The folks who design for our future are looking to us for clues to helping people go greener. How about using humor? I recently wrote about how designers are incorporating people's behavior in their "design thinking." This 'power to the people' premise only goes so far (although, it is virtuous to always consider the consumers needs). The next common sense step to sustainable design is to implement a shift in people's behavior towards, let's say - garbage and recycling. My family was recently reminiscing about a trip we took to Spain to visit relatives. I asked one of my kids...CLICK HERE FOR MORE
"One World, One Love" - Charity and Peace In The House of Marley
With a spray of dreadlocks, Bob Marley emerged on the scene with music that transcended racial and cultural barriers. Marley proved that he was not only a musical genius, but a humanitarian whose reggae music had musical depth, powerful lyrics, sustainable longevity...and is massively commercial. Bob Marley may have died young (age 36), but his legend lives on. Around the time of his death, Marley's music and his vision for "One World, One Love" had attracted the largest audiences for any musical act in Europe. Bono inducted Marley into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1994 with this tribute...CLICK HERE FOR MORE
The Home Ice Advantage: Make An Eco-Skating Rink
I am convinced that there are certain experiences from your childhood that define whether you like winter or not. I am a lover of everything winter. I can thank my hockey player dad for that. For my brother and I, winter had its own culture with unique customs and rituals that included a backyard ice skating rink.
The first snowfall of the season, my dad would unveil his latest collection of sleds, skates and skis that he had gathered at tag sales. In the garage he would fix up his finds for all the neighborhood kids. His goal was to get all the kids on the block to love winter. Then he would haul out four long wooden two by fours and a plastic liner and water our backyard to make a skating rink. If we lived in a higher elevation, I am sure he would have created a ski slope and a rope tow to tower over the rink. As it was, it was quite unusual in my New York suburban neighborhood to have an ice rink in the backyard.
Some of my favorite memories are of my dad all bundled up very late in the evening hosing down our backyard ice rink like he was watering prized roses. I remember Dad was overly eager to get up early in the morning after a snowfall to shovel the rink. Then he would set off to the more important task of clearing the driveway. For the kids, our reward was all the afterschool exercise we could get and unlimited hot chocolate.
Those fond memories are laced with embarrassing ones too. Some not so cherished teenage moments. Don't most embarrassing things happen to teenagers? I was mortified when I found out my dad would greet my male friends at the front door with a ruler to measure the size of my friend's feet for skates. Then he would rummage through the skate box and with skates and hockey sticks in hand, I would have to catch him before he would wisk the the poor boy into the backyard to "see what the kid was made of" (whether he could skate or not).
I have long since gotten over those embarrassing moments. For years, we recreated all that wintery fun in my backyard with my kids.
DIY ECO-FRIENDLY ICE RINK - CLICK HERE FOR DIRECTIONS
Bringing Heirloom Design Concepts Home
Are we replacing old items too often? Our culture has made it easier for companies to create disposable goods–or items designed to have a short life–that it’s hard to separate what we need, healing from what we want, treat from what will last. Then there are changing styles and trends. Can stuff be designed and built to be durable, ed beautiful and affordable enough to last generations? This is where the term “heirloom design” comes in. This has been a huge challenge in the design world. Products should be well made, attractive and affordable. Period. We only have to look at electronic technology and the automotive industry to know that this challenge has not been met. How many computers, cell phones and cars have you had in the last 20 years? CLICK HERE FOR MORE
Eco-Wallcoverings: Not Your Parents’ Wallpaper
It’s common knowledge among remodelers and interior designers that the easiest way to transform the look of a home is by changing the wall color. Often the design element used is paint. Not so in my childhood home.
See, pills I had a wallpaper designer parent (Dad), and my other parent was over the moon over wallpaper. My father’s flocks and my mom’s modern metallics were in full bloom all over the walls of the house. Along with the rolls of wallpaper samples and those thick, stumpy wallpaper books, there were tiny flecks of film that caught on all the textured surfaces of the house. My Dad’s handprinted silk-screening pieces from his graphic design process landed on more than just the walls. It gave new meaning to “wallpaper world” and let’s just say they had their share of wallpaper wonders and woes.
Now we know the lowdown on wallpaper is low. Traditional vinyl wallpaper leaks VOCs. The adhesives used in pre-pasted wallpaper emit vapors. The chemicals used in vinyl wallpaper have the potential to harbor mold. Mold growth behind wallpaper aggravates a plethora of health problems. No wonder wallpaper wallowed away from the home design scene. But lately, wallpaper has been popping up all over the blogosphere. Here’s an article from the Dwell magazine blog about the resurgence of wallpaper in homes.
There’s one basic credo about green home design: If it is eco-friendly, eco-chic and makes the homeowner happy, then bring it home. Wallpaper hasn’t seemed to fit this model … until now...CLICK HERE FOR MORE
Photo Credit: Echo Designs