Neighborhood Tours

May 4, 2016

Use BrickBox Modular Shelving to Store Books, Create Room Partitions or Move Homes

Kazam Design's BrickBox is a simple yet innovative storage system that consists of wooden boxes designed to easily fit together without screws or assembly. The units can be stacked or arranged to not only provide ample and flexible shelving, but to create sideboards or room separators. Each "brick box" also doubles as a wooden box perfect for transporting your belongings when you move from one space to another.
More on this design here

May 2, 2016

Christopher Duffy Unveils His ‘Abyss Dining Table’ Inspired by the Ocean’s Depths

By Ana Lisa Alperovich

Furniture designer Christopher Duffy recently unveiled a new dinning table inspired by the ocean. The conversation piece, which replicates an underwater geological cross section, will add several layers of magic to any dinner party held on it.
Learn more about this magical dinning table

April 22, 2016

Construction Update: Perch Harlem, NYC’s First Market-Rate Passive House, Shows Some Skin

By Ondel Hylton

Work on the city's first market-rate Passive House, Perch Harlem, is moving apace, and just in time for Earth Day, a bit of construction netting was taken down, giving passersby a glimpse of its super-insulated white exterior (good for heat deflection) and seamless rectangular windows. The seven-story structure rises midblock at 542 West 153rd Street and recently topped out in January. When finished later this year, its 34 units will boast superior workmanship, low energy bills and exceptional indoor air quality. The project's developers, the Synapse Development Group with Taurus Investment Holdings, purchased the 10,000-square-foot former parking lot back in 2013 and have been growing their Perch brand of buildings that strive to provide environmentally low-impact living and community-oriented design.
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Looking at New York’s Growing Collection of LEED and Passive House Constructions

A Passive House design by Loadingdock5 Architects at 174 Grand Street in Williamsburg

April 22, 2016

Looking at New York’s Growing Collection of LEED and Passive House Constructions

By Diane Pham

While other parts of the country continue to debate the validity of climate change, architects and developers in New York City have been ramping up their sustainability cred and erecting buildings that think beyond ROI. From luxury condos to public housing to individual homes, green buildings are on the rise across the city. Ahead, CityRealty goes over what it […]

April 7, 2016

3D-Printed Vase Exteriors Give New Life to Used Plastic Bottles

By Rebecca Paul

Milan-based designer Libero Rutilo has developed a way to transform used plastic bottles into stylish and functional home decor. Using 3D printing technology, Rutilo's series of four vases focuses only on the objects' exterior shell, leaving the heavy lifting, or water holding in this instance, to the up-cycled plastic vessels.
Find out more

April 6, 2016

‘Tushy’ Attachment Turns Your Humble Toilet Into a Bidet Hybrid for $57

By Rebecca Paul

If you've ever traveled abroad, it's likely that your bathroom was equipped with what would appear to be two toilets. While one is for standard bathroom activity, the other is known as a bidet and functions quite differently. When first encountering the bidet, one might be a bit skeptical about ditching toilet paper for a spray of water, but what many of us don't realize is that there are multiple benefits to be had for our tushies and the environment. Now, thanks to the folks at Tushy and their modern bidet attachment, you don't have to live in Europe to take advantage of one of these devices.
more info here

April 1, 2016

Two Pre-War Apartments Join to Make One Sustainable Home With Sliding Walls

By Rebecca Paul

The renovation of this pre-war home featured the transformation of two separate apartments into one all-inclusive unit. It was completed by architects Michael Chen and Kari Anderson of Normal Projects (Michael now has his own firm called Michael K. Chen Architecture, which specializes in micro housing), who designed the residence for an environmentally conscience couple and their young children. Not only did the couple want the materials used in their home to be ecologically sound, but they also wanted the design to encourage a sustainable lifestyle far into the future. In response, the design team defined a unique strategy that included a flexible floor plan made from custom sliding panels and a series of cuts and insertions. Even in the demolition of the previous property, sustainable practices were taken into account, and all the discarded materials were either reclaimed or recycled.
See more this way

March 31, 2016

Airframe 01 Is a Lightweight Cabinet Inspired By Early 20th-Century Airplane Wings

By Ana Lisa Alperovich

Dutch designer Mieke Meijer has created a cabinet that, while ideal for housing clothing or linens, is much more than just a storage piece. Called Airframe 01, it draws inspiration from the wings of early 20th-century airplanes, which were light, wooden structures covered with translucent white textiles.
Learn more about this lightweight cabinet

March 29, 2016

Bel and Bel Transform Lifeless Vespas Into Stylish Italian Office Chairs

By Rebecca Paul

No doubt Vespas are fun to ride, but what happens to these popular motorbikes when they're no longer fit for the road? Designers Carles and Jesus Bel, founders of the design studio Bel & Bel, take the retired bikes and transform them into stylish office furniture. The Barcelona-based design duo breathes new life into the old rides by attaching legs and leather upholstery to the existing frame, rescuing the hip Italian scooter from what would be an otherwise unglamorous future.
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March 25, 2016

