Reuse. Rehabilitate. Restore. Architectural salvage and repurposed pieces for the home.
A venting toilet that doesn’t stink. Why didn’t they think of this years ago?
It seems simple enough. Instead of (or as well as) having an exhaust fan in your ceiling, the dual purpose fan pulls exhaust directly from the bowl. It also pull humidity out of the bathroom.
As if that wasn’t enough to get anyone whose sh*t stinks on board, the Ventex is also a water saving system.
Starts at $519 for the complete system. Think about how much you’ll be saving on matches, candles and deodorizers.
A tree house development in Costa Rica. I don’t know about this one. It’s eco friendly construction, but come on, how can it not interfere with the indigenous people and species?
Finca Bellavista, a 72-lot “sustainable rainforest community” is the brainchild of co-founders Matt and Erica Hogan, a sports marketing consultant and a former newspaper editor. The couple fell in love with the area while vacationing there a few years ago and decided they “just had to” build a vacation home there.
The couple tells the National Post that they wanted to share their passion with others and “…bring something totally different and adventurous into peoples’ lives.” And you were thinking it was just a scheme to make money!
The 310 acre property is located at the base of a 6,000-foot mountain on the South Pacific coast of Costa Rica. The region boasts the highest percentage of land devoted to National Parks and Forest Reserves in the country. The world’s first tree house subdivision will be accessible only by foot or the Sky Trail network, an interconnected system of ziplines and platforms that allow users to access different portions of the community.
Roderick Romero, a designer known for his eco-friendly creations, participated in the project. He has worked with Sting in Tuscany, Val Kilmer in Texas, Julianne Moore in NYC, creating treetop hideaways for their kids.
Rainwater will be funneled into each home from a catchment system on the roof. It will then be distributed to sinks and bathrooms via pipes. A hydro-electric power grid was created for the community. The system uses the water flowing through the mountain-fed Rio Bellavista to power a turbine attached to an electric generator.
Finca Bellavista’s Phase 1 lots, priced at $40,000, are almost sold out. Phase 2 lots are available with prices ranging from $50,000 to $65,000 (higher for riverfront and ocean-views). Phase 3 details have not yet been announced.
Yeah, I do the eco travel thing sometimes. I stayed at a lodge in the Peruvian jungle and I swam with dolphins. Would I like to vacation in one of these homes? Hell yeah! It looks awesome! But a subdivision? That’s going too far. Just seems like some wealthy people looking for a guilt free way to rape the land in a more gentle manner.
Eco my ass.
Artist Donovan Fell III Moto Art in 1998 by chance. One morning he noticed a pile of B-17 propellers on top of the junk man’s scrap aluminum heap. They were dented and greasy, but they were beautiful to him.
“What beautiful shapes they were and what countless memories of engineering, combat and freedom they contained.” Donovan saved them from the furnace, polished them up and a lucrative hobby soon became a business.
Moto Art offers freestanding sculptures, tables, desks and chairs. Prices start at around $2000 for some of the larger items. That’s fair enough for those with money. For the rest of us working schlubbs, there are affordable small items such as desk lamps and clocks for under $200.
Artist Michael Kahn passed on the 2007 Winter Solstice. His wife Leda still resides at the residence they built with their own hands near Sedona, AZ. But the non profit arts organization, Eliphante, is in need of repairs.
The 3 acre property was donated to the struggling artist couple in 1979. The series of buildings is a work in progress, not unlike Wings Castle or Broken Angel. It took 5 years to make the home habitable, during which time the couple lived in a small shack with no plumbing or electric. They did have a wood burning stove and Leda refers to the shack as “Winter Palace”, the best home she has ever lived in.
Building materials included found objects such as driftwood, glass and broken pottery. Eliphante is listed on the Smithsonian’s “Save Outdoor Sculpture” list and welcomes visitors on a limited basis.
