elementarian's Profile

Another Midwesterner here, loving the feature of our humble but soulful part of the country and LOVING this house tour!

Hi Janel - the ReBuilding Exchange address is 3335 W 47th, not 335!

this is awesome! but the one thing that will prevent me from buying them is that they do not appear to be made from recycled materials. i hate to buy more virgin plastic stuff in order to reuse jars.

This is breathtaking. I love the rustic/green charm, but not the furniture either. But hey if you buy the place you can put in whatever you like! :)

I haven't tried these containers, but I LOVE the Snapware Glasslock containers linked above, which are completely leak proof (I can fill the container with soup and put it sideways in my work bag without any worries). The lids are not microwaveable either, but it hasn't bothered me and I've found them to be an excellent value.

I have 2 of the round ones, since I find round to be easier to clean than square: http://www.amazon.com/Glasslock-Food-Storage-Container-Round/dp/B00167Z3JY/ref=pd_sim_k_7

I would love to see some articles, pictures, DIY instructions, etc. about hydroponic or aquaponic systems for growing plants (edible or not) indoors year-round.

And I would love to see more inspiring examples of creative reuse.

Finally, I feel passionately that "green" must go beyond just "environmentally friendly" this-and-that-expensive-shiny-product, but to really mean "sustainability" in a triple-bottom-line sense: good for the economy, environment, and social equity. Maybe some features on affordable housing, rebuilding in New Orleans or Haiti, community gardening, and products that improve people's lives. A couple of design-centered ideas to start:
- Project H Design: http://projecthdesign.org/ humanitarian product design organization. The director and author of the accompanying book "Design Revolution" was on Colbert last week! They have a roadshow touring the country in the coming months.
- Archeworks: http://www.archeworks.org/ Chicago-based alternative design school where students partner with local nonprofits to address social and environmental issues through outside-the-box design.

Thanks for the reminder! I'm thinking about installing some Solatubes this year: http://www.solatube.com/

real snowflakes are physically formed to be 6- and 12-sided, not 4- or 8-sided like most of these are. an instructables on making 6-sided snowflakes: http://www.instructables.com/id/Make-A-6-sided-snowflake/

i think most of these are gorgeous, though. and yes, i'm laughing at myself too :)

i love these photos too, and appreciate getting a peek at these people's lives in such tiny spaces that would otherwise go undocumented.

but the term "sub-culture" strikes me as inappropriate in describing this environment, it seems to fish-bowl the subjects in an almost exploitative way. i'm curious about people's thoughts on this. am i just over-thinking it?

from what i understand, the term "sub-culture" implies at least partial will to identify with the distinguishing qualities of the subculture. beatniks, punks, gamers, trekkies... those strike me as sub-cultures. in the case of these residents of this public housing, the use of the term "sub-culture" struck me as somewhat insensitive and potentially offensive, as i don't think the 100-sf-space lifestyle is something the residents necessarily want to identify with. would you call low-income residents in housing projects in the U.S. a "subculture" as a group? seems a bit condescending almost. i don't know, it just doesn't sit right with me.

perhaps i'm over-thinking it! in any case, thanks for the thought-provoking post!

patrick: yeah obviously not all the heat from a halogen light bulb travels skyward! but my point is, is it really sensible to defend the use of halogen lightbulbs at close to ceiling height as a source for heat on cold winter nights?!! seems kind of ridiculous to me.