Green Life

Gettin' Your Green On at Flora Grubb

2009-04-19T11:00:00.000-07:00

Just love going to Flora Grubb in San Francisco. Her store is so artful and original.

Here's detail on her vertical succulent garden.

A still life of tillandsia....

I need a driftwood shelf in my garden, right?

Even her logo raises my serotonin.

The custum-drip coffee bar rocks too.

The madam, herself.

This is her cottage in the back of her house. Another vertical succulent garden and cool combos down below in the ground.

As the Black Eyed Peas say, what's that junk inside your trunk?

Very cool eucalyptus pads....

My husband, David Gottfried, picking out garden sculpture.

Re:visionaries: Van Jones & David Gottfried

2009-04-18T09:43:00.000-07:00

Check out the 6-minute video on Van Jones, with an interview by my husband and founder of the USGBC, David Gottfried.

Love the broadening of the context from green technology to creating a revolution and perhaps redemption for the human race, for connecting back to the human spirit through green to reclaim not just discarded materials but discarded lives. Let's create transcendent and ecstatic experience through our work in greening our planet and lives.

It’s deeper than a solar panel.

Van rocks!

Sim Van der Ryn Visit

2009-04-12T08:23:00.000-07:00

Sim Van der Ryn is a pioneer of green architecture, prolific writer, visionary, and rock star of "sustainable architecture." He's authored seven books. Sim's Inverness home is extraordinarily beautiful, deep green with inspired design, and I thought I'd post a few snaps of it here.

Above is his gorgeous front door, to the anteroom (top photo and below) that connects many parts of his evolving home. It was painted by Tibetan monks in colors that make you happy.

Lots of queer little artifacts such as this one below in the window facing Inverness Ridge.

Beautiful staircase to his bedroom. The wood is all reclaimed.

Below are a few shots of an awesome redwood root, twirled and turned as an arch on Sim's grounds.

Maya, age 4, is in there for perspective.

I love the sleeping nook (above) and the old bench (below, with pond implements).

All I Want to Do is Garden

2009-03-29T10:37:00.000-07:00

Our yard is filling in, albeit slowly.

Discovering lots of inspiration from others. Love Vanessa Kuemmerle's work especially her Ocean Ave garden with the use of Balinese doors for an entry (above).

You've probably seen Flora Grubb's gorgeous work - she's the IT Garden Girl. She landscaped the Bardessono Hotel, a new LEED-Platinum hotel in Yountville, with a fab Tillandsia and succulent vertical garden. Even the New York Times had nice things to say. My mom and I had such a swell field trip to Flora's garden last month.

What I'd really like to do today is hang out in Marcia Donahue's paradise, which she opens to the public most Sundays, 1-5pm. She's in Berkeley at 3017 Wheeler St. Instead, I will go to the zoo with DH and the kids, and then my daughter's piano recital....

Met Home: Greenest Little House in America

2009-03-22T08:03:00.000-07:00

We are delighted to be featured in Metropolitan's Home green April 2009 issue! We met Michael Millman, a local photographer who grew up a few blocks from us here in Rockridge last Christmas holiday, barely catching a few rays of sun for the outdoor shots.

Below is our kitchen with paintings by Claire B. Cotts, counters by Syndacrete, and FSC-cabinets by Silverwalker.

Michael climbed up our neighbor's home to show the PV panels. David was thrilled.

Our back deck before the landscaping. David loves his outdoor shower. Just bought a table and chairs for our "gathering circle" yesterday at The Wooden Duck in Berkeley, which features reclaimed wood furniture. Our dining room furniture, dressers, bookcases are from there too.

David's home office, the LifePod with a view of the Rainhog.

Eco-Bling Mulch

2009-03-19T08:24:00.000-07:00

It's been a while since I last posted. My integrative medicine practice has been busy growing to include three new doctors. Now I'm back to greening my life again and especially interested in our garden.

