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Recycled Floor Tiles

Recycled Floor Tiles published on

We came up with 4 companies in our search for recycled ceramic and terra cotta floor tiles. All of these companies manufacture glazed wall tiles as well, but we’ll cover that in a separate post.

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Fireclay Debris

Fireclay’s Debris series is a terra cotta tile containing 50% post consumer and post industrial recycled materials. Their standard sizes are 8×8, 12×12, 8×16 and 16×16, as well as geometric patterns. Finishes are available in unglazed, antique and dark antique. It’s best to contact them directly for Debris sales questions.

naturalhues.jpg Quarry Tile’s Natural Hues

Quarry Tile’s Eco-Body line contains approximately 34% recycled solid waste which was previously going to public and private landfills. All of the recycled waste products are recovered from within a 350 mile radius of their manufacturing plant. Several Dal-Tile locations carry Quarry Tile.

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Terra’s Traffic

Terra Green Ceramics, which has been around since the late 70’s, manufactures 7 lines of recycled glass and/or ceramic tile. All tiles are made with 55% post industrial glass. Stone Source is the local NY distributor for Terra Green.

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EcoCycle Pine Barren

Crossville Porcelain Stone offers their Eco Cycle Line, containing 40% recycled ceramic content. This “stone-look” series comes in 8 colors. There are several locations in NY that carry Crossville, including Bergen Tile. Be sure to check if they carry this particular line.

Cement Based Recycled Countertop

Cement Based Recycled Countertop published on 3 Comments on Cement Based Recycled Countertop

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Ameé Quiriconi founded Squak Mountain Stone in 2003 after preparing an assignment for her Master’s Degree. The assignment: Creating Self-Reliant Communities in a Global Age.

What is Squak Mountain Stone? From the website: “A Fibrous-cement material comprised of recycled paper, recycled glass, coal fly-ash and Portland cement. Material is hand-cast into “slabs” as an alternative to natural or quarried stone. Resembles soapstone or limestones. ”

Be sure to check out the “Oops” factory seconds link on the product page!

Local retailer: Bettencourt Green Building Supply

Somewhat Affordable NYC: Coney Island

Somewhat Affordable NYC: Coney Island published on 2 Comments on Somewhat Affordable NYC: Coney Island
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I spent my teen years in Coney Island. Brightwater Towers, right across from the aquarium. The screams from the Cyclone and the sea lions would keep me awake at night. Had numerous beach parties. Attended the very first Mermaid Parade. Got married at Primorski under the El. Nothing but fond memories. Luvin’ the CI.

PROS

  • Stillwell Avenue is serviced by the D, Q, F and N trains. It takes a good hour to get into midtown, but so what? You live near the beach!
  • Did I mention the beach? It’s best in wintertime, when there are no crowds. You can swim with the Polar Bears.
  • Ethnic restaurants and lots of diversity (ok, lots of Russian diversity).
  • Free concerts in the summer. I saw the B-52’s last month…..for free!

CONS

  • Upcoming development is going to change the face of Coney Island. I know lots of folks out there are saying “Oh, clean it up. Nothing wrong with gentrification.” But I’d like to see at least some parts of NYC remain unique.

Coney Island vendors may get one more summer!

Coney Island
Save Coney Island
Coney Island Reporter
Kinetic Carnival
Making CI Green: Gotham Gazette

 

Porta Potty

Porta Potty published on 2 Comments on Porta Potty

Items You Just Can’t Live Without

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Nobody likes to talk about it, but we all need to do it. So, what if you’re renovating a bathroom and it will take days, weeks or months to complete? Yeah, a bucket works fine, but indulge yourself in the luxury of a porta potty!

We bought ours on Ebay from a company called Short’s Marine. The Thetford 135 model is less than $100 and will last about a week before you make your husband empty it. Camping World also sells them, along with the chemicals to go with it.

The chemicals that break down the waste do contain formaldehyde. Supreme Green is eco friendly, but, unfortunately, it doesn’t work as well as those harsh chemicals.

Green Brooklyn, 07

Green Brooklyn, 07 published on

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We’re giving you a day’s notice! From Green Brooklyn’s website:

“The 3rd Annual Green Brooklyn Conference, coordinated by Brooklyn Center for the Urban Environment, is Brooklyn’s largest showcase of green and sustainability issues, programs, and products. A full day fair and symposium, Green Brooklyn brings together the community, businesses, nonprofit organizations, and government agencies to share ideas with the public about how to live greener in our everyday lives.”

Friday, September 21, 2007, 11 am- 4pm
Brooklyn Borough Hall, Brooklyn, NY
Free and open to the public

Exhibitors include Bettencourt Green Building Supplies, Council on the Environment of NYC and Go Green, Inc., among many others.

Undiscovered Jewel: Newburgh, NY

Undiscovered Jewel: Newburgh, NY published on 4 Comments on Undiscovered Jewel: Newburgh, NY

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A Hudson River town just an hour’s drive from the city, with ferry service to Metro North. Homes that rival any Brooklyn brownstone. A 35 acre park right in center of town, designed by those chaps who did Central Park. Gracious homes for under $300k. An international airport. So, what’s wrong with this picture?

