The Sunday Seattle Times includes Pacific NW feature stories which this Seattle interior designer never misses. The story within the story, “On Whidbey, a unified home from multiple recycled parts”, weaves the green design of an architect son and garden designer mother. The resulting design is clever, resourceful and a feast for a designer’s eyes.

photo Benjamin Benschneider

According to Valerie Easton, Fran Abel can accommodate holiday feasts in her little house because the main living quarter opens up wide at one end to expand out into the landscape. The round “vaults,” or depressions in the concrete floor, hold the supports for the dining room table, which when fully assembled extends 36 feet, the entire length of the house and patio.

Though this home is small by most standards, 860 square feet, the innovative design provides multi-purpose use for each of the three rooms.  From Easton, “Every space is multipurpose; the kitchen, dining and living rooms share a single space. The bedroom converts to a yoga room when the Murphy bed is folded into the wall, and its hallway is lined with books. The “barn” houses a workshop, guest room/study, laundry and plenty of storage for bikes and boats.”

photo courtesy Seattle Times

Look carefully at the metal kitchen cabinets from Sears which are intended to store tools. This story and all the images are a good read and will have you reconsidering ‘discards’.

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The dark is upon us… at least from the window of this expert Seattle interior design.  This translates to increased electrical use and utility savings.  I would like to share these tips from Lutron about the benefits of dimming. 

• Dim a light to 50% and you’ll cut the electricity used by about 40%.
• Lighting accounts for nearly 20% of the average home’s electricity bill, so dimming makes an impact.

photo courtesy sparksdirect.com

Click here to see ten energy saving solutions from Lutron.

Installing one Lutron dimmer in every home in the U.S. in place of a standard light switch would:

• Save $230 million in electricity per year

• Reduce CO2 by 4.3 billion pounds per year

• Equal taking 370,000 cars off the road

Dimming your lights 25% saves 20% in energy. And, the more you dim, the more you save. A 1,500-hour incandescent bulb will last nearly tenyears when dimmed 33% and used 3 hours per day. That’s longer than the average American keeps a home.

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Recently my interior design eyes spotted Tabrasa and I wrote about it….No surprise that this company continues to receive raves most recently at HD Boutique. Tabrasa garnered a Best of Boutique award at the Hospitality Design conference.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Available in white as well as four new neutral colors, tabrasa^TM complements any interior design while transforming working environments into collaborative spaces – increasing functionality, and evoking creativity and impromptu teamwork. It is a more functional and operationally superior alternative to traditional white boards and dry-erase wallcoverings, as it: Learn more here.

Aesthetics & Style

tabrasa^TM can create various shapes for dry-erase writing surfaces including: a floor-to-ceiling, wall-to-wall writing surface; a strip in a hallway or around an entire room; a rectangle or variety of shapes scattered across a large wall; or a design element placed over a colored surface. No other dry-erase surface offers the aesthetic options of tabrasa.^TM  

Environmental Sustainability

Tabrasa has the lowest environmental footprint of any dry-erase product.

• No wood, steel, aluminum, vinyl or resin typically used with other dry-erase products-just paint.
• It doesn’t require the baking or curing process that other dry-erase products use. We use less material and fuel to ship since our box is small weighs far less than a similarly sized whiteboard.
• You simply paint over tabrasa^TM when you’re done with it. We’re happy to not contribute to the millions of pounds of whiteboard materials being dumped in landfills every year.
• tabrasa^TM conforms to all U.S. EPA regulations (including California) and is formaldehyde-free and, once dry, produces no off-gassing.

Once a month, I meet with Seattle interior designers around the topic ‘green design’.  Since my practice is residential I read about trends and products of interest to my clients. For readers of my weekly enewsletter, I include green resources and tips. When I read an article about new products featuring design elements that embrace the total of green principles I decided to share the information. My readers are interested in furnishings for children and teens so this example serves as a double score.:-D

The mainstream conversation about sustainability emphasizes the traditional values of longevity and durability in the field of eco-products.  Trend expert Eva Barth-Gillhaus from Meerbusch in North Rhine-Westphalia believes the greater attention being paid to sustainability has already changed people’s perceptions.

