend the life of your outdoor furniture, treat it with a protective finish.

CREATE SOME PRIVACY

Lightweight bamboo fencing is a good option for creating a privacy screen in the backyard. Use it to set off a seating area or as a screen around a hot tub. Because it is flexible, bamboo fencing bends easily around curves.

BRING IT INSIDE

Bamboo fencing can also be useful indoors. Mount thinner stalks on a wall to create a tropical look in a bedroom or kids’ room. Create a rustic headboard by attaching a section to a bed frame. Or use smooth, refined bamboo wainscoting to create texture on walls or cabinet doors.

San Luis Obispo Tribune / Business Front Page / November 24, 2007

Biz Buzz: Bambu Batu finds new home in SLO
After eyeing one shop’s location downtown, the Grover-based retailer makes his move

One downtown San Luis Obispo retailer’s decision to move created an ideal situation for another who had been eyeing the spot.

Bambu Batu: The House of Bamboo is now selling merchandise at the former home of artisan furniture shop Luna Rustica Imports at 1127-A Broad St.

“I peeked into Luna Rustica when it was still open and decided it would be the perfect spot for my store,” owner Fred Hornaday said, adding it was the right size at about 1,200 square feet.

He was unaware, at the time, that Luna owner Michael Carija was planning to move his business further southeast on Broad Street.

“Then I literally saw the space on Craigslist a few days later,” Hornaday said. “It was kind of this magical thing.”

The bamboo-goods store operated at Eighth Street and Grand Avenue in Grover Beach for nearly two years, Hornaday said, but he was itching to tap into an area with heavier foot traffic.

“I looked in Arroyo Grande and Pismo Beach but eventually decided that downtown SLO was perfect,” he said.

Hornaday’s selection of gifts, clothes and home décor complements other similar businesses nearby such as The Hempshak, which Hornaday founded in 1996 and sold to Dominic Shrubb in 2001.

“It’s also fun to be two doors down from my old store,” Hornaday said.

Batu, staffed by Hornaday and his wife, Franziska, is hosting a grand opening today from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., featuring discounts, tea tastings with the Dragon Pearl Tea Co. and snacks.

Call 788-0806 or visit www.bambubatu.com for details. —Tonya Strickland

New Times / Strokes & Plugs / March 9, 2006

Do You Bamboo
by Alice Moss

When Jeff Hornaday opened the Hemp Shak several years ago, he wanted to bring renewable, sustainable resources into the mainstream of SLO County lifestyles. He offered clothing, skincare products, shoes, and even food, all produced from a plant that rivaled cotton for its versatility, and beat it hands down for its environmental friendliness.

The store was — and is — a success, as its current owners can attest. Since selling the Shak, Hornaday has traveled the world, taught English, fallen in love, and become a journalist (yes, he is the same Jeff Hornaday whose words, until recently, graced the very pages of this newspaper). He’s all grown up now and ready again for retail, only this time peddling products made from perhaps the most versatile and elegant renewable resource of them all — bamboo. His new store, Bambu Batu in Grover Beach, is a veritable paradise of sustainability.

First, a little background on bamboo: Though it’s technically a grass, this fast-growing plant is stronger than oak or maple, and can be harvested every three years. It grows in a variety of climates, requires very little attention, and actually emits more oxygen into the air than most plant life. Cultures have revered bamboo for its beauty and adaptability for thousands of years. It has been variously known as a symbol for long life, friendship, good luck, and nobility. And maybe best of all, it’s incredibly inexpensive. Bamboo’s affordability makes it an ideal product for furniture, kitchenware, ornamentation, and even clothing. One last thing — “bambu batu” is Malay for bamboo.

Hornaday’s store is a sun-soaked tropical showcase of bamboo products. Lightweight furniture and towering, flowering plants fill the room. He’s got sofas, lounge chairs, tables, picnic sets, shelving, and even a thatched-roof tiki bar that practically demands an impromptu happy hour. Surprisingly comfortable and undeniably good-looking, these items are ideal for outfitting a beach house, a sunroom — even an outdoor patio. But bamboo isn’t just for furniture anymore, and Bambu Batu offers a wide variety of products to prove it — smooth, supple bowls, cutting boards, chopsticks, and cooking utensils add a touch of earthy stylishness to everyday kitchenware.

You can find gorgeous handbags, flutes, sake sets, picture frames, funky and stylish jewelry, even a bamboo bicycle. And if you’ve never worn bamboo before, prepare to be pampered. Tough, durable bamboo also turns out to be softer than the finest Egyptian cotton, and Hornaday has plans to expand his clothing line to include under- and outerwear, towels, and bathrobes. The store also has a wide variety of tropical houseplants, bonsai trees, hand-milled soaps, and mysterious crystalline geodes.

“I figure bamboo’s a great alternative to petroleum-based products, which is a great way to get off foreign oil, just like the president said,” says Hornaday, who adds that there’s practically no reason not to get on the bamboo bandwagon. It’s pretty, it’s affordable, it’s versatile, it’s renewable, and it’s cheap. What more could you want out of a blade of grass?