Mulch. It's the poor relation to the hip, trendy low-water plants. The illegitimate child of the brilliant hardscape. But now it's time for mulch to get its proper due.

I was thumbing through this month's Garden Design over my oatmeal this morning, thinking about how to mulch one very shady part of our yard in Rockridge। I've been tremendously inspired by Marcia Donahue's work nearby and I'm wondering how to acquire vintage bowling balls and enormous ampersands as I don't see many cool ones on Ebay. Marcia, help!? Here's some snaps from her extraordinary art garden here in Berkeley.

Then I was thinking beach glass when I happened upon an ad for American Specialty Glass products, which are 100% recycled and tumbled to remove all sharp edges. They're based in Utah and members of the organization my husband founded, the US Green Building Council. So, we like them already.

Check out the options.

Their website looks as homegrown as mine but they have a few very cool installations. Here's one from the "Mineral Spirits Garden." I don't see more details on their website.

Looks like they've mostly done commercial applications but that's how it's been with green building. Time for more applications in private residences.

Help me decide between these options which are to go against a redish/brown FSC-redwood fence. I like the jewel tones best.

But what's not to love about purple and amber?

Please vote!

Green Details

2009-01-18T09:43:00.000-08:00

We are blessed by a flurry of press recently. We are in this month's Ecostructure Magazine, pages 32-36, and love the "gets-it" details writer KJ Fields provides. Thank you, KJ! Thumb through to see Jen Siska's photos.

More locally, we hung out recently with Martha Danley of Green by Design. We were impressed with her coverage in her last few blogs and wish the national magazines that are contacting us were as thorough and integrated. It's rare to meet someone who synthesizes the myriad details of green home, design and life -- check out Martha's blog entries to get a taste.

Greenest Home In America!

2008-11-20T16:52:00.000-08:00

David was thrilled this week to receive LEED Platinum Certification for our remodeled Rockridge home at the GreenBuild conference in Boston. We received the highest score of any home in the current LEED-HOMES program.

For the press coverage, check out the media section of our website. I'll write more when my darling husband returns from his rock star Boston trip and watches the kids for a few hours....

Eco-Driveway 101

2008-10-01T10:33:00.000-07:00

We're choosing which permeable pavers to use for our driveway and have settled on Basalite.

Above is SF Rima at the Sunset Idea House in Palo Alto. Why permeable pavers? They reduce stormwater runoff and increase usable space. They recharge ground water. More on that when I figure out what that means. They are ADA-compliant, meaning our aging parents are less likely to trip as they walk our driveway. You get LEED credits for them too, although gaming LEED was never our intent.

We are completing a deal for the Italian Renaissance line, shown below. Foxy, no? Comes in lots of colors.

Moved In!

2008-09-17T18:02:00.000-07:00

Has it really been a month since we moved in? Our construction crew from Canyon just left yesterday, and our landscaping began today. Do you like the new exterior colors, also from Mythic Paint? We're in love....

Who knew I could love my little garage so much. Next we're working on drip irrigation using graywater, and hooking our toilets up to our rainwater catchment -- as mentioned previously our vessels are the fab rainhogs that we recycled from the San Francisco Slow Food Conference two weeks ago. We also hung out with Harold at Ecohome Improvement yesterday, as he waxed poetic on the virtues of various green stains for the deck. We chose TimberTek in Pinewood. Photos to follow.

"Tesla" Home: New Concept in Green Living

2008-08-16T11:29:00.000-07:00

David is blessed to have more epiphanies between 8 and 9am than most people have in a lifetime. While we struggled with our home loan and the appraisal process - David came up with the concept that our home is analogous to a "Tesla" - the super sexy yet green electric car that does 0 to 60 in 3.9 seconds yet averages 256 miles per gallon.

Drive quickly. Tread lightly.

We were thinking about this as we checked out, smelled and licked Elon Musk's Tesla last Tuesday at a friend's house.

