Two years ago I lamented that I wanted to know more about this neighbor’s house in Maine but didn’t want to bother the people who lived there. Luckily, The Boston Globe Magazine did, so I was able to learn all about it and get some great peeks inside here. I knew that house was special, it even made the cover! I just wonder how the heck The Boston Globe managed to find our tiny little island of Spruce Head.

photos by James R. Salomon for The Boston Globe

Green Idea of the Week: This week after spotting a massive dust bunny under my sofa, I thought about how much work would have to be done to make my home photoshoot-worthy. It depressed the hell out of me. I looked around at the excess tables that don’t I don’t really have a space for, checked out some of my art that was out of rotation, realized I’d had two extra chairs sitting in my dining room that I couldn’t even walk around, and that I had USPS boxes stacked under my desk that needed to be stowed away. It seemed a major makeover was in order. Unfortunately, I was in too much of a Hoarders-inspired frenzy to take time out for “before” pictures, but in a nutshell, I rotated art and furniture in and out of different rooms (kids, don’t try this at home without some Clariton and a dusting cloth on hand), and felt like I had a whole new interior. My point is, you can completely redecorate and freshen up your home without consuming any more products (besides the aforementioned Clariton). Do you even know what you have stashed away in the nooks and crannies of your home?

That being said, it’s probably hypocritical to pick a favorite green product to tempt you with, but I’ll tell you why I feel comfortable recommending the STAACH Cain Collection Bench. It’s made by two hands with two tools right in New York, and it’s made from certified sustainable wood sourced in the U.S.A. The reason I thought of it after reflecting upon my makeover frenzy is that this is a multipurpose piece. You can rotate it in and out of any room in your home. In the living room, it’s a coffee or side table that doubles as an extra seat. In the kitchen, you can use it to boost you up to the high shelves. In the bedroom it can serve as a bench at the foot of your bed or as a nightstand. In the bathroom it can hold folded towels next to the bathtub. If you choose black, gray, maple, poplar, or white, it will go with almost any color palette.

In a continuing attempt to find green products that are right under my nose, I’m concentrating on art this week. Here are a few of my favorite sustainable products for adorning your walls:

Columbia Forest Products Alexander Girard PLYprint® – Love Heart:

In collaboration with the estate of Alexander Girard, and Pfeiffer Lab, Columbia Forest Products reissues select artwork, by Alexander Girard, first used as part of the 1970′s Herman Miller® Environment Enrichment Panel program. For the first time since 1972, these graphics are now available as wall art.

Amenity Willow Large Wall Print – Cream & Cocoa:

Made of 100% pure organic cotton certified independently by third-party agency SKAL and printed with eco-friendly, non-toxic, water-based dyes. Made in the United States of imported fabric. I love the large scale of this piece.

Graham and Brown Taylor & Wood Frames Wallpaper

Approx 50% of this wallpaper is sourced from recycled material or from FSC-certified (Forestry Stewardship Council) managed forests. What’s so fun about it is that you can fill in your own artwork, and kids won’t get in trouble for scribbling on this wallpaper!

olli & lime Art Poster – Billie

Made on 100% recycled paper. I love the fun graphics and colors here.

k studio Heart on a Sleeve Wall Art

At Shelly and Mary Klein’s growing studio in Grand Rapids, Michigan, they manage each product from start to finish. They start with fabric made from some of the most sustainable materials available such as hemp, organic cotton, and recycled wool. This one in particular is hemp, so if you are looking for a gift for Woody Harrelson, I highly recommend this piece!

In case you missed it, here’s a great link to Aparment Therapy’s Complete Composting Guide. I’ve been thinking of getting a worm composter for my brother for his birthday and did not know where to start. Lo and behold, I was browsing AT and all my questions were answered. Check it out here.

photo via Apartmenttherapy.com

Last week I was thinking about a project I wanted to make with wool felt (yes, I spend a good amount of time thinking about textiles, don’t you?!) when James announced that Josh Jakus was the newest addition to our site. What a sign of inspiration! Josh is known for his felt pieces made from factory excess fibers and rubber designs made from recycled tires. When people use one of Josh’s products they naturally encounter the way it was conceived and developed. Amazing stuff. Enjoy the Q&A!

I’ve read that you have a background in both architecture and furniture design. What was the turning point that led you from architecture and furniture to soft goods?

I started doing furniture design in architecture school because they had a woodshop and I’ve always enjoyed manual work. As a design process I liked the simplicity and perfection of furniture as a counterpoint to architecture, which is so complicated and messy (sometimes in a good way). After I finished school I continued making furniture while I did freelance architectural work. My intent was to turn the furniture into a business that would go along side my architecture, but it proved to be very difficult to come up with commercially viable pieces. So I decided to experiment with Read the rest of this entry »