I recently had the pleasure of meeting Eric Storm and Beth Meredith of the design firm Living Spaces. Eric and Beth stumbled across my site and invited me to lunch to discuss ADUs.
Without going into too much detail, we had a great conversation about the ADU program, it’s shortcomings, and how the city could tweak [...]
Found this very interesting product this afternoon - 100% recycled brick pavers made from shredded tires and plastic bottles - Made by Vast.
Seems like a great alternative to poured concrete or traditional brick. I’ll look into pricing to see what it might cost. One of the most exciting features of this product is that the [...]
Eric Strong is an Ashland-based woodworker who specializes in one-of-a-kind furniture. One of the coolest things about his work is his commitment to using local and recycled wood. Check out his site here.
Bench made from concrete and reclaimed fir from an old pickle barrel.
I was listening to a bit of a round table discussion on creating new “green” jobs as part of an overall economic revitalization. A great idea, no doubt. In fact, if the government were to really put its energy behind developing alternative energy sources, we could deliver a real one-two punch: freedom from foreign oil [...]
I’ve always been a fan of Marmoleum. Not only is it a “green” material, but it’s incredibly durable and forgiving. We’ve got two dogs, and with our wet Portland winters, it makes a great buffer between our living space and the outdoors. Here’s a couple of neat options I just found on the web…can’t recall [...]
I’ve been working with a new builder to develop a more accurate budget for the ADU project. One element of the design that accounts for a HUGE percentage of the overall cost is the kitchen. And, in the kitchen, one of the of the most expensive elements is the countertops.
We’re not building an elaborate kitchen [...]
A while back I wrote about an exciting product called “Ice Stone.” Back then, I didn’t pay a lot of attention to the price of materials, but I have the sense that it’s not cheap. Still, if you’ve got the cash and can afford to be “green,” it’s a great alternative to granite, quartz, or [...]
Here’s an interesting green floor finish from Vermont Natural Coatings.
I’ve dedicated several earlier posts to the wonders of concrete stain. Up until now, however, I wasn’t sure if there was an alternative to the acid-based colorants. Acids work GREAT, but they aren’t the most environmentally friendly of products. And, there are certain challenges to staining indoors (like ruining your paint, millwork, etc).
So, without further [...]
Previously I’ve written about the merits of cement fiberboard siding. Recently, I found a new blog by a fellow designer/builder that features a great panel-version of this material. Here’s a photo from Jason’s blog, with the installed product:
This product is called “Cem Clad” and is manufactured by US Architectural.