Redwood Counter
Solar Bath House
Via NY Times
Remember the post we did a few weeks ago on those gorgeous vintage 1950’s cabinets? Well, you have to start somewhere. We’ve unearthed the mother load of vintage cabinets: ready for restoration!
Retro Renovation is not only a cool blog, it features a forum as well. There is plenty of information on varying makes and models of mid century metal cabinetry. For sale, wanted, how to paint.
Check out 50sPam’s kitchen below. How jealous am I? I’m as green(ish blue) with envy as those cabinets right now.
The Youngstown sink and cabinet pictured below is on sale for $150 in Ithaca, NY. That’s just one of the listings Pam has chosen for her forum. You gotta have vision, people!
This post is for my folks. They don’t read this blog because they have no interest in home renovation or NYC real estate for that matter. But they’ll get a kick out this.
When I was researching Sheepshead Bay, I came across this article on Gerritsen Beach. I haven’t thought about Jahn’s ice cream parlor in about 20 years, but reading it brought back some memories. Actually, it was the mention of the “Kitchen Sink Sundae” that triggered my fondest memories.
At one time, Jahn’s could be found in locations around Brooklyn, Queens, Long Island and New Jersey. The Richmond Hill shop just closed in November, leaving one remaining Jahn’s in Jackson Heights. Worth the trip.
The antique fixtures were purchased by a Mid Westerner looking to restore his/her period ice cream parlor. So, not only is NYC losing it’s history. We’re losing it to the Mid West. Great.
Weburbanist came up with “7 More Abandoned Wonders” last month. The original 7 can be seen here.
Some local sites made the list, including North Brother Island in the Bronx and Staten Island’s Augustinian Academy.
North Brother Island has a bit of a sad history. In the late 1800’s Riverside Hospital was home to typhus, TB, cholera, yellow fever and smallpox patients. From 1915 until her death in 1938, it was also home to Typhoid Mary. By 1963, Riverside was receiving heroin addicts. It was abandoned shorty after.
On June 15, 1904 the island became the site of the worst loss of life disaster in NYC’s history when the General Slocum steamship caught fire and burned, killing 1000 people. Ninety seven years later, the site of the World Trade Center would unfortunately steal that title.
Augustinian Academy was built as a private school for boys in the 1920’s. By 1970, the school closed down and the building was converted into a retreat house. Developers purchased the structure in 1985, but did nothing with it. It is now owned by Wagner College and they are said to be protecting the property from development.
But here’s where the story gets interesting. St. Augustine was a holding ground for priests, nuns and monks in training during the 1800’s. One monk went crazy and killed everyone around. It is said that his spirit haunts the monastery to this day. The abandoned structure also attracts Satan worshipers.
Italian designer Gamper Martino says “There is no perfect chair.” So he set out to design a fusion chair. In fact, 100 of them. In 100 days. The results were on display this October at the Design Museum in London. 100 Chairs in 100 Days, the book, is now available for purchase.
All chairs were salvaged from friends or the streets of London. See all the fun things you can create from salvage, kids?
First of all, who doesn’t love The B-52’s and their sense of style? Kate Pierson (the redhead) is the proprietor of the Lazy Meadow Motel located in Mt Tremper, NY. Let’s just say if a motel could be a rock star, Lazy Meadow would be Kate Pierson.
The 1950’s cabins are situated on 9 acres fronted by the Esopus Creek. Decor is mid century modern/retro/50’s kitsch. Each suite has a different theme. There are two vintage airstream trailers which look even cooler than the cabins. Kate had design help from her friends William Stewart Design and tile artists Phillip Maberry and Scott Walker, original owners of, yes, The Love Shack.
Here’s my “pet” peeve: An animal rights activist, Kate has set aside (only) one room that is pet friendly. For an additional $25 per night, you can bring little Stinky, who must be under 25 pounds. As the mommy of 2 large dogs, I call that sizest!
You’re what? Tin roof….rust!
I set out to write a post on Syndesis design firm and their eco friendly Syndecrete concrete material. But I got sidetracked.
