Benefits of Furniture Reupholstery for Homeowners

There are a myriad of reasons as to why reupholstering your furniture can improve your home, and your standard of living. Check out some of the reasons now!

Furniture reupholstery is a homeowner’s best weapon against the approaching forces of decay. Every room has a distinct personality, but is subject to chaotic forces like wear and tear. Sofa reupholstery can help protect that favorite piece of furniture and preserve the playfulness of the living room or quiet reading spot when the family is away. Of course, every humble abode may require more work than simple couch reupholstery due to the sheer amount of furniture. While buying a home is a big investment, maintaining the furniture can be as well. Despite this, there are a number of benefits involved when reupholstering furniture.

Furniture repair can enhance a home in so many ways. The first major benefit is the positivity it can bring into a room. Couches and tables are always prone to some form of damage, whether from the family dog confusing the fixture for its favorite chew toy, or the kids getting a little too excited for company and spilling juice all over the table. When guests arrive, most homeowners want to be able to show off their space and have furniture that is inviting. By consistently managing repairs and damage, any room can look as fresh and new as it was upon first entering the home. Those little nicks will be nothing and every homeowner can feel confident and comfortable hosting a wide variety of events.

Dealing with immediate damage is an excellent preventative measure since that little mark can morph into a nasty scar, marring the piece you were so proud of purchasing. Also, tastes can change when you’ve been with the same piece of furniture for years. If you feel your décor is starting to look stale, then consider furniture reupholstery! Search for different types of cloth and fabrics to spruce up the piece. Transitioning from a blue to a red can make all the difference. Pushing the couch over to the left side can free up more walking space, or leaving it directly under a wide series of windows can allow for more sunlight. Taking advantage of space can be another cost effective method to support reupholstering.

Some damage can seem irreversible, so there are many things homeowners should consider before deciding on whether to reupholster or replace. By remaining vigilant about the damage imposed on furniture, homeowners can cut costs since repairs can be significantly less than the cost of replacements. Depending on the longevity of the couch, inspect it before deciding to repair. The most expensive part of a couch is the cushions, so reupholstering should be a primary option since retailers can run high prices. 

     

Ultimately, reupholstering that favorite couch or sofa can do wonders for your home. Taking out those tears and scratches can help maintain the look and feel of your home. That couch in the living room may say “welcome!” but if its tattered or old, guests might think it says “go away!” And as the kids grow older, they want to look forward to coming home and enjoying some rest after a long semester. While price can be a big decision maker, don’t let that prevent any transformations from happening. A happy home equals a happy life.

Jonathan has provided this guest post.

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Power From A Footstep

We are continually amazed by the innovation occurring in green energy.  Whether companies can earn a profit will be determined, but it is fascinating, none the less.

The latest to confound is a company named Pavegen.  They have found a way to harvest energy from footsteps in high traffic areas.  A small percent (.5%) goes to lighting a pad on the floor when depressed and the rest goes into a storage battery to power lighting or other needs.

The tiles are set to make their largest commercial debut in September inside the Westfield Stratford City shopping center in London. The shopping center is estimated to have 30 million visitors in its first year.

The innovation seems to be spurred by our desire to practice sustainability, the peak oil theory and high energy prices. Maybe we can find someone to harvest the energy of sitting in front of a TV or walking to the bathroom during commercial breaks or even from putting the seat down in homes where males live.

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Assistance With Home Repairs

Every time we turn around, it seems, prices of every day items increase.  We keep a wary eye on the Shell station nearby.  It’s a good day or bad day based on the gasoline price sign. We also know that heating our homes can be expensive.  We have oil heat and filling the tank can put a hole in our budget.  A cord of wood is expensive.  Lucky you if you heat with natural gas. 

Are you heating your home or is the heat leaking outside and the cold air of winter seeping in.  Fortunately in Oregon, as in many states across the country, you can get an energy audit of your home to see if there are ways to save on heating and air conditioning. For example, in New Jersey there’s The Energy Team, a leading independent energy efficiency expert, who offers energy audits, weatherization and insulation services, LED lighting, solar water heating and solar electric solutions, and water conservation plans.

Many people in this current economic environment might have trouble coming up with the money to spend on energy efficiency.  In Oregon there are all sorts of tax credit programs from local utilities that kick in once you’ve made improvements. However, the Federal Government has grants available if you qualify for assistance with home repairs.

