Flash in the Pantry: 8 Ways to Make Storing Less Boring!
Who says the pantry has to be a catch-all black hole for prolonging that shelf life? That’s what high school lockers are for!
It’s time to take stock in our most commonly used household storage nook, and make it as inviting as a vintage general store (with a modern green twist, of course).
Open pantries offer easy access for the organic gardener and cook, but also should look tidy since they are exposed to your visitors. Mine is en route to the powder room. Yep, that’s country life.
I find it’s easy to arrange …
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Don’t Mind the Lights, They’re Just Roosting
Sometimes, all you need is to take an existing design, and give it a twist.
In every house in the world there is a drawer. In the back of that drawer you’ll find: string, brightly-colored elastic hair ties, stubs of candles, 3 amp fuses, paperclips and many other fundamental building-blocks of the modern universe.
And if that drawer is large enough, there’s part of a bakelite light fitting – the inspiration for Shangia designer Zhili Liu’s new lighting range. Those with a soft spot for our feathered friends (a certain …
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How Green Is Your Landscape? 9 Steps to an Eco Friendly Yard
In a nation embracing all things green, it was just a matter of time before outdoor places – ranging from parks, parking lots and transport corridors to family homes and university and corporate campuses - ended up with a “green” rating system similar to LEED for buildings and energy star ratings for appliances (and even churches).
Three years of research by teams of landscape architects, ecologists and engineers from the American Society of Landscape Architects, the U.S. Botanic Garden in Washington, D.C. and the Lady Bird Johnson …
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Want an Offer You Can’t Refuse? Show ‘Em How You Reduce & Reuse!
They say it’s a buyer’s market and agents love listing those dwellings with solar panels, efficient water heaters and appliances, good insulation and nontoxic flooring and finishes.
Here are a few easy green fixes for your property to reduce your own footprint in coming winter months while hoping to land an offer you can’t refuse.
1. Upgrade to Energy Star Appliances
The Energy Star Symbol on products such as the …
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Met Home Is Where the Heart Was
Metropolitan Home is being put to bed for good.
I suffered reflux trying to digest the death of Gourmet, one of four Condé Nast publications closed recently. I didn’t sample the food bible much but felt nostalgic about it as an American institution. I only picked up Modern Bride a few times when plotting my wedding. (I had the main prop but needed flowers and a dress.)
Now, achy-breaky heartburn ensues from Hachette’s news about …
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Styling on a Yulestring? 10 Frugal and Festive Fall and Winter Displays
Sure, you’re forced to take down the ghosts and fuzzy spiders (news flash: your neighbors are pissed if you haven’t done so), but some of the seasonal elements we put up to get in the mood should endure until the end of the year, if not beyond.
Here is my list of favorite affordable decorative displays for the festive and frugal in all of us.
1. Lanterns
Rice paper lanterns bobbing outside (with solar lights) or in your rooms make a huge, happy statement. I love the cylinder shapes with Asian motifs like the …
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A Redesign to Check Out Now
Despite a general consumer slump, the eco marketplace is sizzling as stylish shoppers continue seeking earth friendly products. In fact, when it comes to green, demand is up.
That’s why stylish home eco retailer, VivaTerra, has announced a fresh new website design, complete with the latest social-media friendly tools and helpful shopping features. The new site design is bigger for easy reading and selecting, and better, with more ways to view and share products via the most accessible and popular social-media channels. Click to view an …
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Come Heaven and Hell
Realizing that most people have a go-to spot for reading, adding Be Sweet’s boucle mohair throw is a cozy addition to any book nook where extra warmth is needed.
Blending fuzzy and nubby with smooth and sleek, we love that it’s fittingly called the Heaven & Hell throw and that it doubles as a shawl if you need to run to the bus stop or head out for groceries.
The company that makes the yarns and the throw is also pretty …
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Sink or Whim? Either Way They Bowl Us Over
Porcelained out? Carve your niche with an alternative sink for soaking up greener materials like certified teak, bamboo, recycled metal and glass and friendly painted ceramics. You can even experiment with poured concrete with 50% recycled fly ash, as seen in the striking orange basin by Jeremy Levine Design.
Here is a handful of other options we rounded up:
From William Garvey’s Fusion Line of handmade sinks from certified teak grown in the mixed deciduous forests of South Asia….
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