PROS

  • Stewart Airport
  • An hour north of the city. Newburgh is right off the NY Thruway and Rt 84.
  • Ferry service connects to Metro North.
  • Homes are spectacular…and inexpensive!
  • The waterfront has been revamped with new restaurants and galleries.
  • Broadway (the Main St in the city) doesn’t have too much to offer now, but there are some exceptional cafes, bakeries and antiques shops as well as banks and grocery stores.

CONS

  • Newburgh isn’t a place for the faint of heart. Some blocks are being gentrified while others are still sketchy. There does remain a feeling of hopelessness in areas of the city, with burnt out shells, drug dealing and gang activity.
  • Homeowners couldn’t afford major renovations on these properties, so the details remain intact. However, it also means the homes are in need of TLC.
  • You’ll probably need a car for convenience. There are many big box stores just outside of the city, which currently doesn’t have everything there is to offer.
  • Orange County has high property taxes.

City of Newburgh

Wiki Newburgh

Orange County Chamber of Commerce

Newburgh Waterfront

Newburgh Arts

Antiques and Salvage, Newburgh area

Antiques and Salvage, Newburgh area published on

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Hudson Valley Materials Exchange is the only re-used building materials warehouse in the area that we know of. They don’t have antique artifacts, but it is a good source for newer windows, doors, molding and paints.

The antiques shops would be the ones to carry architectural salvage. Below is a list of the ones we frequent, which = the less pricey ones.

Brian Ferraro Antiques
Hudson Valley Showcase
Dickenson’s, 440 Main Street, Beacon, 845-838-1643
Past Tense, 457 Main Street, Beacon, 845-838-4255

50’s Retro Fridges

50’s Retro Fridges published on 3 Comments on 50’s Retro Fridges

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$ 2000: SMEG

Smeg is Italy’s largest manufacturer of domestic kitchen appliances. They are well known for their 1950s-style “retro” refrigerators that come in a variety of non-traditional colors, such as pastel blue, lime green and pink.

Smeg is available through AJ Madison in Brooklyn and online.

$ 2700 Big Chill

Founded in Boulder, CO in 2001 and built in America, the Big Chill is 20.9 cubic feet and comes with a stamped metal body, chrome trim, 3 easy-clean spill-proof glass shelves, a temperature management system, 2 half-width clear crisper pans, and other amenities. Water dispenser and ice maker are optional.

Big Chill can be purchased at Krup’s Kitchen and Bath, 11 W 18th Street, NYC. 212-243-5787

$ 3695: Elmira Northstar

Northstar refrigerators, by Elmira, come with all the bells and whistles, including 19 cu. ft. of storage, Visi-shelving, adjustable door bins and optional ice maker.

Drimmer’s on Coney Island Avenue in Brooklyn carries the Northstar line.

All of these fridges are energy star rated.

 

 

Dream Homes: Wing’s Castle, Millbrook, NY

Dream Homes: Wing’s Castle, Millbrook, NY published on 7 Comments on Dream Homes: Wing’s Castle, Millbrook, NY

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I visit Wings Castle whenever I’m in the area because it’s an inspiration to any DIY fanatic. I mean, they built this themselves! With reclaimed materials! The swimming pool is a friggen moat!

When I found out Wings Castle was for sale, I started saving my pennies. Currently listed at $5,850,000, I still have a few more years to go before I can afford it. I’m taking donations if anyone wants to see me finish the ongoing 30+ year project started by Peter Wing.

Dupont Castle

Buying A Castle

Buying A Castle published on

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Dracula’s Castle is for sale.

The price of a European castle doesn’t seem as outrageous as the price of a Manhattan studio apartment. You can buy a castle for under a million. Who cares if it’s a shell in Hungary? What else are you planning to do with your retirement?

Castles For Sale
Viviun Real Estate
Mercure Real Estate
Wists Castles

Period Wall Covering

Period Wall Covering published on 2 Comments on Period Wall Covering

Worth the splurge!

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It may not be everyone’s taste, but we drool over this stuff. We’d love to do our whole house, floor to ceiling, with elaborate wall paper. Unfortunately, we can’t afford it. It cost us $800 to do a single room with Bradbury border. At this rate, we’re better off stenciling.

Bradbury and Bradbury

JR Burrows

Mason and Wolf

Second Hand Rose: vintage wall covering

Finding A Pet Friendly Apartment

Finding A Pet Friendly Apartment published on 3 Comments on Finding A Pet Friendly Apartment

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If you’ve had a glance at our “About” page, you’ll know that our initiation into home ownership began because of our pets. We had 11 cats (not a typo) and a dog at the time. There wasn’t a landlord in this town crazy enough to accept us. We lied about the number of cats, saying we only had 3, but even that was balked at.

There doesn’t seem to be one perfect resource that lists pet friendly rentals. Craigs List usually states whether or not the apartment is pet friendly, but where do all of those animal lovin’ landlords post their rentals?

Here are some helpful resources…

Humane Society
New York Tails
Westchester/Putnam
Urban Hound : Search and post on the forum

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