LM Guest House Takes Ludwig Mies van der Rohe’s Designs to a Greener Level

By Ana Lisa Alperovich

Manhattan-based architects Arjun Desai and Katherine Chia, the husband and wife behind Desai/Chia, were commissioned to design a Hudson Valley retreat that would combine the look and feel of Ludwig Mies van der Rohe's ultra-minimalist Farnsworth House with high sustainable standards. Situated on a rock outcropping overlooking a typical stretch of Dutchess County farmland, LM Guest House is a pre-fab contemplative retreat for weekend visits. Its glazed skin affords expansive views, and among its planet-friendly features are geothermal heating and cooling, natural ventilation, solar panels, and a system for rainwater collection.
Learn more about this ultra-minimal green home

Three Nordic Designers Collaborate on These Curious Candleholders

By Ana Lisa Alperovich

These strange but beautiful candleholders come via a collaborative effort by designers from three different Nordic countries. Hugdetta from Iceland, Petra Lilja from Sweden, and Aalto+Aalto from Finland joined forces for an experiment entitled 1+1+1, which "examines and reimagines objects by having each studio design an object consisting of three distinct parts and then mixing the parts up into unpredictable combinations." The result is a series of cabinets, mirrors, lamps, and these candleholders.
Learn more about these strange candleholders

March 21, 2016

Celebrate Your Favorite State With These Reclaimed Barn Wood Side Tables

By Rebecca Paul

Whether you still live in the same state as you were born or you've ventured to a new part of the country, home is where the heart is. And these state-shaped barn wood side tables can help bring the essence of your favorite state right into your living room. The tables are handmade in Kentucky from reclaimed Tennessee barn wood, and each plank shows unique patterns of weather and wear, adding another layer of sentimentality to the mix.
Find out where to get your own

March 7, 2016

Baxt/Ingui Architects Designed This $19M UWS Townhouse As an Energy-Efficient Passive Home

By Michelle Cohen

The listing calls the townhouse at 25 West 88th Street "beyond mint," and it's certainly green enough to qualify. This 8,000- square-foot Central Park West home has gotten its fair share of publicity recently. In addition to being a landmarked 1910 historic beauty and having undergone a stem-to-stern modern overhaul, the home's current owners, investment banker Kurt Roeloffs and his wife Shyanne, worked with the well-known Baxt/Ingui Architects to create an energy-efficient masterpiece that meets both LEED platinum and passive house standards. Even with all that efficiency, they didn't skimp on luxury. With six floors (and an elevator) and a finished cellar, six bedrooms plus rooms dedicated to yoga, meditation, exercise and crafts, this may, in fact, be "one of the finest contemporary townhomes on the Upper West Side."
Find out more about this amazing, energy-efficient home

March 2, 2016

Six Architects Reimagine the MetLife Building As an Eco-Friendly Tower of the Future

By Michelle Cohen

Earlier this week, the six finalists in the "Reimagine a New York City Icon" competition were announced (h/t NY Yimby). The competition to reimagine the MetLife Building, sponsored by Metals in Construction magazine and the Ornamental Metal Institute of New York, isn’t part of any real-life plans for the iconic Midtown tower, but when great minds get to this kind of imagining, great ideas are born. Architects and engineers were asked to "reimagine 200 Park Avenue with a resource-conserving, eco-friendly enclosure—one that creates a highly efficient envelope with the lightness and transparency sought by today’s office workforce—while preserving and enhancing the aesthetic of the building’s heritage." Designed by Emery Roth & Sons, Pietro Belluschi, and Walter Gropius, the 59-story MetLife Building, located to the north of Grand Central Terminal, opened in 1963 as the Pan Am Building. MetLife bought the building in 1981, and though they sold it in 2005, the architectural icon keeps their name. Below are the finalists' descriptions and renderings for the tower's eco-friendly future.
See what the finalists came up with

March 1, 2016

Kid’s Caravan Bed Provides the Excitement of an RV From the Comfort of Home

By Rebecca Paul

This funky kid's bed was designed to mimic a caravan, and we secretly wish they also made it in adult sizes! Not only is it cozy and playful, but it's also super functional and equipped to handle even the most rugged camper. The bed is packed full of hidden storage space including the helm as the perfect home for toys stuffed animals or blankets. Plus the base of the bed double as a full-sized pull-out drawer.
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February 29, 2016

Chilean Design Firm Makes Beautiful Room Dividers From Sustainable Pine Fibers

By Ana Lisa Alperovich

Whether you live on an open-plan loft or tiny studio, you've probably, at least once, considered a reconfiguration of the space. Meet Ensamble, modular flexible room dividers, and the latest project by Chilean studio The Andes House. Lightweight, flexible and low-cost, the panels are easy to assemble into a small office or separate micro-space and were crafted from a sustainable composite material made from pine fibers.
Learn more about Ensamble

