CasaSugar

Casa Verde: What Not to Recycle

CasaSugar — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 13:00:45 -0700

In the past, I've given you the lowdown on which plastics can be recycled and told you 21 surprisingly recyclable things. But aside from the question of pizza boxes, I haven't gotten around to telling you what not to recycle. We all know that recycling is important, and San Francisco mayor Gavin Newsom even thinks those who fail to should be punished. It's also pretty darn easy, especially if you've got a proper recycling bin system. However, tossing trash into your recycling bins can really complicate things for your local recycling crew. You'll have to check your local recycling guidelines to see what restrictions apply in your neck of the woods, but to get a general idea of what is not allowed in recycling, read more.

This list, from San Francisco's recycling program, offers good guidelines on what not to put in your recycling bin:

Batteries
Electronics
Ceramic dishes or cups
Coat hangers
Compostable plastics
Food soiled paper (i.e. paper cups, plates, napkins, towels, takeout boxes. and greasy pizza boxes)
Light bulbs
Liquids
Mirrors
Plastic bags or plastic films
Soy milk or juice boxes
Styrofoam
Waxed cardboard
Window glass

Source

Artists Plan to Freeze a Vacant Detroit Home

CasaSugar — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 08:00:27 -0700

This Winter, photographer Gregory Holm and architect Matthew Radune plan to freeze one of the thousands of abandoned homes in Detroit to draw attention to the city's foreclosure crisis. The house will be sprayed with water and gradually covered in ice, and Holm will photograph its transformation for the project, called Ice House Detroit. The property that's chosen will be one that is already due for demolition, because it is fire damaged or dangerous to the public. After the freezing, the duo will work with Architectural Salvage Warehouse Detroit to salvage what they can from the house to be recycled. It will then be demolished, and they hope to donate the lot to a group like Greening of Detroit or Earthworks Urban Farm to be used as a community garden or other public space.

I'm sure these four frozen walls and a roof will stand out against the landscape of thousands of other vacant homes throughout what was once Motor City. But it's not Detroit natives who need a reminder of the plight of the city, which is why it's nice to see that this project, not yet begun, is getting attention on a national stage. I'm intrigued to see Holm's photographs of the house in frozen form.

Do You Frame Children's Artwork?

CasaSugar — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 06:15:06 -0700

A recent SFGate article tackled the question of what to do with children's artwork. Although I don't have any kiddles myself, friends' children have given me some lovely drawings, and I've often displayed them on the mantel for a while. However, I've never gotten around to framing anything. In the article, one mom is noted to "proudly displays walls' worth of her children's work. Her family's guest bathroom is covered floor to ceiling with art by her 11- and 13-year-old daughters."

Are you in this camp, or do you chuck the little ones' art in the recycling after it's served its time on the mantel or fridge?

Source: Flickr User Childrens Book Review

What Do You Know About Recycling Batteries?

CasaSugar — Thu, 26 Feb 2009 09:00:49 -0800

Before you toss a used battery in the trash, you might want to consider where it will end up in the waste stream. Is that battery considered hazardous? Should you take it to a recycling center? See what you know about battery recycling, as well as some eco ways to avoid trashing them, when you take my quiz.

Source

Take the quiz

Ask Casa: Post-Grad Style

CasaSugar — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 08:00:56 -0700

Hi Casa!
I'm 22 and I just started my first job out of college. Unfortunately, I still live with my parents. But I figure that if I have to do so then I might as well have a room I enjoy coming back to after a long day of work. I've been wanting to redecorate my room for a while now. However, I don't have a lot of money to spend on new furniture or décor. Most of my furniture is mismatched, and I've had it all since college. Do you have any tips on how I can update my room on the cheap and make it a place that I enjoy spending time?
Thanks! - Kerry

To hear my suggestions for Kerry, read more.

Hi Kerry,

Congrats! I don't think you're alone in this query. Luckily, there are a few easy and affordable things you can do to perk up your bedroom. The idea is to give your room polish and a distinct style, separate from how your parents may have decorated.

First of all, shed everything! If you'd moved into your new apartment, you wouldn't bring everything you've owned since grade school that's still sitting in your parents' house. So, go through it all and recycle, donate, or toss won't you don't want or need. This will give your room a more grownup, less cluttered feel.
Next, create symmetry. The easiest way to do this is to use matching nightstands or bedside table lamps. You can find very chic, affordable lamps at places like Target and HomeGoods. A nightstand can be just a simple side table.
Get a headboard. A headboard will instantly give your room a focal point, and curb any mismatched feel your other furniture gives off. If you can't afford a headboard, try any one of these 10 cool alternatives to off-the-shelf headboards.
Paint your mismatched furniture in one color - glossy white always works - to give the space cohesion.
Create a designated sitting area for reading, having your morning coffee, or making phone calls, etc., with a chair, small accent rug, and small side table. Then you won't feel trapped on your bed or hanging with your parents.
Paint your walls. Color is an easy and cheap fix for any room!
Give your bed a grownup makeover with white bedding, and add color and pattern with throw pillows or a bedskirt.
Find cheap artwork at flea markets, garage sales, or student art sales, or create your own.
Make the space cozy with a rug.
Go "shopping" in other rooms in your home. Look around your parents' home for furnishings that might facilitate the above. With an open mind, you never know what you may find.

Source

Mandatory Composting Begins in San Francisco Today

CasaSugar — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 06:15:23 -0700

Beginning today, the city of San Francisco will require both businesses and residences to compost food scraps and biodegradable products or risk a fine for not properly sorting their garbage. While other cities require recycling service and participation, the law, which Mayor Gavin Newsom signed into effect in June, is the first nationwide to require the collection of food scraps and other compostables.

