Recycled Glass Tile: Luxurious & Sustainable for a Modern Estate

Glass bottles take more than 4,000 years to decompose and approximately 5 out of every 6 bottles end up in our landfill.   Oceanside Glasstile creates beautiful art tile with it instead.  It takes more than two million pounds of bottle glass from curbside recycling programs in a closed-loop process that aims to have appositive impact on our communities and the environment.  Their glass contains up to 97% recycled material as well as being durable and making lasting design statements.  They have also developed a co-processing partnership to eliminate their manufacturing waste from going into a landfill.  They are committed to ongoing advancements and environmental leadership.  We have specified this gorgeous glass tile in our current eco luxury project  on Butterfly Beach in Montecito as well as in this luxurious modern estate we should you here.

Post Author: Tamara Wallop for Globally Gorgeous

Elegant Recyclable & Biodegradable Dinnerware So...Don’t feel Guilty about NOT doing the dishes tonight…..

 

Form, texture and ease of use AND eco-friendly,  WASARA paper tableware uses the underlying concept of Japanese aesthetic and values. WASARA combines this pleasing aesthetic with the use of reed, bamboo and bagasse pulp (sugarcane waste) as its bio-degradable and compostable material. It is suitable for hot or cold foods and beverages, and it is oil and water resistant.

This line has just recently become available in the US and is available at Branch.

Guest Post by Tamara Wallop

ARCHITECTURE FOR HUMANITY - SUPPORT SUSTAINABLE EARTHQUAKE RECONSTRUCTION IN HAITI

Here is a link to ARCHITECTURE FOR HUMANITY. Please go to it and learn how you can help to rebuild Haiti.  Also, here is a link to a book on the innovative homes that were rebuilt after Hurricane Kattrina in Biloxi Mississippi.

                                      

REBUILDING AFTER DISASTER: The Biloxi Model Home Program

TWO CHINESE WOMEN MAKE IT TO SEMI FINALS IN AUSTRALIAN OPEN

Li Na beat Venus Williams to make it to Australian Open Semi Finals. It is the first time two Chinese Players have made the last eight of the same Grand Slam. Zheng Jie defeated Russia's Maria Kirilenko to make the semi final.

LI  NA

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Li_na_2007_sydney_medibank_international.jpg

ZHENG JIE

http://news.xinhuanet.com/english2010/china/2010-01/27/c_13153325.htm

Miho Museum by I.M. Pei Harmonic with Nature in Japan

A few years back Gregg and I went to Kyoto Japan to buy Ikebana Baskets for a show we were curating at our Gallery in Santa Barbara. While there, even though we didn't have much time we made time to visit the Miho Museum. Off the beaten track, for sure, but so well worth the effort. The Museum is Southeast of Kyoto near the town of Shigaraki, in Shiga Prefecture. The Museum house the private collection of Mihoko Koyama the heiress to the Toyobo Textile business. The museum is named for her.

I.M. Pei the Architect that Mihoko Koyama commissioned to design the museum referred to it as "Shangri-La" Evidently because hi design for the approach to the museum involves a long walkway on a bridge across a gorge and then through a tunnel through the hilly landscape. When one emerges out of the tunnel "you have arrived in "Shangri-La".  

Pei used the same French Limestone he used at his Louvre Pyramid in Paris. The structural engineers were LERA. Leslie E. Robertson Assoc. 75% of the museum's structure was built into the excavated mountain top. The earth was re filled over the structure essentially making most of the museum underground. The effect is that the forested hills are embracing the museum and that the whole environment is harmonious with nature.

NOH8 CAMPAIGN IS BEAUTIFULLY DESIGNED USING ADAM BOUSKA'S PHOTOGRAPHY

The NOH8 (no hate, no on proposition 8 in California) is an ingenious graphic campaign. Not only was I shocked and thrilled by Cindy and Meghan McCain's support of the NOH8 CAMPAIGN, I was taken by the beautiful photographs taken of them by celebrity photographer Adam Bouska.  Go to the site and check out these fantastic photographs and please donate if you are inclined to.

Eco Luxury, Eco Friendly Cars

The Leases are coming up on our vehicles so we are checking into whats the newest in eco friendly, eco luxury cars. Ranging in price from $44K - $60K This is what we have been looking at. Mercedes-Benz GL 350 BLUETEC, VOLKSWAGEN TOUAREG TDI, BMW XDRIVE35D, and AUDI Q7 TDI.

What’s new in these cars is the use of a urea fluid, or nitrogenous compound, called AdBlue, which is squirted into the engine’s exhaust stream to scrub pollutants away. Hybrid cars, most famously the Toyota Prius (I am currently driving one), are the chief competitors for a green badge, and both diesels and hybrids get the same tax break for alternative fuel vehicles. But critics of hybrids complain about squishy regenerative brakes, transmissions that seem to shift aimlessly, poor acceleration, and reduced cargo space due to the cars’ huge nickel-metal-hydride batteries. And because hybrids are so new, little longevity data is available. 

MERCEDES-BENZ GL 350 BLUETEC

VOLKSWAGEN TOUAREG TDI

BMW X5 XDRIVE35D

AUDI Q7 TDI

The Best Sofa Design in the World!

When we designed the Family Room / Media Room / Theater at the East Mountain House in Montecito we selected a sectional sofa called "Dr. Pitt" from Mitchell Gold and Bob Williams in Los Angeles. We selected the sofa for it's comfort and versatility as well as it's unique design and configuration.  It can be purchased with various sized pieces like any sectional, but this one could be set up like a square with three sides and open in the center. Into the center you can push the ottomans, making it a "filled in square. Sounds crazy, but you can jump in that thing like a huge play pen for adults and stay there all day watching playoff games or movies or both in the case of this Media Room / Theater. We designed this room  with 2 professional 65" Panasonic LCD screens.