Sustainable furniture for children implies it must also be flexible enough to adapt to a child’s needs as they grow older.  A perfect example is the ‘Growing Table’ by designer Olaf Schroeder.  Both table and chair are suitable for toddlers and can be made gradually taller in increments of 10 centimetres by inserting the extra leg elements available. “This extends the lifecycle of the product by up to eight or ten years,” Schroeder says. 

Growing Table for toddler

Growing Table preteen

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Seattle interior design embraces great design that creates a true, living reflection of the people who live in the space – and that’s about as ‘universal’ as it gets according to Janice Anne Costa.

Not long ago  kitchens revolved around a single work triangle, where Mom cooked meals for her husband and family. But  kitchens grew larger, and the work triangle evolved to kitchen “work zones.” Flexible  refrigeration replaced large, boxy refrigerators, and multiple, flexibly designed appliances became the norm.  See example:

Universal Design by Lora Creswick

In a similar vein, yesterday’s baths were all about  super-size.  Enter jetted tubs large enough to go swimming in and super showers with extravagant features using large amounts of water.

Consider the greening of the kitchen and bath. Efficiencies of space and energy are the rage and water conservation inspires smaller fixtures, re-designed to provide the full-sensory water experience,  using less water.

Looking over the changes in the kitchen and bath industry, one thing is clear: Design is fluid. Indeed, the creative nature of the field almost demands that today’s trends will be ever-changing and evolving, as consumers and design professionals continue to pursue “the next big thing.” Janice Anne Costa

So what is the “next big thing?” Bet on Universal Design as the “green” of the future.

Curbless Shower

This trend gained visibility in the products on display at this year’s K/BIS, where beautiful, safe and accessible tub and shower options were seen in abundance. Personalized design is finally coming into its own. As Mick De Giulio explains, “People are an amalgam of so many different elements: culture and nationality, family history and cooking habits”.

In my Seattle interior design practice, I like to share the importance and benefits of building green. I saw this article on the website of Central WA Homebuilders. 

Here are 10 reasons for Green

1. More Money in the Piggy Bank.  A built green home typically saves $ on operating costs due to efficient energy use, natural daylighting and upfront construction costs.
2. Less ‘New’ Odors and Better Indoor Air. Using low VOC and low toxic interior paints and finishes reduces toxins and improves indoor air quality.  Paints like Benjamin Moore’s Natura and Aura are my favorite choices.
3. Saves Old Growth Forests. Rapidly remewable materials like bamboo, cork, and strawboard can be harvested in a sustainable way. Plastic lumber made from recycled plastic jugs can be used for decking.
4. Happier Salmon. Water conservation using drought resistant plants and porous pavers are both techniques. Erosion control benefits salmon habitats.
5. More Couch Potato Time. Maintenance is minimized with durable materials like decking made of plastic and materials like stone, tile or slate.
6. Reduced Breezes inside the Home. The impact of outside elements is reduced using caulking to seal windows and doorframes.
7. Healthier Yard with Homegrown Topsoil. Topsoil removed for grading can be saved and reapplied for a better soil compositoin.
8. Reduces Dependence on Fossil Fuels.  Local materials reduce transportation costs and the inclusion of pedestrian access to mass transit decrease auto use.
9. Less Trash. Built Green projects recycle large amoutns of scrap materials as well as include recycled content into the building.
10. Promotes Businesses Committed to Green. The supporting member companies go the extra effort and work with one another demonstating committment to a green, healthy home.

In this post I am pleased to share a local company familiar to my firm, Faith Sheridan Interior Design, Seattle, WA. Teragren is my first choice for bamboo application in my projects and my experience is totally positive. (as is my clients) An exciting addition to the expansive product line, bamboo countertops, adds even greater diversity to the possible applications in design solutions.

Bamboo Counter

Teragren is a U.S.-based manufacturer of fine bamboo flooring, panels, veneer and parquet butcher block located in Bainbridge, WA. Teragren is also a company on a mission.  The company defines success as not only high-quality products and excellent customer service but also environmentally and socially responsible manufacturing and business practices.

