Archive for the ‘Saving the Planet’ Category

Green office on a budget

Monday, October 13th, 2008

• Office Nomads is an amazing co-working space on Capitol Hill. When owners Jacob Sayles and Susan Evans opened their business in this very cool 1940’s building they wanted to give it warmth, functionality and playfulness while staying true to their green values… and keep the costs down.

• Too much to ask for a 5,000 square-foot office renovation? No way! At Natural Balance Home & Office, it is my job to listen to my clients’ needs and create a plan that fits — it’s amazing to see what a little paint, creative craiglisting and a cohesive design plan can do.

• Here were Office Nomads’ project priorities and process, all accomplished on a $2500.00 budget:

• Interior Design Goals

1. Create functional and organically beautiful working spaces to support monthly users, drop-in users and meeting/class/event needs.
2. Keep costs down to stay within budget
3. Use green consciousness in product choice
4. Value the Office Nomads community input and workplace during phased improvements

• The Process

1. Creating a style direction came first. The Office Nomads space, with interior brick walls, nicely divided rooms and pathways, and a tinge of 70’s flair, lent itself to a clean, contemporary, yet organic-feeling design. The look of contemporary antiques and accessories fit right in.
2. We chose a color palette to highlight the unique floor plan and warm neutral walls.
3. Deciding on main furniture pieces, desks and work chairs to ensure continuity and flexibility in layout and use was the next priority.
4. Choosing a striking table for the large conference room was important since this is a central focal point of the space. Jacob and Susan, with talented and crafty friends, took on the challenge of making this stunning table themselves. We added simple cherry wood chairs to complement the table.
5. The next challenge was finding couches and tables for the community work spaces. To stay on budget and commit to green design, we chose to re-use items located through craigslist and furniture liquidation stores.
6. We refurbished the kitchen with its old oak cabinets by painting them, and then added a fresh coat of paint to the walls. Repurposing shelving and creating extra counter space finished this small space nicely.
7. Adding pillows, artwork, and plants to soften the space without cluttering it gave it a nice final touch.
8. Still to be completed: Updating lighting and electrical, hanging a rotating art system, finishing out smaller conference spaces with a “library” look and back workroom called “the cave”, plus adding a community trophy wall and other personalized artistic touches.

• The Result

A unique, hip, comfortable, sustainable, playful work environment that supports all who work in the space… a home office away from home, “individuality without isolation.”

• To see this cool space in the flesh, come to the Office Nomads fall open house. Thursday, October 16 — 1617 Boylston Ave, Second Floor, Seattle, WA 98122

Selecting Green Furniture

Tuesday, June 3rd, 2008

 

 

I’m fascinated with the zero-footprint idea.  I find myself wanting to learn more and more.

So my last entry talked about going green with paint products, flooring and countertops that use fair, sustainable, non-toxic practices.  This time I want to talk about Green Furniture.

The commitment to green design factors includes the three Rs: REDUCE, REUSE, RECYCLE.  How does this apply to furniture?

 

REUSE.  Using what you already have in a new way is the easiest way to be green.  Ask yourself if what you already have  is functional but simply needs repair or a facelift. Many of the pieces we’ve lived and worked with for many years can become almost new when they are fixed, re-finished or re-upholstered.

Sometimes though, re-using something we already have simply won’t work. Repairs aren’t always inexpensive, furniture shapes may not match the style you’re going for, or it may simply be the wrong size. If this applies to you, then selling or donating your furniture so it can find a new life elsewhere is a great way to reduce the waste stream coming off a home or office design project.

 

         

 

RECYCLE.  When you’ve decided that reusing an object isn’t a viable option, shift your thinking toward recycling. This doesn’t have to mean reverting to your college dorm days and scouting out comfy chairs sitting on the side of the road with “Free” signs. Antique stores have practiced this sustainable art for as long as people have been designing living and work spaces. If antiques don’t suit your fancy, you can also look for design companies which re-use products to make new, sometimes funky, designs.

Still can’t find the exact right piece to fit in the space? Sometimes buying new is unavoidable. But doing so doesn’t have to mean buying couches soaked in hundreds of chemicals or a desk made of unpronounceable, man-made substances. There are a wide variety of sustainable, eco-focused furniture designers who create modern amazing work.  If you’re going to buy new, think long-term and buy a well-made piece you really love, even if it takes saving your money to get it.