Here's Elon. He's only 37 yet is the Chairman of Tesla and financially backed the company to the tune of $55 million.

We used New Resource Bank for our construction loan, and we were so sad to witness the disconnect that still remains between a BANK that understands the value of green but is coupled to and hand-cuffed with an APPRAISAL industry that gives you a higher appraisal for more square feet, bedrooms and bathrooms. We feel many of the "green" McMansions popping up everywhere are greenwash - is it really green to have a 5000 square foot home? Seems to miss the point and spirit of green.

David wrote a thoughtful letter to our appraisers who initially valued our soon-to-be LEED Platinum at no higher than market rate for a fossil-fuel guzzling regular Craftsman. He made the case of our home being a "Tesla" prototype - small yet so deep green, and worth the rather high price tag. When you take our Prius on the road, and accelerate to 60mph, it says "yes." But a Tesla is a sports car, an electric sports car, and it is speedy.

David succeeded: we got a better appraisal for our loan, although still significantly lower than our cost.

We need to overhaul our appraisal system so that it values green homes higher and with different standards than traditional homes.

Lovin' the Recycled Wood

2008-08-15T19:33:00.000-07:00

We got ourselves some front steps, finally. They are recycled from the Old Sacramento Bridge and are just gorgeous. I know, the iPhone photo doesn't do them justice. David got so excited when our crew found old lead bullets in the planks. Feels like we're channeling Eric and Amy down at the Wooden Duck in Berkeley with their zany stories of where their wood originated.

That's Maya standing next to our reclaimed fir front door from Liberty Valley. No bullets.

Did you notice that our move in date came and went? We are rescheduled to move on Aug 21.

Today we met Doris, the woman who sold her house to us. Her parents bought the house in 1940 from the Davis family, whom we think owned it from 1915 until 1940. We are hoping to visit her again and get more of the history on the house.

Heat: Myson Radiators & Phoenix Solar Hot Water

2008-08-09T09:17:00.000-07:00

David and I decided to go with Myson hydronic radiators, fed by solar hot water using the Phoenix system, with a gas back-up if necessary. The white Myson radiator above is made in France and is the LST style -- that is, low surface temperature of 100 degrees F. Better for kid's inquiring fingers than the warmer models. Click here for the distributor we used for both Myson and the Phoenix, Hydronic Specialties Company.

Below is their standard color in white, but you can do custom colors and finishes too, as we are presently doing.

Myson also makes this bench (below), which is a great option if you are short on space in your mudroom or entry hall as we are.

Another great way to heat bathrooms is with a Myson hydronic towel warmer. Comes in many finishes, including the one below.

We just got the radiator back from the auto body place we used - painted the white radiator a brown/bronzey color that works with our cocoa walls in our bedroom. We're thrilled with the result.

Looolo Biodegradable Cushions: YUM!

2008-08-03T17:49:00.000-07:00

Am blogging covertly today as we are moving in six days, and, well, I really should be packing instead. Meanwhile, I muse about our living and family rooms and think how yummy these organic Looolo pillows would be on our sofa, such as the Janthur above or the Armadillo below.

All are made of certified organic materials and filled with Kapok from Rainforests in Malaysia. Not sure that's the best thing for you or if they buy carbon offsets, but these are just too pretty to get green confusion over it.

Thorne Our Guy for Landscape

2008-07-31T18:22:00.000-07:00

Today David and I met with David Thorne, Principal, and Hillary Curtis, Designer and ex-SF Ballerina, of David Thorne Landscape Architects. We have been working with them for months and are so giggly about our current plan for mostly ultra-local natives plus some cool graywater sculptures and eco-fencing. Landscape is one place where we need to do what brings a sensual experience without making us feel like slaves to green. Think we got it, but let's see how it unfolds.

Their office is at 3315 Grand Avenue - who knew such designy and hot spaces existed on tired Grand Avenue?