From the moment the company was founded in 1994, it committed to developing and manufacturing beautiful bamboo products.Bamboo flooring was a scant segment of the U.S. flooring market when avid environmentalists Ann and David Knight saw the need for environmentally sound building products. They co-founded the company they would eventually name Teragren.

In 2006, Teragren was named by Inc. magazine as one of “The Green 50″ companies that are setting the standard for environmentally friendly business, and as one of the top 10 local “Greentrepreneurs” by Seattle Metropolitan magazine. In addition, in August 2007, Teragren was named one of Inc. magazine’s 5,000 fastest growing companies in America.

U.S.-based Teragren is in a unique position because it develops and manufactures their own products. This allows quality control from harvest to distribution and provides you the highest quality bamboo flooring, trim, panels and veneer in the marketplace, as well as convenient documentation, tech support and custom orders.

In this green design business profile, I salute Carol Sorensen-Baumgartel of American Clay.  I met Carol in early 2006 in Seattle at the Home Show. Carol is the VP of Marketing/Co-founder of American Clay Enterprises, Inc.  Carol studied painting and ceramics, earning a BFA in Ceramics from the University of Denver. In 1980, she entered the world of Interior Design and was President of the ASID New Mexico chapter (1991-93). Specializing in interior finishes for commercial builders, residential builders and architects, putting elements together to highlight the physical aspects of a building – and won some interior awards for model homes in the process.

The impetus to the creation of American Clay arose from the health issues which plagued her son, Croft Elsaesser (now CEO and president) as he practiced his profession of Faux Finisher. The physical illnesses –headaches, skin rashes, breathing difficulties–created by the materials he had been using to create magnificent surfaces for his customers were worrisome. Finding natural alternatives to the paints, sealers and acrylic/gypsum wall finishes became paramount to continuing in his profession.

American Clay Natural Earth Plasters bring the appealing finishes of Nature to your Home, Office, School, Business, anywhere you want to add healthful beauty to your interior walls and ceilings. Manufactured in and using materials from the United States, American Clay uses natural clays, recycled and reclaimed aggregates, and vibrant natural pigments in each of  three beautiful finishes.

Ecohaus in Seattle shares details about American Clay. My project, Casa Montecito, utilized American Clay entirely for the nearly 7,000 square feet.

Created as a more functional and operationally superior alternative to traditional white boards and dry-erase wallcoverings for office environments, Tabrasa offers abundant opportunities in homes too. Imagine using it in the mudroom or laundry area.  Tots to teenagers finally can draw on their walls without a disaster or a time out! See the illustration of the product here. 

Tabrasa^TM is water based paint that transforms any smooth surface into a seamless, high-performance dry-erase writing surface.   Discover all the options and applications for this amazing product and consider how you could adapt it in your home.

Instead of sticking notes around your home office, choose one of four colors and post schedules, creative ideas or brainstorming concepts on the wall.  Use a strip of wall space in your kitchen and post the weekly menu. 

Let me know how you might adapt this product in your home.

Watch a video about Squak Mountain.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Recently I met Amee Quiriconi at the Green Peer table lunch I attend monthly with other Seattle designers.  But I was already familiar with her unique countertop product as I used it in the  shared bathroom of  the Seattle Street of Dreams 2006 home I designed, Casa Montecito.

From graduate school paper to reality, the story of how Squak Mountain Stone™ came to be is an exciting story.  Working to complete her masters degree in 2003, she prepared an economics paper  requiring  the students to develop a product or service that would could benefit their local economy. Specifically,  find something in their community that is purchased from someone outside of that community and then develop a “substitute” for that item that could be made  and sold within the local economy.

Employing her knowledge in engineering, construction and research, Amee created a unique new product called Squak Mountain Stone™.

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Amee started with paper that couldn’t be recycled because it was crosscut by shredders, then added portland cement, crushed glass and coal fly ash from an electric plant in her home state of Washington. After stirring, grinding and polishing samples for 18 months, she hit upon a way to make the hand-cast slabs rock hard. “It’s a recycled material that replaces real stones that have to be quarried out of mountains.”  Squak Mountain Stone resembles soapstone or limestones. Learn more about it here.

Closeup view of Squak Mountain

Vanity counter in Latte