A home repair grant is given to homeowners to make necessary repairs or to make the home safe for living. The grants may be used for bringing the electrical wiring up to code, or energy saving upgrades like insulation or storm windows. Home repair grants are generally reserved for people who can't qualify for a personal loan or a home equity line of credit due to low income, bad credit history, age or other factors.

The great thing about grants: they don’t have to be paid back and the money comes from  all of us taxpayers.Might as well get some of our dollars back!

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Time For Green Training

We read so much every day about new developments that are LEED certified.  Many designers and architects have taken many hours of training to achieve their certification to design the new buildings.
But what about the 130 million homes that were built before modern energy and building codes were established. Where does the consumer go for qualified advice to bring their home up to the new standards? Where does the interior designer, architect or contractor get the knowledge to add this element to their repertoire?

The Building Performance Institute, Inc. (BPI) offers bpi certificationto those taking bpi training in Residential & Commercial Energy Analysis, Building Performance Contracting, Solar Design a& Installation, Commercial Lighting and Assessment, Facility Energy Management, Indoor Air Quality, and Green Building Design.

In June 2012 the BPI will extend its certifications to energy auditor, retrofit installer, crew leader and quality control inspector. If you want to be involved in the energy upgrade industry, you might consider getting trained. The best part is the classes are offered by BPI and funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

By becoming a bpi building analyst, you will be able help homeowners in those 130 million homes improve their comfort and safety and reduce their energy bills. I don’t need to tell you how the rising prices of energy have impacted the consumer’s wallet. Your knowledge will help homeowners qualify for utility incentive programs that range from tax credit, grants, loans and rebate programs.  Here’s a link to the many programs just in the State of Oregon. 

This is the time to grow a new business or add to your existing one

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Be Prepared!

NASA has warned us of the dangers of solar storms and the harm that can come to our electrical systems.  Mike just read “A Distant Eden” a novel by Lloyd Tackitt that takes us on a journey to Texas during and after a huge solar storm hits earth.  The storm ruins our electric grid that moves power across our nation.  The storm also wipes out anything electrical; our computers, phones, pumps for water and gasoline and furnaces and the fuses and computers in our cars and trucks and trains and planes. Soon people are running out of water and starving.  There are no deliveries of food anymore.  The medicines that many need to stay alive are no longer be available.  The author writes that in such a situation, 97% of our population would die in less than a year. Very quickly, we are in a survival battle and it’s useful to know how to treat water so it’s potable, how to catch fish using fish traps and how to cook using solar box cookers.

Most of us have experienced power outages for a period of time.  Here in the Northwest, we’ve had silver thaws when the trees and power lines are covered in ice and we lose power for hours to a few days.  Parts of the country experience floods, tornados, hurricanes and earthquakes and power can be out for weeks or months. I’ve often wondered about generators. Do they plug into the house when they are used for power or do you plug into the generator?  I was asked to write something about the subject and consulted the website of Generators A to Z for the answers. I learned that depending our your needs you can plug directly into a generator, like your refrigerator to keep your frozen items frozen or you can have a transfer switch added so you can run your appliances through the circuit breaker. Generator 101 helps you decide whether to you need a conventional generator or inverter generator and the differences.  Generator 101 also helps you figure how big of a generator you might need, the fuel, the number of hours it can run.  The website has prices for the various kinds of generators.

Reading “A Distant Eden” and familiarizing yourself with solar box cookers and generators could be the difference in you and your family surviving the next disaster.

BTW, right now the Kindle edition of "A Distant Eden" is available for 99 cents:

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Is It Time For A New Mattress?

“FURNITURE TODAY” reports that the International Sleep Products Assn. (ISPA) will propose a federal mattress recycling law to address the growing problem of mattress disposal in landfills. Green Living Tips tells us that “…between 20 and 40 million mattresses are disposed of in the USA alone each year, most ending up in landfill.” The big problem is that the things don’t compress like regular garbage. One answer the problem is recycling, however the ISPA shows only 25 recycling centers exist in the U.S.. There are two in Oregon, one in Eugene and one in Tualatin. Arizona’s recycling center says that 3,000,000 cubic feet of landfill could be saved, if they recycled only 10% of the total mattresses replaced in Arizona every year. 

Right now, when you buy a new mattress, your old mattress is hauled away.  One major mattress retailer said that 15% of used mattresses can be donated but the other 85% are recycled. Green Living adds, “The average queen size mattress weighs about 60 pounds. It contains about six pounds of Polyurethane foam, which can be sent for reuse, chemical recycling, or can be incinerated for energy recovery. The used foam can be turned into carpet underlay or insulation. The wooden frames can be chipped and used as fuel, and the cotton can be used in industrial machinery oil filters and other textile applications. The springs, made from steel, have a high market value as scrap but are difficult to compress.”

