Blogs worth readings: Slow Home & Green Wombat.
I’m starting think that maybe, just maybe, the modern farmhouse could be a gateway to contemporary for many of you. What do you think, pretty clean design, right? The BrightBuilt Barn was designed by Kaplan Thompson Architects, factory built in components by Bensonwood (mentioned by Josh Stack in comments recently), and is being built by Gibson Design/Build as we speak. It was designed to be net-zero and super green — the home will participate in the Living Building Challenge and, in all likelihood, qualify for LEED Platinum certification. Geez! So what’s in store for this 700 sf studio home:
Folks the media storm that started with the venerable Bill Gates and tired Jerry Seinfeld has just taken a new direction with the "I’m a PC" ads for Microsoft. Check them out below, we have all three new videos embedded in this article. As you watch, though, don’t get distracted by the likes of Eva Longoria, Tony Parker, Deepak Chopra, Bernard Harris, Geoff Green, or even Pharrell, as tough as it is, because there’s a green architect in the mix: Edouard Francois.
Jerry Yudelson, renown green building expert, was kind enough to send us a copy of one of his latest books, and as is the tradition on this website, we’re giving the book away to one lucky commenter below. Just leave a comment before midnight on Monday, September 22 to be considered for the giveaway.* The book is called Choosing Green: The Homebuyer’s Guide to Good Green Homes and is printed on 100% post-consumer recycled paper. It is what it’s called: a homebuyer’s guide. If you’re a homeowner or are thinking of becoming one (even in this market!), you should give this a read and get educated. Yudelson will walk you through some of the following concepts:
In Chicago, Illinois, The Residences at 900 have something unique to offer their residents, a lush green rooftop garden. This environmentally friendly rooftop, designed by renowned landscape architect Douglas Hoerr, offers nearly fourteen thousand square feet of garden paradise.
Shannon Quimby, as far as I can tell, is the first to successfully reuse 100% of an old dilapidated home in a new home construction project. The REX House, or Reuse Everything eXperiment, is located at 2030 SE Rex Street in Portland, Oregon and Shannon has been documenting the entire process since December 2007. What she’s doing is quite difficult, especially if/when you’re deconstructing a house that has toxic materials, lead, asbestos, and other damaged parts. But that’s the goal of the project: to share with everyone how to recycle and keep landfills from overflowing with useable construction materials.
