Story Behind the Scarves

I bought a beautiful unique scarf made of recycled saris from a friends' annual 'Christmas Store' at her home.  Recently, I called her to ask where she purchased these scarves.  I wanted to feature them in my store in Kenmore, Healthy Homes & Lifestyles, where I sell items made of recycled materials, plant based/natural supplements and products from locally owned businesses. 

What I found was an organization www.ConciousByKali.com created by clothing designer Kali Basi from Yelm Washington.  I met with Kali and learned the tragic story behind the scarves.  Kali created this company for the sole purpose of helping young women and children that are the victims of human trafficking.  She personally funded a factory in Nepal that hires, trains and educates rescued survivors.  They create these beautiful recycled sari/felted scarves that Kali sells in the United States.  100% of the proceeds go back to the women/girl survivors. 

Each scarf is tagged and signed by the survivor that made it saying, 'Your purchase helps ensure the new livelihood of a sex trafficking survivor.  Thank you for making a difference!'

*Nearly 80% of all human trafficking involves sexual exploitation. *Human trafficking is the fastest growing criminal enterprise;  it holds low risk with high profits. *Human slaves are cheaper today than they have ever historically been.  This is due to the increase in global population and impoverished areas. *Humans can be bought and sold repeatedly, unlike drugs.  *Once rescued, slavery victims are often considered pariahs in society.

Where to place water filtering/ionizing systems into an existing home?

Kitchen sinks and bar sinks are the most popular locations.  But will it fit in those locations?First of all, it is important to point out that the ‘faucet’ part of the system fits into any regular faucet hole in your counter.  There are two things to look for: 1) an available faucet hole, or an area available by a sink to create a new faucet hole. 2) space in sink cabinet for the filtering/ionization system.

Faucet holes can be made available by a) removing an existing faucet b) changing the existing faucet that has the spout and handle in separate holes to a newer faucet that has the handle attached to the spout c) removing a soap dispenser d) removing an existing filtered water faucet e) changing the existing faucet that has a separate hole for the spray f) drilling a new hole

The space needed in the sink cabinet is 5 1/2” wide x 14 1/8” long x 14” high. 

A typical sink cabinet has the sink and plumbing located in the center of the cabinet, leaving the sides as potential areas to place this system.  There may be a garbage disposal that is occupying space in the sink cabinet.  Installation of the system is EASY with the clear instructions provided.Box fits in sink cabinet  

Retail price is $4995.00 (call me for discounted pricing.)  Considering that bottled 9.0 alkaline water sells for $3.00 bottle and massages cost around $95 (are you buying large bottled water and carrying it home?) and that this system successfully filters out all contaminants AND has the option of producing Alkaline water, this investment is well worth the money spent.  This is a household ‘appliance’ that has far reaching health benefits for your entire family.

Politics Poisoning & Prevention

Lead in your Home

We’ve known the health effects of lead poisoning for a long time and now know that there is NO safe threshold for lead exposure.  Because of political pressure, many countries, cities and states have allowed and sometimes mandated that lead pipes be utilized for water distribution, that lead be added into gasoline, and have allowed lead based paints into homes.  These products/installations are now illegal. HOWEVER, these lead pipes, lead solder connecting copper pipes, and lead based paints are STILL in our homes, potentially poisoning ourselves, our children and grandchildren.  The information on lead poisoning is so vast that I am presenting only statements and quotations in a timeline fashion with references for your research.

Lead poisoning (also known as plumbism, colica pictorum, saturnism or painter’s colic) first written about by the Egyptians is said to have contributed to the fall of the Roman Empire.  *6

1850 Scientists began fingering water pipes as the source of a growing number of lead poisoning cases. *9

1866 New York Herald published the article “The Dangers of Lead Pipes” #9

1900-1920 Homes built in this period usually have lead based pipes *1

1910-20 When municipalities began banning the use of lead pipes in the 1910s and 1920s, other sources of lead poisoning – paint, for example – also came under scrutiny.  In response, the lead industry fought back.  The National Lead Company ran ads proclaiming that ‘lead helps to guard your health’ *9

1920 Environmental pollution by lead caused by the introduction of tetraethyl lead in gasoline became an alarming public health problem.  The use became restricted in the 1980’s:  its effects on blood lead levels are now evident. *6