Renovation Nation Airs Our Segment

2008-07-28T19:34:00.000-07:00

Our home and the GreenPod by David Gottfried will be featured again on August 20, 2008, on Discovery Channel's Planet Green, airing 6pm PST. Around our zipcode of 94618 - that is Comcast channel 201 and channel 286 on DIRECTV.

The initial airing of the show was July 31, 2008.

The producers have changed our air date several times, so we'll keep you posted!

GreenPod has 1.4 KW of solar power, plus we have an additional 1.4 on the house and 3 solar hot-water panels. More on that soon.

New Green Bank Provides Our Home Loan

2008-07-28T19:13:00.000-07:00

We are thrilled to finance our eco-remodel with New Resource Bank, the nation's first green bank. New Resource gave us 0.5% off of our home equity loan for our use of solar and the LEED rating system. They also offer solar financing, helpful because you can pay monthly as your utility costs go down, which helps with the slow-ish return on investment with Solar. Check them out right here. They also offer personal and business banking services, and they are based in 'cisco.

2008-07-24T22:42:00.000-07:00

We obsessed way too long on paint. Our colorist wanted Benny Moore, but my darling husband was not sufficiently impressed with the green titer. We chose Mythic - coverage is sweet, coupled with no VOCs and no toxins. You can practically eat this stuff in your morning smoothie.

Here's my darling husband against the yummy new green powder room walls.

Here's the dining room in progress.

You probably know already that VOCs or Volatile Organic (not the GOOD organic) Compounds are little nasty beasts that you can smell when someone paints with the toxic stuff. It might make your eyes tear or cause your throat to be scratchy, or give you a headache or dizziness or perhaps kidney failure or sick building syndrome. Some VOCs act as greenhouse gases and contribute to global warming. One estimate is that 10% of the ozone depletion in the US is due to VOCs. Not good. We can do better!

Dwell Features Spray Foam Insulation

2008-07-19T20:09:00.000-07:00

Thumbing through the June issue, I happen upon Fritz Klaetke's renovation of a South End row house in Boston. Fritz was a friend of my roommate in medical school, Katherine Hein, MD. The home is gorgeous although how can those pics look so good when they have a kid? Do you stage your house and stay in a hotel while the photography is being done?

Fritz and his wife, Susan Battista, set up their businesses on the ground floor: Fritz is a graphic designer; Susan runs a market-research firm, Topic 101.

I miss the South End!

Fritz used closed-cell spray foam insulation to keep his house non-drafty, which is rather extraordinary for a Boston home, especially one built in 1846. I was never as cold as my five years at Boston in med school, and when I interviewed for residency in January 1994, it was 10 degrees in Boston, and sunny and 70 degrees in San Fran... I ranked UCSF first with lightening speed. In any case, we also used closed-cell spray foam - InsulStar - in our more modest craftsman in Rockridge.

David chose InsulStar because it had the highest R value (6.4) and does not off-gas nor mold (I have terrible mold allergies as do many people, very important). We sprayed in our attic and bathroom.

Curtains for Certain

2008-07-14T22:40:00.000-07:00

Can you keep a straight face when people say "window treatments?" There I was last Monday, hanging out with beautiful Kendall Wilkinson, famous interior designer to the San Fran stars, and she said it. Oy, now need to source some pretty eco-curtains and be a grown up about it.

How 'bout these from Drape Source? Made of bamboo and linen. First saw them on the blog Green Your Decor.

I like these patterns. Waiting on swatches -- isn't that what adults do? Check out Drape Style right here. Let me now if you know of other pretty and eco sources as I am finding the options limited.

Lush Native Garden: Not an Oxymoron

2008-07-12T19:10:00.000-07:00

Tonight we ate oak leaf lettuce harvested from our garden, and we were feeling rather virtuous, as if we were channeling Michael Pollan. We've been slowly waking up to the fact that we need to work on landscaping, and our idea is to be ultra-local about it. Only problem is that the "Native Plant" gardens we've seen seem rather... scruffy, to say the least.

