100% Recycled Countertops
Posted by Cynthia | Filed under Musings
Thinking about a kitchen remodel this spring? Keeping it Green is an important consideration when looking at cabinet and countertop options. Have you considered paper? Yes, Paper!
Richlite, has brought to the market a durable, hard surface material created from paper. Eco-friendly and beautiful, fibers can come from a variety of sources; virgin wood fibers, post consumer waste, recycled blue jeans, coffee chaff, burlap bags, banana peels, etc. Color is added during the paper making process instead of the paper saturating process to ensure consistent and solid color throughout. Stain, Scratch and Heat resistant, as well as durable and sustainable. I found it especially interesting, as extended overhangs can be created up to 24″ without additional support. A great material for an island overhang, or how about a dining table top?
Richlite r50 contains 50% post-consumer waste fibers from old corrugated cardboard.
Richlite r100 and Grays Harbor contain 100% post-consumer waste fibers and are FSC® Certified 100% Recycled. These materials have a great look, as the fibrous material has some subtle texture and depth, but also develops a patina over time, much like a beautiful stone would. Sustainable, and beautiful.
Image and excerpts sourced at Richlite.
Tags: architecture, green design, interior design, kitchen countertops, kitchen remodel, LEED, Richlite, sustainability
LOHAS
Posted by FLOR | Filed under Musings, Sustainability
You may have seen the word LOHAS in your reading or shopping in recent years. The name, which is an acronym for Lifestyles of Health and Sustainability, is a growing community of people and businesses committed to researching and developing a range of products and services all designed to give us more choices as concerned consumers.
LOHAS focuses on six key market sectors that, combined, influence nearly everything you might use in your daily life. For example,
- The PERSONAL HEALTH sector includes things like natural, organic products, integrative health practices;
- The GREEN BUILDING sector covers renewable energy systems, Energy Star appliances and sustainable flooring;
- NATURAL LIFESTYLES focuses on products such as organic cleaning supplies and compact fluorescent lights;
- ALTERNATIVE ENERGY programs like renewable energy credits.
- ECO TOURISM, which includes eco-tourism and eco-adventure travel; and,
- ALTERNATIVE TRANSPORTATION, which includes research and development of hybrid vehicles, biodiesel fuel and car sharing programs.
Combined, these sectors comprise an estimated $290 billion marketplace. We believe in the LOHAS mission and think that their influence can already be felt with the growing popularity (and demand) for organic foods, eco-friendly cleaning products, hybrid cars and CFL light bulbs.
If you’d like to learn more about LOHAS or explore how you can get involved, the group holds a conference every June in Boulder, Colorado– the LOHAS Forum.
There are also a number of regional networking events across the country throughout the year.
Tags: green living, green message, lifestyles, living healthy, organic, sustainability, yoga
A {green} paradise…
Posted by Peggy | Filed under Inspiration, Musings, Solutions
I was flipping through some of my old magazines and this image literally stopped me in my tracks. I had to turn a few pages back to see where this is. To my complete amazement, this beautiful open space is actually a living room. Yup, not a resort lobby or anything like that, but a home that belongs to a family of four in Bali. There's also a five-story thatch-roofed pagoda built for their two daughters, where their bedrooms are. In order to get to the main house, the girls could either walk across a bridge or tiptoe on stepping stones… it's like a page out of a storybook! Too good to be true? Well, here's more… the pagoda was built with sustainability in mind. Made of salvaged teak and grass thatch, it certainly is a good practice to behold by the girls, and to grown-ups for that matter. The staircase (pictured below) in the main house is made of reclaimed wood. Supporting columns for the house are salvaged ironwood electrical poles, recovered and reused by the family when a local utility company upgraded to concrete. Love how they brought the local colors into their home as well – using saris as their shower curtains for example. But you know what makes me really fall in love with this home? The intimacy that it creates, even with the wide and open living spaces, it speaks family time to me, lots of it – and nothing is better than family time…
Tags: architecture, home decor, Inspiration, sustainability, wood
Birds Of A Feather Flock Together
Posted by Cynthia | Filed under Musings
Tags: Chicken Coop, Free Range, Modern Design, Omnivores Dilemma, sustainability
Eco Inspiration
Posted by Cynthia | Filed under Musings, Sustainability
Tags: Chicago, Museum of Science and Industry, Smart Home, sustainability