1921 the International Labour Conference organized a meeting in Geneva to adopt the White Lead Convention.  The convention led to the prohibition of the use of white lead in indoor painting in the several countries…Sweden and Czechoslovakia…Austria, Poland and Spain…Finland and Norway. In the United States, the Lead Industries Association succeeded in blocking the signing of the ILO convention. *6 

1921 Surgeon General convened a meeting when 8 workers died in straitjackets from dramatic central nervous system involvement from tetraethyl lead poisoning. *6

1928 To maintain sales of lead pipe, the LIA (Lead Industry Association) lobbied the government at all levels and targeted the people who both designed and installed water distribution systems with outreach and educational material and other resources.  The association carried on its promotional campaign into the 1970’s *10

1928 LIA’s Plumbing Promotion Program succeeded in Massachusetts where bans on certain kinds of lead pipe were lifted, in Pennsylvania lead pipe was formally required by the plumbing code to the exclusion of alternatives.  The LIA even managed to have lead pipes inserted into regulations governing federal construction projects, as well as building codes and building specifications. *9

1950 Federal guidelines and specifications sanctioned lead pipes into the 1950s

1920-1965 Homes built in 1920-1965 generally have galvanized plumbing *1

1960 when artificial softening of drinking water began,   lead began to dissolve from the pipes.*6

1965-1980 These homes are considered risky if they were built between 1965 and 1980 when copper pipes and lead-based solder were common place in plumbing *1

1970 LIA (Lead Industry Association) lobbied the government at all levels into the 1970s. *10

1970 Only four US states and 10 municipalities had laws or ordinances prohibiting indoor use of lead paint.  In 1970 it was estimated that the annual incidence of symptomatic and asymptomatic lead poisoning in the U.S was as high as 240,000 cases.*6

1970-1980 National model plumbing codes APPROVED LEAD into the 1970s and 1980s and most water systems based their regulations on those codes.  During this time period there were more than 22 million new homes built in the United States *1  The primary source for lead in most drinking water sources is the piping used within a distribution system or the household plumbing…YOUR household plumbing may be the cause for lead in your drinking water.*4

1978 World Health Organization convened an expert meeting to scrutinize the present knowledge on lead, mercury and cadmium, creating a booklet called “Recommended Health-Based Limits in Occupational Exposure to Heavy Metals.”  The WHO officers who were involved in editing the document have privately stated that industry representatives lobbied heavily, both in the WHO and in the then CEC Health Protectorate, to prevent the publication.  These activities delayed the publication of the report and degraded it to a “technical report.” *6

1978 Federal government banned the use of lead based paint. 

1980 Seattle banned lead-based plumbing materials *1

1980 Nearly all homes built prior to the 1980s still have lead solder connecting copper pipes. *8

1984 EPA conducted a survey of 153 public water systems finding that 73% had installed lead service lines (a service line is the pipe from the street to your house) *10

1985 King County banned lead-based plumbing materials *1

1986 passage of Safe Drinking Water Act prohibited installation of lead water pipes.

1987 Washington State banned lead-based plumbing materials*1

1990 In the US practically no leaded gasoline was sold after 1990. *6

1990 Testing of children with lead poisoning showed a decrease in IQ of 6 points leading some scientists to suggest that slipping school performance in the US to a large extent can be attributed to past subclinical childhood lead poisoning. *6

1997 Seattle Public Utilities random sampling found 90% of houses came back with lead levels at nearly 20ppb

1997 CDC  estimates that as many as 5% of all American children suffer from subclinical lead poisoning. *7

2001 Seattle began adding soda ash meant to reduce most of the lead leaching from problem pipes. *1

2003 20% of all lead exposure in young children comes from drinking water *7

2004 Seattle Public Schools find high levels of lead in the drinking fountains *1

2004 Plumbing in many city homes poses lead risk.  *1

2004 EPA’s standard for lead contamination of drinking water is ZERO.*1   There is NO safe level for lead exposure *4   Standard for immediate action is 15 ppb. *1

2010 EPA RRP (Renovation Repair & Painting) ruling came into effect penalizing residential contractors up to $35,000 per incident if work done on homes older than 1978 is not within the RRP guidelines.  This ruling is to attempt to protect residents, owners, and workers from lead poisoning from lead based paint.  A minute amount of lead dust can cause lead poisoning. EG, Nailing a picture hanger into the wall could cause lead poisoning.