Architect David Hertz, of Syndesis is working on a house made from airplane parts. His client requested feminine shapes for the home situated on a 55 acre property in Malibu. The used aircraft was purchased for about $40k. The wing of the 747 will act as a self supporting roof. Walls will be made from rammed earth.
David is attempting to use as many components as possible, much like Native Americans use every part of the animals they take. This means that material left over from the main residence will be incorporated into the guest house, art studio and meditation pavilion. Oh that I had a guest house, art studio and meditation pavilion! Oh yeah, and they’re contemplating an animal barn and sauna structure.
747 Wing House on Facebook
An old article on Hudson Valley Magazine lead me to singer Peggy Atwood’s site about her monolithic dome in the Catskills. She decided to have it built after nearly losing a house to a tornado in Tennessee and another near miss Upstate due to a forest fire.
Granted, all dome homes are awesome, but when I came across the Solaleya website, I knew I had discovered my latest obsession. These homes, which have the added plus of totally looking like a spaceship, actually rotate with the sun. Need I say more? THE HOUSE ROTATES WITH THE SUN!
Solaleya homes are made with FSC wood and are insulated with cork. They are earthquake and hurricane resistant and can be equipped with solar panels. Unless I’m reading the brochure wrong, prices don’t seem to be insane. For $64k, you can get a 420 square foot “guest room”. $ 834k will buy you a 6307 square foot home with 25 foot ceilings. Of course, options and land not included.
Although I’d love to see one of these under my Hannukah menorah this season, I still can’t overlook the fact that, as green as this is, it is still new construction.
Via CribCandy
If any of my readers can afford this for their residence then we need to talk about you supporting me. Prices start at $25k and continue on past $1mil.
Very cool idea, though….no? Nature Maker’s life size Steel Art Trees are replicated right down to the smallest detail. They are not only beautiful, they serve a purpose as well. The trees can be designed to hide structural columns and other unsightly objects.
The company was founded in 1983 by the late Bennett Abrams, an ecological artist and sculptor, and visionary Gary Hanick. As you may have guessed, the residential market for these isn’t quite that strong, although it does exist. These art trees can be seen in casinos, museums and libraries as well as other commercial venues.
King Louis XIV Throne
Yet another project I’d like to try. Build myself a toilet throne. The two shown here are the only ones I came across in my search and neither one is really my taste or budget. I love the idea so much that if someone offered one of these up for free, I could live with it.
Vintage Tub has the best price on the Herbeau. It can be yours for the low low price of $9799. They are $12000 elsewhere. You’re paying for their sense of humor as well as a toilet. “Le Bon Roi Dagobert” plays when lid is raised, a song about a king who arrived at the minister’s council with his pants on backwards.
The King Louis XIV toilet is a mere $3250. A drop in the bucket, so to speak. This is a good DIY design. The toilet bowl caulks to the furniture in the same fashion as an under mount sink. There are sliding panels on each side for access.
I’ve been looking into hidden kitchens lately for our Brooklyn crib. It’s a garden level apartment which we’ve configured as a 1BR. That means the kitchen will be in the living room. Since we don’t live there full time and we never cook, a dorm style set up will do. We have an antique armoire which was once my hidden office. Now that my office has exploded all over the house, I’d like to use the armoire to house our kitchen.
I’m thinking something along the lines of the photo above. Hubby sez “no”, but we’ll see.
Given the size of NYC apartments, I’m surprised I couldn’t come up with any local search results.
Husband, get nervous. Very nervous. My rubber ducky and I want this tub! I saw it on the wonderful Designer’s Block and can’t find any more info on it. That’s fine, because I’m sure it’s more than I could afford anyway.
So here’s what I’m thinking. Take an ordinary tub and frame the exterior to make it “boat like”. Ok, so the tub is oval and the boat is….boat shaped, but that just means you have places to put your shampoo and soap.
Think it can work? I’ll need to buy another house since I’m running out of bathrooms to work on.