Currently, the picnic is once again enjoying a new lease of life with the increased popularity of the outdoor Picnic Concert. Usually, this is a grand feast of a picnic accompanied by music and fireworks held in the grounds of a stately home. Sometimes you can even buy the picnic along with the tickets.
In reaction to this, picnic ware has come back into fashion and is often influenced by designs of the past. Guzzini has re-issued the PicBol (1) in vibrant, modern summer colours.
The increased use of disposable plastic products has made it much easier to picnic than ever before. The materials are light weight; and their disposability makes the thought of not having to take home dirty plates to wash up afterwards very attractive. But for the environmentally conscious the use of disposable plastic is not a consideration. The Picnic Friend (2), an eight-place set of cups, plates, bowls, cutlery and napkins, has been made from entirely biodegradable materials. The whole set, including the cutlery and the box, can be used like any other picnic set and then either be thrown away as normal, where it will spend a reduced amount of time in landfill before it breaks down, or it can be composted at home or commercially.