2014 PRIOR to 2014 the legal definition for “lead free” was plumbing fixtures with a lead content of less than 8%.  In 2014, the term was redefined to include only fixtures with a lead content of .25% and newly installed fixtures must use the “lead free” materials, but this did not apply to fixtures currently in use. *4

2016 EPA considering a more ‘proactive approach’ to replacing lead pipes. *2

2016 Some major US cities still have 100 percent lead piping bringing water from the utilities to homes and businesses. *8

2016  Hundreds of tons of the lead in paint that covered the walls of houses, apartment buildings and workplaces across the United States remains in place almost four decades later…*2

2016 EPA officials addressing Plumbing Manufacturers International said that the EPA has reason to believe that faucets are being imported into the U.S. that contain lead in excess of the SDWA requirements of 11 parts per billion. *8

It is a shame if action is not taken when all the ingredients for successful prevention exist.  *6

Be Safe, Christine

*1 Candace Heckman, Seattle Post-Intelligencer Reporter

*2 Arthur Delaney Huffpost

*3 Wikipedia

*4 Brian Oram PG, Special report #3, http://www.water-research.net/index.php/lead

*5 Alexandra Ossola

*6 Sven Hernberg, MD PHD

*7 Werner Troesken & Patricia E Beeson

*8 PMI Plumbing Manufacturers International https://www.safeplumbing.org/health-safety/lead-in-plumbing

*9 Stephen Mihm smihm1@bloomberg.net

*10 Richard Rabin, MSPH  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2509614/

Water is Life - Life is Water

Water is a big part of our body – water and electricity.  Our body is made up of cells that communicate and ‘live’ through electrical and chemical charges (synapses.)*   Dr Robert Becker of The Body Electric* wrote ‘Electricity is vital to life.’  And of course, we all know that electricity needs water to exist.  So if our body, and our planet, are intrinsically dependent on water, we should value this resource as it affects our body, health and existence.

So let’s talk about the water you put in your body

We are still purchasing bottled water to drink both at home and away from home.  Although the plastic bottles of water with BPA in them are known to be hazardous to your health, (FDA declared BPA safe in 2008, but in 2010 modified their position, then 2012 banned the chemical in baby bottles) it turns out the BPA-free plastics are just as bad or worse than the BPA bottles.* Currently, the ‘safest bottle’ is a glass bottle wrapped in a silicone sleeve for protection.* The water that we purchase in bottled waters claim to be ‘filtered’ or ‘natural’ but when tested for their affects on your body in relation to ph* levels and orp*, they fall below tap water.

Tap water, as we know, is not perfect, and contains chlorine as well as other contaminants.  Many people purchase and install water filters in their kitchens in an attempt to better the water that they consume.  My latest research has shown that Ionized water machines are providing health benefits that other types of water do not.  The theory (behind the testimonials) is that through the process of electrolysis, water is ionized to produce ionized alkaline water.  Ionization breaks up the molecule clusters, making it easier for the water to penetrate your cells. ‘The other way an ionizer alters water is to TURN REGULAR WATER INTO A POWERFUL ANTIOXIDANT, measured as ORP* (Oxidation Reduction Potential.)’  This is turning your water into a source of healing.  The better ionizer machines will also have two carbon filters that remove the chlorine but retain the minerals.

The other crazy information that I witnessed about ionized water is the cleaning aspect.  The dramatic demonstration shows two glasses of cherry tomatoes, one being ‘washed’ in tap water and the second being ‘washed’ in 11.5 ph ionized alkaline water. Apparently oil based pesticides replaced water based pesticides which were too easily removed with rainwater.  SO, when you ‘wash’ your fruits and vegetables in tap water, the pesticides are not removed.  When soaked in 11.5 ph ionized alkaline water the water turns a sickly yellow color.  This is what we are putting in our body!  I spoke to a researcher at the University of Washington who is studying the effects of pesticides in people and besides the commonly known facts of cancer, reproductive problems, and developmental disorders, there is a proven decrease in cognitive abilities.  OUCH!  Fruits and vegetables that have pesticides on them are HARMFUL to your HEALTH.

