October 28, 2025
After two decades of working alongside some of the world’s most innovative architects and designers, Michelle Meadows and Andy Kjellgren launched Slatted, a certified women-owned business based in Bantam, with a clear mission: to provide heirloom-quality recycled hardwoods, world-class production, and an unwavering commitment to sustainability. Drawing on years of experience in high-end design, Michelle and Andy wanted to create a company that functions like a dedicated wood consultant for clients—guiding designers, architects, and homeowners through the process of selecting the perfect wood for any project. With a carefully curated line of upcycled hardwood decking, siding, paneling, flooring, and lumber, Slatted ensures that every specification is not only beautiful and high-performing, but also built to last.
The founders’ dedication to sustainability is rooted in a concern for the environmental impact of the timber industry. For decades, the U.S. appetite for virgin tropical hardwoods, like ipe decking, has fueled the destruction of the world’s remaining rainforests. With growing environmental awareness, homeowners, designers, and architects now actively seek alternatives that are both ecologically responsible and visually striking. Upcycled woods are an ideal solution. Salvaged from structures built 150 to 200 years ago, these materials were originally harvested from old-growth forests when trees were plentiful, and only the finest cuts were used. The result is wood of unmatched durability, density, and character—a quality impossible to replicate today.
Specifying Slatted upcycled teak decking or ulin siding allows designers to achieve exceptional performance and timeless beauty while offsetting the need to cut down three to five old-growth hardwood trees per project.
Each piece tells a story, carrying with it the history of its original use and the environmental care taken to preserve it. For Andy and Michelle, this narrative of stewardship and innovation is no less important than the wood’s technical performance. “Upcycled wood isn’t just a material,” Michelle explains, “it’s a story of history, sustainability, creativity, and innovation.”
Over the years, Slatted has watched sustainability move from niche to mainstream in the design world. Today, designers are embracing recycled woods not only for their environmental benefits but for the aesthetic richness they bring. Marks of prior use, weathering, and subtle imperfections are celebrated as points of interest, connecting clients more closely to the material’s story. This “aesthetics of sustainability” resonates strongly, especially with the new generation of design leaders who value beauty, meaning, and responsibility in their work.
One recent example of Slatted’s impact is the reclaimed teak used in public benches at New York City’s High Line, which demonstrates the material’s visual appeal and enduring quality. Andy and Michelle’s mission is to make upcycled hardwoods so accessible and easy to specify that cutting down the world’s remaining old-growth forests becomes unthinkable. With every project, Slatted invites designers and clients to create spaces that are not only exceptional in craftsmanship but also conscious in purpose.—slatted.co