Have no fear, a beloved patient of mine has clued me into the work of noted local master Fourth Dimension, "restoring the Earth, one garden at a time." Check it out.

So we are slowly adjusting to the scene. We are letting go of the lush Mediterrenean garden with boug, fragrant clematis and vibrant color in favor of super local plants. We got turned onto the Native Here Nursery in Tilden Park, where they sell plants that are all started from seed gathered in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties. We're just trying to avoid the scruff factor.

Radical Choice: Induction Cooktop

2008-07-12T09:41:00.000-07:00

I love to cook. While the roar of the big gas flame on my Mother-in-Law's Viking makes me all warm inside - it's just not that good for the planet and there are other more efficient options. We chose an induction cooktop for two reasons: energy efficiency and safety. We have two kids, and our cooktop is on a peninsula between the kitchen and dining room. Our 3-year-old in particular loves to hang out in the kitchen and we don't want her little exploratory hands to get burned.

Induction cooktops are a revolutionary way of cooking that uses the power of electro-magnetic waves to heat food fast and efficiently. Amazingly, the cooktop remains lukewarm to the touch during the heating process because the electro-magnetic waves turn the bottom of the pot into the active heating surface, rather than the cooktop. This helps them to be much safer than gas or electric cooktops. Plus they deliver unrivalled efficiency by using 30% less energy, and heat food over twice faster than conventional ceramic cooktops. They are used a ton in Europe, but we just don't see them as often here in the States.

We chose Bosch because, well, they offered a generous deal to David. Plus their cooktops are beautiful as are their refrigerators. More on that later....
Now one catch is that your cooking implements might need to shift. It's best to cook with stainless steel. But what girl doesn't want an excuse for a new set of All-Clad?!

For more than you ever wanted to know about induction, check this website. I'm thinking they offer a PhD in induction cooktop science.

Balance Your Dosha While You Sleep

2008-07-04T12:31:00.000-07:00

Mary Mulcahy designs and creates these wondrous textiles using the ancient art of Kalamkari, using sun-bleached naturally-dyed cottons, hand-blocked with carved wood dipped in Ayurvedic dyes, derived from plants, roots, earth and rock. I need to know more about what Ayurvedic dyes do to a person, but I'm feeling my dosha getting balanced just lookin'.

We're thinking the brown bed pillows with our outlet Coyugucci.

Check out their online store right here.

Coyugucci Organic Bedding

2008-07-04T12:20:00.000-07:00

We bought our duvet and sheets from Coyuchi's outlet store in Point Reyes. They also feature baby bedding and robes. Our youngest daughter, Maya, still uses her Coyuchi sheets to cover her cot in preschool.

Here's our duvet. We'll show it again after we paint our walls nontoxic cocoa in 2 weeks.

Buy their stuff right here.

Capturing Our Hearts & Rainwater

2008-07-03T08:12:00.000-07:00

David bonded recently with newly relocated architect and designer Sally Dominguez and we can't wait to install her Rainwater Hogs for capturing rainwater for our garden. She came up with the design when told it was impossible to fit a water storage tank under her small garden deck, so Sally did the right thing: she designed her own. The Rainwater Hog (2006) is a modular storage tank for collecting rainwater that can then be reused for watering plants, washing the car or whatever you need. “I was surprised to find the urban dweller had been completely overlooked when it comes to tools for water harvesting,” says Dominguez who designed the Rainwater Hog to work as a single unit or in multiples for homeowners, businesses or renters (installation doesn’t have to be permanent). The Hog can be installed vertically against a wall, or horizontally, and it’s specifically sized to fit between structural frames. One unit holds 47 gallons of rainwater collected from a downspout, and if a larger capacity is needed, simply attach another Hog. A percentage of sales will go to the nonprofit Water Aid. Also in keeping with the eco-conscious Hog, is the fact that it ships without packaging. Other than a small box holding an Elbow Vent and Connector taped to the unit, the Hog arrives unwrapped, unboxed and just as you see it pictured. A Leaf Catcher/Outlet Kit must be purchased (sold separately) for the Hog. (Subsequent Hogs can be added without needing extra Leaf Catcher/Outlet Kits.) A Wall-Mounting Kit is also available for vertical installation. Get it here. We're thinking 8+ hogs, vertically mounted along the side of the house.

