Vote Earth!!

Brooke has brought us the "Switch off your lights" for Earth hour challenge.... Saturday, March 28th from 8:30-9:30pm.... does that mean TVs too?? OK!! www.earthhourus.org

natural territory - scottsdale

So we headed to Scottsdale via Beaver Creek for Winter break....(full disclosure: on a Gulfstream IV... hence the hypocrite in my designation).....  but while there, Terese (a Phoenician) and I hit Natural Territory, a really great green design store... saw some interesting items worth mentioning.... 

- sconce pendant lights made of shave pine bark (doesnt kill tree - see above photo)

- cool recycled paper wall art

- CFL lightbulbs that do NOT give off harsh light and are dimmable!! 

rebuilding exchange delta project

Natasha, Alex and Alicia hit the Chicago Rebuilding exchange grand opening... a project sponsored by the Delta Project.... www.delta-institute.org/rebuildingexchange 

lot of materials salvaged from house demos... a bit low brow compared to Salvage One but a great idea

seems like lots of work to save all this stuff compared to the wrecking ball but a good and it seems to be a good and catching trend...  

mah jongg

Based on a google search I did, I am not the only one obsessed with the Mah Jongg couch at Roche Bobois.... in fact Natasha told me she is too.... we went to sit on it at the Chicago store and it isn't uncomfortable but it is very cool looking... 

So, I made my first (and hopefully only) "non-green" decision and ordered a couch that will be made in Italy!!  I rationalized this as follows:

- I need SOMETHING italian - nobody does design better...just go to Milan 

- couldn't find a flexible (moveable) sectional that could easily be moved (need a configurable living room space) 

- I am recycling-FORWARD.... have promised Natasha the couch if we ever sell the house.... 

- it was on sale and I also don't have to pay tax (delivered to Michigan) - even though the price would make most husband's gag... 

will have to be really REALLY good somewhere else.... 

new plans

New plans... back to the "box"... new entry and moved wall to take focus off garage... beams that were reclaimed from old house will be used for new roof overhang... this overhang will provide the sun shade that Rick has been pushing for.... economically!!     Teepee is a new tree.... scupper over front door will have a rain chain that will empty into a rain garden... more on that later... 

Green Home Chicago

left to right:  Karen, owner-Green Home Chicago Design Center, Terese, interior design, Rick-architect, Alex-builder 

Apologies to the camera shy members of the team but here they are hard at work at the Green Home Design Center... an amazing resource in Chicago for green building materials... the incredibly interesting social entrepreneur owner, Karen, fed us amazing sandwiches and shared her 10 point system with us... again, everything is a trade off...something may be 100% recycled but made in LA versus something that is 50% recycled but made locally - which is greener??  

we opted to go for locally made when we could and then look at content, re-use, cradle-to-cradle design and of course, cost....  

Alex (and Natasha!) prepared an awesome presentation... including the findings of his research into solar, wind and geo-thermal energy systems.... it was the beginning of realizing that every decision is a trade-off... and that it isnt always cost-effective to be green!!   Some of our decisions included 

 - Solar panels make no economic sense for our project (structure too small/costs too expensive - over 23K)

 - Large wind turbine too expensive but we will install a rooftop wind system (approx 7K) to get some benefits... 

- Geo-thermal makes alot of sense but again, isn't the cheapest approach... we will install a vertical system  (approx 7K) 

- Also, an expense we had hoped to avoid was replacing all the single pane large picture windows but the first rule of green building seems to be to ensure efficient windows and avoiding unnecessary  heat/cold air loss..... so, looks like we are replacing them with low-e highly efficient glass panels... hello 10K 

Also, based on Alex's pricing, we will make some changes to the plans to try to reduce building costs such as:

- simplifying roof stucture, putting the mechanicals in the crawl space instead of roof area (save approx 15K?)

- simplifying garage renovation plans - 35K to renovate a basic garage... NO WAY!! 

The tax incentives are getting much better as far as tax breaks for using some of these technologies.... many have lifted any "limits" for installation in 2009 and beyond

but we want this $300K renovation to come down alot closer to 250K...back to work

What a Difference a Day Makes

Bathroom and kitchen - gone.  The whole loft should be deconstructed by tomorrow.  Yay for progress!

Alex and I went to the Green Maker Supply in Chicago last week to check out materials and products.  I was surprised with the variety of products ranging from toxin free paints and stains to biodegradable picnic ware, funky futuristic toilets and flooring so green you could probably eat it.  The powerless lights made out of highly reflective and faceted tubes were really cool and will probably light up the office loft.  My favorite find was a paper based countertop material made of FSC certified paper, hemp or cardboard.  Pretty cool, huh?

Ummm, hello????? how awesome is this idea?? guess it depends on what material we use....

I think I might have won this solar faucet at the K.I.S.S. silent auction last nite... left too soon to tell .... I might also have purchased a white cow rug... is that green??? doing my part for the economy... and Andrea!!

My very cool new friend Amy has a very cool table that could be made by a local craftsman with sustainable wood and fits the bill for flexibility... goes from 2 square tables of 4-8, to one rectangle for 12-14 to 2 circles of 12 each..... check out Amy's BECKONING OF LOVELY project if you haven't already...

Here is a little Chicago treasure..... http://www.castedesign.us/ most of their stuff is very refined and incredibly crafted but I am obsessed with their more rustic large store installations made from reclaimed wood in Montana.... sculpture that they don't really intend to sell.... I like the stalactite piece (random wood strips over chicken wire mold) and wonder if we could use something like that in the house... or re-use the wood from the loft demolition and apply it like this to the flue or other surface....

Plans (check)
Permit (check)
People (check)
Pricing.......Alex???

new look... studio and garage

"Passive is the new green" Rick Carr

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Passive_house

hundreds attend recent global warming protest

bye bye old white house.... all thats left of you is some reclaimed wood, washer and dryer and a pot-bellied stove....

on about 4 acres sat an old white house that was nothing remarkable short of its lake views and storied history of dinner parties that included relatives of famous americans.... a hodgepodge of add-on rooms and carpeted bathrooms.....

first view