Green Building : Jetson Green

Modern Green Prefab for All Ages

If you have a future architect or designer at home, you've probably started them out with spongy building blocks or something.  After that, you might move up to the wooden building blocks, and at some point, Legos will likely get a turn.  Maybe even a prefab playhouse like this would do the trick?  Modern Cabana, the same company that designed and built the Modern Cottage Idea House for Sunset Magazine, recently announced that they're offering this KIDDO Cabana in kit form for $1,500.

Sneak Peek: Ideabox Fortino Prefab

Update 10/29/09: The Fortino Modern Green Prefab Debuts!

Salem, Oregon based Ideabox has been creating some buzz lately with their new home design, the Fortino, which will be revealed at the Seattle Home Show 2, October 22-25, 2009, at Qwest Field.  After a little coaxing, Ideabox was kind enough to let us see these renderings and a floor plan in anticipation of the big event.  Fortino will include 1,250 square-feet of loft-like living shared between two bedrooms, two bathrooms, and a kitchen, dining room, and living room. 

A Solar-Powered Green Microhouse

Hot on the heels of our prior coverage of the Rainscreen Shed and the International Shed of the Year comes this solar-powered beauty, the Microhouse.  According to Naomi Seldin of Simpler Living, the 100 square-foot tiny house is part of the Human = Landscape exhibit going on in City Hall Park in Burlington, Vermont.  The Microhouse was built by Alex Carver and Christopher North of Northern Timbers Construction with the design help of landscape architect and metal artist H. Keith Wagner. 

Finish This Green Prefab Dog House

Blake Schreck of Blicker Design was browsing the internet for the perfect dog house and eventually decided to build something of his own design.  After building these two styles, Schreck decided it would be fun to sell modern dog houses online.  The problem is, he wants to sell green dog houses.  So he emailed us and asks whether the Jetson Green audience has any suggestions for affordable, green materials, whether FSC plywood, recycled HDPE plastic, or otherwise.  What do you think?  Sound off below or at Blicker Design.

Free Green Launches Tiny House Plans

This month, (not so) Free Green added a payment structure to some of their offerings, but can you blame them?  They're providing high-quality home design for next to nothing!  And with the roll out of this new structure, Free Green also introduced some tiny house plans that look pretty slick.  You're going to have to pay $19.95 / year to get the details, but here's what we know.  The tiny houses will be net zero energy homes with about 525 square feet of space and a bedroom and bathroom.  Tell us which is your favorite:

Crazy Deal on Modern Green WeeHouse

A couple weeks ago, we mentioned you can buy the McGlasson weeHouse in Duluth, Minnesota, and now we have news that a weeHouse STUDIO is for sale -- for the crazy price of $48,000.  It's currently located in Siren, Wisconsin, but the buyer can have it shipped anywhere the land will take you for $1,000, plus about $7 per mile.  The 324 square-foot pad is just perfect as an artist retreat, guest/bunk house, yoga studio, or freelance workspace. 

Timberlake's Mirimichi Golf Course Receives Top Ecological Designation

So the question is: "Is it possible for a golf course to be 'green?'"

In October 2008, we discussed celebrity Justin Timberlake's green plans for Big Creek Golf Course, and last week, some of these plans came to fruition.  At the press conference on Friday, Timberlake discussed his experiment to green a golf course, and decided that it can successfully be done (see video below).  Located just north of downtown Memphis, the newly renovated, par-72 course is now called Mirimichi, which means "place of happy retreat," and features 7,400 yards of play. 

Low Tech Texas Container Retreat

In April 2009, this bold vacation cabin received a 2009 Residential Architect Design Award in the custom home under 3,500 square feet category.  The NY Times may have noticed, because Kate Murphy also published a feature article about the home last week.  Referred to as Camp Cinco, this low-tech retreat was designed by Mark T. Wellen of Rhotenberry Wellen Architects for owner Roger Black and constructed by placing five shipping containers on hand-dug piers.  The design is simple and striking. 

Small, Modern, and Green YardPods

YardPods are steel-frame, prefab rooms designed to fit snugly in your backyard or somewhere else which are made of modular, eco-friendly parts and materials.  A YardPod, like many of the sheds we've been talking about, can be used in a number of ways, such as for a home office, media room, arts studio, zen retreat, exercise room, work shop, cabana, studio -- you name it!  The new company was noticed by Kent Griswold, the Tiny House Blog, and he was able to uncover some interesting details. 

International Shed of the Year 2009

Shed spaces of all sizes are popular these days.  Sure, you may run into zoning laws and ordinances, but given the legalities, a well-designed shed space could work perfectly as an affordable office, workshop, or anything else.  So we were interested to learn that We Love Sheds just held an international competition to find the best International Shed of the Year 2009.  Maryland-based entrant Chuck Witmer beat out roughly 186 other shed entries to take this year's prize for THE_SHED.  He built it himself, and it's beautiful.