Sure, you can pick up some low-VOC, environmentally friendly paint. But have you ever thought about your painting tools and supplies? Those brushes, rollers, tarps and cleaning solutions can add to some real mess for the planet if you…
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We’ve rounded up the best new products and materials from the 2010 Remodeling Show. Some are available now but many will be hitting shelves in 2011 so ask for them by name. You can also check out our list…
This New House on the DIY Network could be called This Green House as they are showing a ton of green building materials and product. We finally caught up with about 3 episodes that had been sitting on our…
If your kitchen is the heart of the home, your pantry is like the main valve that keeps it all flowing smoothly. Does that thing have a name? (Can’t you tell that science was never my strong suit?) What…
Improbable building materials? Building kits to create the one- or two-roomed house of your dreams? Unconventional building materials and kit homes are becoming increasingly popular, especially as homeowners embrace sustainability and, in some cases, downsizing. Thanks to a heads-up…
HGTV’s All American Handyman made three cuts last week and now have their top five competitors, one of which will wear the crown of All-American Handyman. We caught up with the last Handyman voted off the show, Andrew Kowalyshyn.…
The 2010 Remodeling Show is kicking off today in Baltimore and if you can’t be there in person you can follow these exhibitors on Twitter. We’ve also listed a few of our friends who will be there to share…
We recently had the good fortune to spend a few hours with Andrew Wagner the new editor-in-chief of ReadyMade magazine (formerly of Dwell and American Craft). He’s actually been on the job for a few months now and we’ve…
Well, I’ve always wanted an underground lair. Luckily, I’ve found one that looks more pastoral than evil and gloomy. Made of concrete and earth, this Swiss estate is a cluster of grass-blanketed houses encircling a pretty little lake. According…
In 2008 author and architect Sarah Susanka published The Not So Big House: A Blueprint for the Way We Really Live and this year her follow up Not So Big Remodeling: Tailoring Your Home for the Way You Really…
While we were in New Orleans participating in the Fifty for Five event, we took an opportunity to explore the Reuse District in the Bywater neighborhood of New Orleans. Scattered around abandoned shipyards and warehouses you’ll find numerous salvage…
If the weather is as beautiful where you are as it is in Kansas City (right now, anyway!), then you, like me, may have a hard time thinking about furnaces, heating and winter weather! Yet frigid temperatures will be…
Do you have a masonry restoration project and are looking for a unique exterior or interior finish for your home that’s naturally beautiful? Put aside that wood siding or hand-cut stone and opt for the smooth finish of Natural…
We’ve been invited to participate in Fifty for Five in New Orleans this year and we literally can’t wait to tie-on our tool belt and start working. Rebuilding Together made a pledge to rehabilitate 1,000 homes in the Gulf…
Is there anything more refreshing than jumping into your own green swimming pool? No, not a pool filled with algae. That would be gross. A green swimming pool is one that has minimal effects on the environment and actually…
It’s essential. We all need to store our stuff, from books to clothing, kitchen paraphernalia and, of course, our tools. Building a dedicated and organized storage system in each room will help you to de-clutter your life. But before…
Contemporary design is hot, no doubt about it. And many modern designs are slim, subtle and sustainable. But when I looked at this award-winning design from Kristin Laass and Norman Ebelt, I began to wonder. Does having a sustainable…
After tackling home improvement projects and becoming frustrated at a lack of green building materials and supplies, Sarah Beatty took matters into her own hands. The result? Green Depot, an online retailer founded in 2005 that has expanded to…
This is one way to solve a housing crisis. Using discarded tires and bottles to create walls of a home. Architect Michael Reynolds has applied this green building construction technique to more than 1,000 homes and thinks it will…
Over on our green building site we’ve been sharing a great series from our blogger Tabatha on Going Green, Simple and Cheap. This series offers green tips that are easy to do and cost little or nothing for almost…
Organization is all the rage. From the boardroom to the bathroom, it’s obvious that being organized makes for more productivity. How about taking that same philosophy and applying it to your household recycling? That doesn’t mean you’ll need to…
You may have heard this term before. It’s also been called “the new urbanism” or “agrarian urbanism”. The idea is that city neighborhoods could be built and restructured in order to be self-sustainable, a harmonious blend of urban and…
Last month we got word that WGBH will be producing a new show focused on woodworking called Rough Cut with Tommy Mac. We’re fortunate to score an interview with Tommy Mac and had an opportunity to ask him some…
In a response to the amount of waste that many job sites create either through demolition of perfectly good materials or ending up with surplus, the founders of DiggersList wanted to create a free marketplace where people could exchange…
Our friends at Fixr have been busy building this very comprehensive remodeling cost guide. We can’t vouch for its accuracy and any cost guide is always just a ballpark figure as all projects are different mainly due to materials…
As technology and software keeps advancing the sophistication in 3D virtual room planning tools continues to grow. This list will help you find an online design tool that works best for you. All of these are free with so…
A lot of design in green homes often raises the question – how much space do we really need? Architect Michael Katz and designer Janet Corne offer the L41 (“all for one”) that squeezes everything you need into 220…
While in Maui we had the pleasure of visiting designer Xorin Balbes latest project he’s named, Ke-Ao Lanihuli which translates to “The light from the heavens to overturn old conditions bringing enlightenment.” The name is certainly fitting for this…
Many people are completely intimidated by the concept of going green. It really feels like if you don’t start using a rain barrel, install solar panels on your roof, eat, drink and breathe 1000% organic, and compost every living…
As builders and developers rush to attain LEED accreditation for their new homes, some wonder if the LEED certifications need to be amended to allow for testing of indoor air quality. Tom Silva of This Old house always stressed…