February 9, 2016

AW Architects’ Blue Rock House in the Catskills Resembles a Minimalist Dairy Barn

By Ana Lisa Alperovich

AW Architects' Blue Rock House is an ensemble of buildings suggesting a minimalist dairy barn. Sitting atop a rural hill in the small town of Austerlitz, a three hours drive north from New York City, the project groups a main house, guesthouse and garage, interconnected by a string of beautiful bluestone walls that give the project its name. Its privileged location affords wide-open views out into the Berkshire and Catskill Mountains, and the choice of minimal materials evokes rusticity, elegance and attention to detail.
Learn more about this farm-like home

February 4, 2016

Beautiful Coat Racks Made From the Burned Trunks of the Mangosteen Tree

By Rebecca Paul

As city dwellers, it's important to incorporate elements of nature into our daily lives so we don't become as stone-cold as the environment around us. That's just one of the many reasons we love this Yosemite Coat Rack made from the mangosteen tree, which bears the exotic purple fruit found in Indonesia. And who wouldn't want an enchanted forest greeting them at their front door?
The full story of the mangosteen tree

January 22, 2016

Vedat Ulgen Transforms Vintage Denim Into One-of-a-Kind Furniture Pieces

By Rebecca Paul

If you love thrifting for vintage clothing and second-hand furniture, have we got the thing for you! From local industrial designer Vedat Ulgen of Thislexik, this stool and vase are both made from used clothing purchased from stores in and around Brooklyn. The shape and structure are made possible by way of resin that is left to harden for three days.
More this way

January 5, 2016

Ceramic ‘Wall Pockets’ Turn Plain White Walls Into Green Vertical Gardens

By Ana Lisa Alperovich

Is your home so cramped that you can't even find space for a new plant? Well, what about your walls? Studio Harm en Elke came out with a simple and sweet solution that creates pockets for your wall. Dubbed "Wall Flowers," these little ceramic vessels can hold single flowers, a small cactus, shoots or any other modestly-sized plant.
Learn more about these green wall plant pots

Neighborhood Tours

January 4, 2016

Interior Steel Boxes From OODA Can Transform Any Open Space Into a Fully Functional Apartment

By Rebecca Paul

Designed by the Portuguese architecture studio OODA, these interior boxes make it possible to transform any empty room into a fully-functional apartment. Each free-standing unit comes complete with all of the comforts of home including a bathroom, bedroom, kitchen, office and storage area.
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January 3, 2016

Meike Harde’s Stockwerk Shelf Pops Up From Flat to Six Levels High

By Ana Lisa Alperovich

With limited space, New Yorkers need to be smart about how they furnish their homes. One clever solution is the use of adaptable furniture, like the brilliant Stockwerk shelf, a clever pop-up piece that can expand from almost flat to a fully functional six-level height. Created by young German designer Meike Harde, this shelf can also be delivered as a flat-pack item, yet there's no need for complicated assembly with those dreaded Allen wrenches.
Learn more about this pop-up shelf

December 29, 2015

The Much-Anticipated Ecocapsule Micro-Home Is Now Available for Pre-Order

By Rebecca Paul

Excitement and anticipation over the innovative eco-friendly, pod-like micro-home dubbed Ecocapsule started back in May when they were first introduced to the public. The units are designed by Nice Architects and are totally off-grid, powered by solar and wind energy. They're finally available for preorder, and as one of the most efficient and adaptable housing solutions out there, we can't wait to see them in use.
Find out more right this way

December 23, 2015

Bio-Inspired HEAVN Caffeine Lamp Will Boost Your Attention Levels Like Coffee

By Rebecca Paul

It's been estimated that roughly 70 percent of working people spend more than six hours a day basking in the artificial light of a computer screen. Research has concluded that overstimulation by artificial light can have negative consequences on your health as bad as metabolic problems, insomnia, depression, concentration disorders, headaches, fatigue and increased stress. This unfortunate reality for today's working population was the inspiration for the development of HEAVN Caffeine, an innovative office light designed to mimic the therapeutic frequencies of natural light. The light is said to not only make you more productive by optimizing your biorhythms—"it boosts your attention levels with the push of a button, just like a strong espresso," says its designers—but it will also help you stay healthier.
FInd out more here

December 15, 2015

Ditch the Laundromat With This Eco-Friendly, Foot-Powered Washing Machine

By Dana Schulz

Admit it–you've been that person who's gone out and bought new underwear to avoid lugging 40 pounds of dirty clothes down to the laundromat. But now you can avoid this wasteful temptation thanks to a compact, eco-friendly washing machine called Drumi. Plus, it's foot-powered, so you can burn some calories while watching Netflix. First spotted by TreeHugger, the machine was created Yirego, a Toronto-based sustainable household design company. It's electricity-free and low-water and can wash a five-pound load in just five minutes. Of course, this isn't much (it equates to one pair of jeans or eight pairs of boxers), but it'll certainly save you from having to wear a bathing suit as undergarments.
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