These tanks have a capacity of 180L/47 Gallons and measure 1800mm x 500mm x 220mm. You can position the rainwaterhog to fit under decks, up against walls and along side passageways.

Here's a few snaps under your deck or mounted horizontally....

Eco-Smart Fireplace: So Cool

2008-07-02T19:47:00.000-07:00

Came in last week. We love a cozy fire but how to do it and walk the talk? Eco-smart Fire is the way. It's basically a burner like in chem lab but it burns ethanol - renewable, eco and smart.

Then for those of us with wild children, you add a screen....

Or not.

All EcoSmart™ Fires feature a burner as its core flame technique. "While it looks clean and simple, internally the engineering and design is sophisticated and intelligently considered. The EcoSmart™ Burner assembles like a puzzle with a cover that seals and protects the internal mechanics. Its modular design allows varieties of fascias and enables it to slot into place." -- from their website.

Cool part is that it's a flue-less open fire that can be installed just about anywhere! Check it out right here.

Hot Green Pulls & Knobs

2008-06-30T07:43:00.000-07:00

Back to the kitch. Had to finalize our decision this weekend on drawer pulls and knobs. We were debating at EcoHome about the Spectra Decor 100% recycled glass guys, above in Mineral Water and below in Beach Pebble.

versus the lead-free pewter jobbies...

Or maybe support the homeless with the 100% recycled glass knobs from Aurora that EcoHome carries. Get the social equity part in of the triple bottom line.

We decided to share the love with Spectra's Beach Pebble knob in Spruce

and from Spectra's Pure line - the 6 inch drawer pull in ellipse.

Compost: Can It Be Sexy?

2008-06-29T08:40:00.000-07:00

Once you've signed on to the moral imperative of composting, how to make it look hip? Have you noticed that they're mostly ugly ugly ugly? Here's a cool one from Daryl Hannah although the price tag is... $895. Plus they're sold out but you can add yourself to a waitlist right here.

Here in Oaktown, we get ugly but subsidized worm bins for $29. Here's ours.

Or you can pay more for one from Gaiam.

Alternatively, spend $40 for a cool stainless steel bucket with charcoal in the lid, and carry your pretty compost bucket to the big bin hidden in your back yard. This one should last 100+ years and is 100% recyclable. Get it here.

Eco-Furniture for Kids

2008-06-29T08:11:00.000-07:00

My kids have an Ikea table and chairs, and while Ikea is joining the green bandwagon - they weren't when our table and chairs were purchased. These lovelies from Lillipad Studios are so pretty yet there is no pastel in sight. Best of all, they are made in Idaho with:
- 100% recycled wood fiber -- nontoxic and formaldehyde-free
- no-VOC paint
Check em out right here.

Help! Sourcing Eco-Furniture

2008-06-28T07:49:00.000-07:00

We wish we could afford a trip to ABC Home to purchase all deep green lovelies for our new living room. Alas, we are Bay Area-centric and need to shop local. Any tips?

We are considering recycling. We surrendered our living room furniture to a friend who has a consignment business here in Berkeley when we sold our Berkeley Hills home in 2006 and downsized to Jack London. Now, uh... we need it back.

We are always hanging out weekends with Lisa Russell, proprietress of Design Within Reach in Berkeley.

We love Knoll and some of the other sustainable furniture she carries like these barstools. They are by Bertoia and Greenguard-certified. Does that work in our Craftsman Great Room? Oy, this is hard.