During the playoffs last week we were having fun with our godson and realized if we pushed out the two smallest ottoman pieces and left the two large ottomans to closed the "pitt" we could create a play pen for our young Ravens Fan. Naturally we threw in a few safe cooking utensils to make sure the young one was getting balanced and well rounded weekend football. He was BUMMED about the Ravens but not nearly as much as his dad.

More cooking lessons at half time...

This Eco Luxury Home Will Produce As Much Energy As It Consumes...Making It Net Zero

Maienza-Wilson's current project, in addition to being slated for LEED for Homes Platinum certification is a Montecito, California beach house that will also be a net zero energy home.  The concept of net zero is that a home generates the same amount of energy that it consumes on an annual basis. This is accomplished with the right combination of very efficient mechanical systems, lighting, building materials and appliance choices matched with properly sized solar systems to achieve an annual + net zero energy equilibrium. 

The project team worked with David Knight and his team at Monterey Energy Group to create a beautiful home that will also have a light touch on the earth.  

On the production side, the butterfly roof will hide 40 south facing solar photovoltaic panels, producing over 12,800 kWh (kilowatt hours) per year.

On the consumption side, spray-in foam insulation, high-performance windows and doors, an air to water heat pump for super efficient space conditioning and water heating, radiant floors, Energy Star appliances, and LED lights will make the home highly efficient so that the solar panels can provide all the power needed to run the home.

By being tied to the electric power grid, the home can actually feed power into the grid on bright, sunny days when it’s producing more than it needs to run the home and draw power at night and on rainy days when it needs more energy than it’s producing.  By balancing the supply and demand of energy over time, the result is a net zero energy home.

Guest Post by:

Patsy Stadelman, AICP 

Patsy is a Land Use Planner for Brownstein Hyatt Farber Schreck LLP (http://bhfs.com/) in Santa Barbara, California and is on the Board of Directors for the California - Central Coast Section of the American Planning Association.

Farrow and Ball Designer Paint and Wallpaper goes Green - Low VOC paint is eco-friendly

I am thrilled that Farrow and Ball paints have finally gone green with their product line by producing environmentally friendly, eco- friendly low VOC paint and wallpaper.  I have always thought of Farrow and Ball as producing the most beautiful paint and wallpaper products. They produce the chalkiest flat paints I have ever seen and the highest gloss paint I have ever used, in combination the effect is stunning. 

At this Luxurious Montecito, Ca. Estate we created a Grey on Grey palette. Using Farrow and Ball Wallpapers in combination with chalky grey flat paint on the walls and with a very high gloss white trim paint. The Bedroom Charcoal wool carpet from Stark Carpet.

Grey flat wall paint  with high gloss white trim paint.  

Silver Travertine Floors and Oak Flooring with beige wax rub.

 Murano Glass Chandeliers are from Donghia. Bedroom Ceiling Fixture is From Boyd Lighting in San Francisco.

Grey Stripe wallpaper and stripe drapery  Charcoal Starck Carpet

Read more about A Greener Farrow and Ball on their terrific website;.

The expedition was made up of women from Brunei, Cyprus, Ghana, India, New Zealand, Singapore and Britain

Leaving 2009 on a positive note, on December 30 Seven women on 562-mile Antarctic ski trek reached the South Pole 38 days after they began their adventure to mark the 60th anniversary of the founding of the Commonwealth. The Kaspersky Commonwealth Antarctic Expedition  trekked an average 15 miles a day. Each Woman hauled 176-pound sled of provisions and shelter.

Their destination was the United States operated

Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station science base

photo from: La Times "Outposts" blog Outdoors, Action, Adventure...
Whats the Commonwealth? Here's an animated tour...it's cute and educational....

The Beech Called "Beach" - An Aviation Story

Being pilots and sometime aviation buffs, interesting facts grab our attention from time to time.  Being the proud papas of a Beechcraft Bonanza B36TC, anything ‘Beechcraft’ or Bonanza is of particular interest.  When we started looking for the ‘step up’ plane shortly after we closed the deal on our first plane, a trusty Piper Archer, 11 years ago…we identified the Bonanza as a real candidate for the next plane. Moving up is all a part of the aviation lifestyle.

Long story short, we felt that the Beechcraft Bonanza, the longest most successful production plane in aviation history, was the right one for us.  Its sleek design, high speed performance, reliability, and payload all spoke to our needs for a flying SUV.  How many times have we stuffed lamps and furniture in the backseats, brought a whole dinner party of utensils and food from one location to another….really utilitarian.

One interesting fact is that early in the production of this airplane, that began in 1947, a test pilot refitted a Bonanza and flew it non-stop from Honolulu to the West Coast of California.  Proving its long range characteristics and sturdy construction.  Aptly named ‘Waikiki Beach’’   William Odom flew the original V tail Bonanza in the first record setting light aircraft flight from Hawaii to the mainland.  With out penchant for period Hawaiian architecture and style (link to homes), this is of particular interest. 

A second record setting flight from Honolulu to Teterboro, New Jersey was flown by the ‘Waikiki Beach’ two months after the first transpacific flight.  The ‘Waikiki Beach’ now lives at the Smithsonian Museum in Washington D.C., a well earned tribute to a remarkable aircraft and one that is near and dear to us personally….