The ISPA is considering “…a fee for mattress recovery collected on a mattress sold at retail and remitted to the Mattress Recycling Council (MRC).” The new non-profit, volunteer-led group that would represent the needs of manufacturers, retailers, and consumers with the government charged with setting up a mattress-recycling program.

The other problem of old mattresses is their danger to health.  One retailer told me that a used mattress can weigh up to ten times more than when it was new, because of dust mites, bacteria and bed bugs.

What can you do when it’s time to replace the old mattress?  Ask about the retailer’s recycling policy. Not all retailers recycle.  You can also make better-informed choices. “Look for mattresses made from materials such as Forest Stewardship Council certified wood frames, natural latex cores, wool, bamboo, hemp and organic cotton. If you have your heart set on a spring mattress, try to locate one that uses recycled steel for the springs. The use of components such as wool also removes the need for chemical fire retardants to be used.”  In addition natural fibers wick moisture into the air rather than provide a breeding ground for dust mites.  Some even say that there’s an energy in healthy wool that operates positively on your body.

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There's a free symposium on interior design's history and future on March 24th at University of Kentucky School of Interior Design that I would like to attend, but can't. Speakers include Prataap Patrose on socially responsible design, Robin Guenther on hospital design and Cindy Coleman on workplace design.

Experts from a variety of disciplines will discuss how interior design has evolved as a result of increasingly complex modern buildings. The design of structures is now a multidisciplinary process in which architects, interior designers, landscape architects, engineers and other consultants work together to achieve successful solutions to meet a client's needs. As a part of this team, interior designers provide professional expertise in the most effective use of spaces and in how to create interior environments that provide for the well-being of their occupants.

The core of the work in the modern practice of interior design focuses on schools, offices, restaurants, hotels, hospitals, airport terminals and retail stores. In all of these building types, the core objective of professional interior designers is to create environments that support and sustain human beings psychologically, physically and emotionally.

[...]

Forty years ago, it was not unusual for an architectural firm to handle limited interior design services, or the architects would contract with outside interior design consultants. As building construction expanded in the 1980s and '90s, these architectural firms began to add interior design professionals to their staffs. The number of interior design firms specializing in commercial work also began to grow rapidly.

There also has been expansion in the number of multidisciplinary design firms that began to offer interior design as a unique and distinctive service apart from architectural and engineering work. The interior design expertise offered by these firms brings a sustained emphasis on the physical, psychological and emotional needs of the client while emphasizing how these priorities can support the client's goals and objectives.

I will try to get a transcript of the symposium after the event.

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Smog-Eating Roof Tiles

We are all about new products that are good for the environment and don't contribute to the waste or landfill problem. Here's a product that is new to me: Smog-Eating Roof Tiles. Here's what I like best:

Over one year, a 2,000 square foot BoralPure™ Smog Eating Tile roof can oxidize the same amount of Nitrogen Oxide as a car produces from being driven up to 10,800 miles.

Think of that! For every home in the city of Portland, for example, that switches to this kind of tile roof as your old roof wears out, you are taking the equivalent of one car's pollution off the road each year. Think of the health effects of cleaner air.

Popular Mechanics covered the new tile and says it is approximately $650 more than a standard 2500-sq.-ft. tile roof. Boral is the producer of Smog-Eating Roof Tiles. I didn't know this but tile roofs aregreen, weather resistant, hail resistant, fire resistant and energy efficient and they come with a limited lifetime warranty that is transferable. How does it work?

The photocatalyst in BoralPure Smog Eating Tile naturally oxidizes harmful airborne pollutants, helping clean the air. This revolutionary roof tile includes a micro-mortar surface with the key ingredient Titanium Dioxide, a photocatalyst, which is activated by the UV content in daylight. The active surface interacts with harmful nitrogen oxides in the air and helps convert them into calcium nitrates. When it rains, the calcium nitrates are washed off the roof.

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The Final Day of Our White Sale

 

1 More Day- GLASS RECYCLED's WHITE SALE promotion is coming to an end on February 29, 2012.
They are offering an iPad2 with an order of a GlassSLAB that has a white resin base; yes, this includes all custom designs. They are working hard to provide one of a kind pieces art for your home or office. Place your orders by February 29, 2012 and receive an iPad2!

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GLASS RECYCLED Update

GLASS RECYCLED's White Sale

Missed Out on a FREE iPad2?