We also love Herman Miller and their long-standing commitment to the environment. We are ever on the look-out for green wash, people who talk the talk because it's chic and profitable to be green these days, but don't walk the walk. Herman Miller walks the walk.

"We contribute to a better world by pursuing sustainability and environmental wisdom.... By participating in the effort, we lift our spirits and the spirits of those around us."
--from Herman Miller's Corporate Values

Do you like this couch? Designed by Mark Goetz. We're thinking olive leather - does it speak Craftsman?

We're wiggin' because we need to purchase and really we are neophytes. I'm getting some help, fortunately, from design goddess Kendall Wilkinson. Check her out right here.

Flooring: Cork to FSC-Hickory

2008-06-28T04:51:00.000-07:00

We found a beautiful metallic-painted cork by Cork Concepts while shopping at Green Fusion in San Rafael. David bent over backwards trying to get the goods from New Zealand. I know, I know.... not too green to ship from so far away but I LOVED this stuff. Turns out that even with several months lead time, Cork Concepts couldn't get their act together to ship it to us. So we had to look elsewhere.

We needed flooring that we could get fast, and found our way to Ecohome in Berkeley. We developed a major crush on Taja, the owner, as well as EcoTimber's line of FSC-certified wood. Turns out EcoTimber has the largest inventory of FSC-wood in the world, and they're right here in Richmond. Doors locked, we drove out to Richmond to meet Lewis Buchner, CEO. What a mensch! He gave us a tour of his gorgeous new warehouse and installed floors.

With Lewis' guidance that FSC-hickory is actually more green than the bamboo we were considering, David and I quickly came to the same conclusion: hickory. Totally FSC-certified with proper chain-of-command, etc., and IN STOCK, ready to roll. Thank you, Lewis!

Here is the hickory - natural finish with lots of color variation. I could just lick it. It blends beautifully with all our new reclaimed fir doors.

We went to our favorite restaurant in our hood, Wood Tavern, and chatted up owner Rebecca Wood about her gorgeous floors. They were, of course, HICKORY. We considered this a sign from the universe of our apt choice! We think this is Rebecca at the hostess station below.

Here's hand-scraped hickory in the spice finish.

We also considered woven bamboo since it is so much more durable than the horizontal grain. Here it is from EcoTimber in Honey.

Here's the hickory in the mocha stain.

Tight Quarters

2008-06-27T07:50:00.000-07:00

When you plan to move into 1480 square feet with a family of four, you ask: what are the tensions of living in a small space? While we know it is better for the family for us to need less, consume less, use less energy, etc., we also do not want to increase conflict among us because we're on top of each other. A key solution is a separate home/office for David. We are in the process of creating a solar structure for him, 120 square feet, in the back yard. Here are some photos of the external structure from Envision Solar which we are turning into an accessory building, loaded with solar power.

Here is our work in progress. More on this later. Solar is not completely installed yet in the snap below, and we're still waiting on French doors and windows. Patience, patience, patience...

Syndecrete, My Syndecrete

2008-06-26T19:32:00.000-07:00

We've just finished the final measurements for our Syndecrete countertops. We loved this material so much that we decided to surround our tub and revamp our fireplace with it. A composite of natural minerals and recycled materials, this yummy stuff has twice the strength and half of weight of regular concrete. More importantly, it's just beautiful. I remember when I toured the first LEED office in California many years ago with my love, David. He told me green was a different aesthetic when I quietly bemoaned the relatively flat color value of green design. I was determined that this would not be so when it came to our own home, and Syndecrete is a major player in turning that idea on its ear.

Here are the colors and mix-ins (like ice cream!) that we selected:

Oceanside Tile: The Bomb

2008-06-25T21:25:00.000-07:00

Loving Oceanside Tile. Today met with our tile installer and getting very excited. Feels like Christmas. Here are details from their site:

All Oceanside Glasstile is made primarily from silica sand, an abundant natural resource, with many colors also containing recycled content that may include pre-consumer*, post-industrial**, and/or post-consumer*** recycled bottle glass from curbside recycling programs.