A study by the Department of the Environment found that 36 percent of what San Francisco sends to landfills is compostable, primarily food scraps, and 31 percent is recyclable - which is mostly paper. Seeing that SF already has an impressive 72 percent recycling rate, the legislation could send that rate soaring to 90 percent.

To facilitate the program, the city will offer free green compost carts to apartment buildings and businesses, as well as free kitchen pails for renters. Fines will be capped at $100 and are meant primarily to raise public awareness and encourage compliance. Has your city or town made any moves to require composting? Has your city had success with any recycling fines or mandates? Tell me by commenting below!

Source: Flickr User MayorGavinNewsom

Cool Idea: Re-Imagining Cardboard Boxes

CasaSugar — Fri, 16 Oct 2009 08:00:14 -0700

Su Casa member Bromeliad could've simply recycled this cardboard box, but she saw hidden potential in its boring exterior. She explains, "This is a simple and inexpensive project I made using a cardboard box, doublesided tape and highlighter markers."

To see how she transformed the boxes, read more.

Bromeliad printed out an image of ikat that fit the size of her box, traced the shape, and colored it in. Using doublesided tape, she wrapped the cardboard box with the "ikat." What a cool, cheap transformation! Get all of the directions here.

Have you come up with a cool home project? Show it off in Su Casa!

How-To: House Backyard Chickens in Style

CasaSugar — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 08:00:24 -0700

My friend Beth, who I've known since high school, recently started a blog to update her friends and family on her latest domestic adventure - raising backyard chickens. Since Beth never does anything halfway, she and her husband Craig built a chicken coop that is super cute and matches their 1922 Craftsman home.

She writes, "I paid my way through college 10 years ago raising and killing chickens and also had laying hens. I wanted to get another batch of layers, but was resigned because a) we have a teeny tiny backyard; and b) my husband isn't much of a farmer."

However, all was not lost. Beth notes, "This spring, I convinced the man who drank a case of Diet Mountain Dew each week when we met (he has thankfully kicked the habit since) to build raised beds and start an organic garden. I gave up on the idea of having chickens, but he took up the cause and was convinced we could fit a small coop next to the garden."

To find out more about Beth and Craig's chicken-raising adventure, and to see how well their chicken coop matches their home, read more.

"We bought our chicks on July 9th and went on Seattle Tilth's coop tour the following weekend," reports Beth. "Craig took lots of photos and took all the best ideas from the coops we saw for his own design. Some materials were recycled: he salvaged the window and built the window box out of scraps we had from this and other projects. The coop is painted to match our house, white trim and all. Craig thinks the finished product took about 100 hours to build. It's a little over the top, but that's my husband. (By the way, not only has he stopped drinking Mountain Dew, but he's off all high fructose corn syrup and is quite the label reader. Weird. Now he's all about organic veggies and can't wait for the hens to start laying.)"

I have total chicken coop envy now, and I'm also envious of Beth's hubby's building skills. What a great coop! You can keep up with Beth and Craig's chicken adventures on Beth's blog. In the meantime, check out the gallery to see images of the decoupaged interior of the coop, as well as the coop's perfect match to their Craftsman.

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Casa Verde: Wooden Furniture That's Green and Budget-Friendly

CasaSugar — Wed, 16 Sep 2009 07:00:22 -0700

Slate magazine recently answered a reader's question about affordable, earth-friendly furniture. Are the two concepts compatible? And what are the best options? You can read the whole article here, but I've handily summed up the advice from writer Nina Shen Rastogi. The first (and perhaps most obvious) piece of advice is to buy the highest quality, solid wood furniture you can afford. This way, your furniture will last for decades (at least).
Ready for the rest of the advice? Then read more.

Furniture made from medium-density fiberboard is an affordable option that is made from leftover sawdust and lumber scraps. It takes more energy to produce MDF than it does to process lumber. However, as the article notes, "[f]igures from New Zealand suggest that, on a pound-for-pound basis, the production of composite-wood products is more energy-efficient [PDF] than making plastics and most metals."
Plywood, another type of composite panel, uses about the same energy to produce as MDF.
Buyer beware, though: MDF, particleboard, and plywood all contain adhesives that may release formaldehyde, a known human carcinogen, according to the International Agency For Research on Cancer.
The cheaper the furniture, the more likely it is to release formaldehyde, since it's more expensive to use more high-quality, less toxic glues, and to cure the furniture over time to ensure that the furniture isn't releasing formaldehyde.
To avoid this danger, look for furniture with low- or no-formaldehyde adhesives.
If your new MDF or particleboard furniture contains recycled content or alternative fibers, it is less likely to offgas.
If your particleboard or MDF furniture smells funky, leave it outside for a few days so it can offgas outside of your living space.
When buying solid wood furniture, ask about how the wood is sourced. Look for certification from the Forest Stewardship Council. Always ask retailers about how the wood is sourced, and let them know that this is important to you as a consumer.
The best option for both your budget and the planet is to buy secondhand solid wood furniture. Check flea markets, Craigslist, and tag sales for quality items.

Link Time!

CasaSugar — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 13:00:42 -0700

Green up your lunch routine with these reusable sandwich wrappers. - Shelterrific
Get tips on recycling your appliances. - Charles and Hudson
Clean that fridge! - ShelterPop
Browse Lori Graham's portfolio. - Desire to Inspire
What's your opinion of this sliced wood wall? - Re-Nest
Here's a fun fireplace alternative. - Simply Stated