GLASS RECYCLED is extending its WHITE SALE promotion for another month. THey are offering an iPad2 with an order of a GlassSLAB; yes, this includes all custom designs. They are working hard to provide one of a kind pieces art for your home or office. Place your orders by February 29, 2012 and receive an iPad2!

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GLASS RECYCLED

Terrazzo floors were originally made in Western Asia 9,000 to 8,000 BC with burnt lime and clay, colored red with ochre and polished.  Much later, Venice invented a terrazzo that used marble chips in clay and goat milk as low cost flooring when polished.

GLASS RECYCLED has improved on the process by turning glass bottles and discarded porcelain fixtures into beauty. Instead of filling our landfills with some 30 billion bottles, they turn post-consumer and industrial glass into gorgeous countertops, fabulous flooring and landscape materials.


Sustainability is very important to GLASS RECYCLED. Their terrazzo is easy to maintain and lasts as long as your building or home stands. By mixing crushed glass with an epoxy resin, they’ve created over 400+ sparkling terrazzo designs.

Durability and low maintenance are at the core of green construction. Terrazzo flooring can be refinished repeatedly, reusing instead of replacing materials. It can be restored to its original luster at a fraction of the cost of replacement. Routine maintenance for Terrazzo flooring (both cement and thin-set epoxy) is easy; just dry and damp mop.

With no VOCs, GLASS RECYCLED earns further points on indoor air quality ratings. Both cement-based and thin-set epoxy Terrazzo systems are made of zero VOC materials. Terrazzo produces little or no off-gassing over the life of a cured floor. The non-porous Terrazzo finish resists microbial growth and moisture.

The potential for local sourcing is another environmental strength of Terrazzo. Manufactured on site, Terrazzo installations generally produce minimal post-commercial waste and save on transportation costs.

Please welcome another of our quality advertisers. We invite you to imagine the possibilities of GLASS RECYCLED. Browse their gallery of eco-friendly designs, and request a sampleto see how their recycled glass countertops and recycled glass flooring will look in your home or office.

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Kudos To Interior Designer Marcie Harris

There's something written almost everyday about our home and office environments with words like LEED, sustainability, Green, indoor air pollution, low VOCs.  I was reminded by a Baltimore Sun article recently that we wrote about "Universal design" back in 2005, when we interviewed interior designer Marcie Harris.

Marcie Harris said "Universal Design" and "Green Design" are areas that we now think of as 'specialties" but I believe will soon be standard requirements for all credible design proposals.



Bev: Whoa, Marcie, Mike just got lost with talk of "Universal Design" and "Green Design".
Mike: How did we switch to Green cars and Universal joints?
Marcie Harris: Ha, Ha! Certainly there is correct terminology for this concept - but my interpretation of Universal Design is creating an environment that is end-user friendly - for all age groups and for users with physical limitations. It is not just about ADA compliance. For instance, a space designed for a young family could have lower vanities in the baths for the kids - perhaps with a pullout cabinet under the sink if someone in a wheelchair needed to use it. It is about proper lighting - reducing glare, proper task lighting. It is about proper flooring - seamless changes in flooring materials so someone with limited ambulatory abilities won't trip on the edge of a surface change. It is about wider doorways and hallways and making bathrooms more accessible and safer with proper grab bars and turning radius and wheel- in showers. It is about a space that if you suddenly broke your leg - you would not be helpless in your own space. It is about aging in place.

Bev: It could be about aging "boomers"! And "green Design?
Marcie Harris: Again, we've heard a lot of this lately. My interpretation of Green Design is that designers and architects need to be educated about the 'lifecycle" of the products they specify. This is not only the recycling capability of products, but thinking about what it took to make the product in the first place. Obviously we can't evaluate everything - but if more pressure were put on manufacturers from designers and architects regarding "green design", I believe the industry would react accordingly. I have a client with a child that came down with environmental sickness after they moved into their new home. The off-gassing of VOC's from the various products (osb board, carpet glue etc.) was enough to keep her out of one whole year of high school. This was 8 years ago and things are improving - but it is still a huge concern.

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Craftsmanship of Furniture Helps To Get Industry Through Tough Economic Times

We don't often accept guest writers, but in this case we made an exception. This article is about the recovery of the furniture industry. It's about quality and it's written by Harden Furniture, one of the leaders of sustainable manufacturing and that's important this close to Earth Day.