GREEN WASHING. When looking for new, sustainable furniture, beware of  “green-washing” — when companies tout practices that simply aren’t sustainable. Look closely at products with sustainable claims (http://www.terrachoice.com/files/6_sins.pdf).  Furniture which is truly green will have Forest Stewardship Council-certified wood (www.fsc-us.org), be made with organic or recycled fabrics, come from a socially responsible manufacturer (as local as possible) and will have an open manufacturing process, open to inspection by customers.

 

To help you add the three Rs to your design process, here’s a list of some of our favorite suppliers:

 Upholsterers

Eidem Custom Upholstery  www.servicemagic.com/

AW Hoss and Sons  www.awhossandson.com

 Antiques/reclaimed suppliers:

Antique Liquidators  www.antiqueliquidators.com

Antika  www.antikaantiques.com

David Smith  www.davidsmithco.com/

Glenn Richards  www.glennrichards.com

 Recycled furniture

            Camelion Design  http://inballard.com/detail.php?id=cameliondesign

            City Trees Furniture   www.citytreesfurniture.com

 New products

Greener Lifestyles   www.greenerlifestyles.com

Soaring Heart  www.soaringheart.com

Terris Draheim  www.terrisdraheim.com

Feng Shui Marries Design and Sustainability

Thursday, May 15th, 2008

Green design and feng shui is a marriage made in heaven, literally and figuratively. Mother nature is one of the most powerful forces I know, and honoring her with conscious decisions in our living and working spaces is not only necessary, but personally powerful.

The practice of feng shui is rooted in the earth and is literally the study of how energy moves between the different elements in nature. “Feng shui” translated, means “wind water.”

Today we use feng shui to create natural transitions in our buildings, homes, and landscapes. This helps energy move harmoniously through an urban or built environment and honors nature in our spaces.

Combining green design principles with feng shui makes your connection to nature and your home or office that much stronger, giving you super bonus points for personal and environmental empowerment.

In feng shui, assessing spaces using the Bagua, or feng-shui life map, helps us know which rooms in your home or office reflect certain life themes and cues us to the natural elements that will strengthen those areas.

Following are a few ways to integrate green design into your remodel or re-design project:

Paint is the first and easiest design material we can change. Old paints are stinky, toxic and difficult to dispose of because they are hazardous materials. Buy low or no-VOC paints; they’re better for the environment and our health. Note: Buyer beware, many no-VOC paints are poorer quality than standard latex paints because they tend to be thin, requiring multiple coats that are not scrubbable. One of the better brands out there is American Pride. Look for the line at your local environmental home store like Seattle’s Ecohaus.

Flooring offers designers and remodelers a number of material options. One of the most popular is bamboo because it is a fast-growing grass, sustainable and it comes in many forms including nail down and floatable flooring. Teragren is a Washington-owned company that makes bamboo flooring. Another is Bamboo Hardwoods. Other “green” options for your floors include reclaimed wood, FSC-certified wood, marmoleum (a natural linoleum), cork, wool carpet, recycled tile and concrete. Another note: The process for making concrete does produce a lot of greenhouse gases, but it is an extremely long-lasting material which lowers its lifecycle impacts and it can be recycled if it is ever removed.

Countertops can be made of all the same materials with the exception of bamboo, cork and wool, of course. Another option is Paperstone which is made of 100% post-consumer recycled paper and a resin made from the oil found in cashews. Squak Mountain Stone and Trinity Mountain Glass Products also make beautiful countertops produced from post-consumer and post-industrial materials.

Counters and floors all need to be sealed and this is where “green” products show more performance issues. While the petroleum sealants are longer lasting, they’re definitely more toxic than non-petroleum products. The non-petroleum options, such as linseed oil and waxes, perform well when re-applied about once or twice a year, but do lend them selves to a more natural look. No “green” product performs as “perfectly” as its less toxic/ sustainable counterpart. So when you’re putting together your designs, it’s important to think about where you will need more heat-, water- or wear-friendly materials. For instance, you might choose butcher block for the counter area right next to your stove because it responds to heat better than Paperstone, or flag stone in your entry before shoes are replaced with slippers.

In the end, it’s important to remember that using “green” products means incorporating the beauty of nature into your space. So while nature is not perfect, it does have stunning and graceful character. It’s up to you the amount of character you’re willing to live with.