*Pre-consumer materials are generated during our manufacturing process and may consist of scrap and trimmings that were never used in the consumer market.

**Post-Industrial: Material from manufacturing processes where virgin resources would otherwise go to waste. This material is collected and used in a product other than that for which it was originally used.

***Post-consumer material is an end product that has completed its life cycle as a consumer item and would otherwise have been disposed of as a solid waste. Oceanside Glasstile's post-consumer material is recycled bottle glass (cullet) from curbside recycling programs.

Here is Meridian, the pattern we chose for our new powder room:

Because of its handcrafted nature and broad range of translucent and iridescent colors, Oceanside Glasstile is an exceptionally beautiful building material—an ideal choice for helping people create beautiful and comforting living spaces, conducive to health and productivity, all of which is part of green building.

Was thinking we should do a penny tile for our larger bathroom but couldn't find good recycled content and didn't have the time to find at our local salvage. Do you have good salvage where you live? In Berkeley, I love Omega and Urban Ore, but who has time? Wish I had that life but alas, sometimes you just have to buy retail.

Secola Fabuola

2008-06-25T07:01:00.000-07:00

Am I nuts or are these recycled tin can pendants totally beautiful? Hand-created in Southern California by a plasma torch artist and illuminated by nostalgic, carbon filament lamps. Should we buy for the front hall? Get it for yourself right here.

Finally A Front Door

2008-06-24T07:19:00.000-07:00

Yesterday Carson of our Canyon Crew hung our front door. Wow, what a difference. Didn't realize what a dog our old door truly was. Our new doors are from Liberty Valley and made of reclaimed fir. Yum!

We changed the swing of the door after our consultation with Maya Urrea, our Feng Shui consultant. Decided to stain clear instead of trying to be matchy matchy with the other fir trim in the house, most of which we kept intact. Seems like a good decision but this is the tension between old and new.

Here's the old guy. Keep in mind that exterior paint goes on LAST.

Foxy Eco Lighting: Elusive

2008-06-24T07:11:00.000-07:00

I love 3-form. Wish I could fill our whole house and my office with it. David and I went to Light Fair in Vegas last month, and I was thrilled to find 3-form in lighting. Above are some 3-form samples, and below, some super-green sconces, made by WPT Design and showcased by City Lights in San Francisco. Made of 3-form's eco-resin -- which is Spectra co-polyester loaded with recycled content. Just wish they had more of the fabulous 3-form designs available. But these are enough for our tiny bungalow!

We want the Honey Capiz (below) in our mudroom.

And Thatch in our hallway.

Here are more 3-form in various applications. You can order 12x12 inch samples and you DIYsters can make your own scrumptious sconce!

SIX MORE WEEKS!

2008-06-23T07:51:00.000-07:00

We had a blast hanging out with Steve Thomas of Renovation Nation, a new show on Discovery Channel. We'll let you know when it airs this September! He is so bright, hilarious and easy on the eyes!

David and I are thrilled that we only have SIX weeks left on our eco-remodel (fingers crossed). Did you see the feature in the NY Times yesterday - "The New Trophy Home, Small & Ecological?" Seems "smallering" (creating a sanctuary green home in a smaller footprint) is getting sexier. We are moving into a 1915 Craftsman with less than 1500 square feet, and this is a big change from our Berkeley Hills home of 2400 square feet. Today our Canyon Construction crew is working on finalizing the kitchen with our Silver Walker no-formaldehyde cabinets and ordering the Syndacrete cabinets. Our crew just finished rehanging all the original fir trim throughout the house. Some of it doesn't look so great around our brand-new double paned windows from Marvin, but we'll cope with that when Paint Man comes next week.

David's new home office, above.

Back of the house, before the French Doors and new windows.