A house isn't a home until it has furniture in it. -This is true for the basic reasons that everybody needs a place to sit down, eat, and relax. Without furniture a home isn't a home, it's literally just an open empty space. However, that statement also works on deeper level. Furniture shows who someone is and what their tastes can be. Simply put, you are where you sit. If someone chooses solid wood furniture over new aged designed (and often sometimes awkward looking) furniture, it shows that they have a respect for the old school craftsmanship of the form and want their homes to convey that. Yet, this same type of craftsmanship is also what's helping get the furniture industry through the current recession.

The recession has had a widespread reaching effect on almost every industry, and furniture is no exception. However, the furniture industry has shown that it can outlast the recession through focusing on customer service, creating business models that help protect the environment, and most importantly keep producing high quality products. Quirky designed furniture does have its place in the industry, but ultimately has not helped to keep the industry afloat during these tough economic times. This is why designers who are heading to furniture fairs like the Salone Internazionale del Mobile di Milano are struggling to get their state of art furniture to the public. As much as a trendy chair would fit in many situations it can't contend with the comfort and familiarity of well-made solid wood office furniture, especially during a time when comfort and familiarity is needed.

The argument can be made that well made products like solid wood living room furniture is helping to get the industry through the recession and into a successful future and this is because of quality. A focus on craftsmanship can break through any slump, economic or otherwise, and that's why the furniture industry has lasted through this recession and most likely will last through any to come.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design gallery
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Green Design Summit

Don't forget to sign up for the Green Design Summit to be held June 29–30 via Webcast. The event looks to help architects and designers meet rising demand for environmentally friendly materials and designs.

Click here to sign up today!

The two-day Green Design Summit, available nationwide and internationally, will offer a host of well-known experts in green construction, architecture, interior design and the ecological impacts and tax benefits of going green.

Speakers for the event include:
• Ed Begley Jr., actor, environmental activist and HGTV star, presenting "Living With Ed."
• Penny Bonda, FASID & LEED AP, green blogger for Interior Design Magazine, presenting "The New LEED Requirements–What You Need to Know."
• Leslie Carothers of The Kaleidoscope Partnership, a consultant to the furniture industry, interior designer and blogger for Furniture Today, presenting "Specifying Green Furniture."
• Bob Dixson, Mayor of Greensburg, a city that was 95 percent destroyed by a tornado, presenting "The Story of Greensburg and How Building Green Has Transformed the City."
• Joshua Foss, LEED AP, Season 2 HGTV Design Star Contestant and Metro Hippie Blogger, presenting "How to Build Your Practice Around Sustainable Design."
• Lisa Foster, founder of 1 Bag at a Time, presenting "What Is Your Carbon Footprint and What You Can Do to Reduce It."
• Tom Hamilton, senior product marketing manager for Philips Color Kinetics, presenting "Designing Energy Efficient Lighting & Maintaining Aesthetics."
• Libby Langdon, HGTV star of "Small Space, Big Style" and author of Design in Small Spaces, presenting "Design Ideas for Smaller Space Clients."
• Michael Port, New York Times best-selling author and business coach, presenting "The Think Big Manifesto–Think You Can’t Change Your Life (and the World)? Think Again."
• Sarah Susanka, FAIA, architect, interior designer and author of eight books selling more than 1 million copies, presenting "Not So Big Remodeling."
• Cassie Walker, author of The Green Office Handbook and founder of The Sustainable Office, presenting "How to Green Your Office and Help Your Clients Green Their Spaces."
• Robin Wilson, New York interior designer for President Clinton's Harlem office, and the Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Mary Richardson LEED residence, presenting "Eco-friendly Design from the Foundation to the Furniture."

The Green Design Summit requires no traveling and is a wholly Green event delivered by telesummit/webcast. Attendees receive downloadable MP3 recordings and transcripts of each speaker interview. Tickets are $297.

Click here to sign up today!

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design gallery
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Denver Home Living Tips Examiner: How toxic is your furniture?

Denver Home Living Tips Examiner: How toxic is your furniture?

Posted using ShareThis

Questions you can ask:

What kind of wood is this item made of?
Where was it made, does it contain MDF?
Does this product contain natural ingredients, fabrics or chemicals?
Is this carpet of a synthetic or natural fiber?
Are the fabrics or stuffing of this mattress, cushion or window covering natural?
Was Urea-formaldehyde used on this item of clothing, insulation, carpet, drape, desk, kitchen cabinet or flooring?

We carry several lines that are compliant with Green living. Just ask Beverly for information.

Bev & Mike
Landfair Furniture + Design gallery
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