The apparent benefit of ionized water machines are twofold, one creating healing/healthy/antioxidant water for you to drink and the second to successfully remove the poisons that are in our ‘fresh’ vegetables and fruits.  I cannot think of a more important investment in your health than the investment of an ionized water machine.  There are many testimonials about the healing aspects of certain waters, some throughout the centuries.  Scientists are now discovering that the difference in the waters are in the ORP levels.  People are being healed with ionized water, this is something you need to look at.

Going Green, Christine

Healthy Homes & Lifestyles

I am pleased to invite you to visit my design studio and gift store Healthy Homes & Lifestyles at the new Lakeview Yoga and Wellness Center, 7800 NE Bothell Way #155, Kenmore, WA. 

We are hosting an Open House to show off our new digs on Saturday June 7 from Noon – 3:00 PM.  Festivities include food and drink, gift bags for the first 50 people and gift packages that will be raffled off to our guests.  Kenmore Fitness is joining us in celebrating our move to the new facilities.  I designed both spaces and although they are polar opposites in the style (Relaxing Spa versus High Energy weight lifting,) both are equally successful in creating a sense of space that reflects their customers values and preferences.     

My obsession with locally made, healthy, sustainable and recycled materials had led me to provide these products for my clients.  Let me introduce you to some of the offerings:

Univera products have been a part of my life for a few years now.  Univera is a company that makes plant based supplements for your health.  Their headquarters is in Seattle and they ship out of Lacey Washington.  Of their many wonderful products I selected Xtra (for anti-oxidants), Regenicare and Regenifree (for body pain and mobility), Aloe (for moisturizing and healing cuts and burns) and Femme Vitale (for women my age).

Bio-Therapeutic Skin Care was created for professional aestheticians and we are lucky enough to be able to offer these products to the general public.  Specifically formulated for maximizing the health of your skin, all of their products are paraben free (paraben preservatives are linked to cancer) as well as being locally manufactured.

Bio Green Clean is an extremely effective cleaning solution that is made of 100% pure ingredients such as amino acids, minerals, leafy green vegetables, etc and is so healthy that if you accidentally drank it, you would be fine.  I have had professional cleaning services ask me where to purchase this cleaner because of its’ effectiveness and safety for use on all surfaces.

Bellmont Cabinets is a family owned company in Sumner Washington, and creates some of the finest cabinets I’ve seen.  Their plant is extremely impressive with ‘just in time’ manufacturing which allows customization of cabinets without extra costs or wasted materials.  They have a huge commitment to providing quality cabinets within a completely ‘green’ manufacturing plant which wastes not, protecting both the environment as well as their employees and customers.

Theo’s Chocolates – need I say more?  Locally made, the Nibs are extremely high in anti-oxidants, in fact I never knew that anti-oxidants could be so enjoyable to eat!

I look forward to seeing and talking to every one of you!  Come visit me at my new home!   Sincerely, Christine

New Beginnings

Happy New Year!   Along with you, I have been reflecting on the past year and setting new goals for 2014.  Welcoming in the new year is like getting onto an airplane.  One of the things I like about getting onto an airplane is that I feel that I am about to embark upon a new adventure and that I am leaving my troubles behind. (at least symbolically.)  This is how I feel about 2014, it is a new year and I am embarking on a new adventure! 

After much deliberation, I have decided to go back to school. Sitting next to young smart people is stimulating enough but I also find that I am excited to be in a learning environment!   I will have help maintaining my Design Studio and Remodeling services and in fact I am adding to my Cabinet displays.  We are moving the showroom/office two blocks to a new location where I will have all my materials displayed along with a new cabinet display showcasing Bellmont’s wide array of chic styles.  I am also going to have a small Store that will feature healthy and sustainable health supplements, skin care for adults (my age!), specialty teas, non toxic cleaning supplies, meditation cds, bags and gifts using recycled materials, books, yoga mats, chocolate nibs (high on anti-oxidants,) and more.  

Our new name reflects our passion – Healthy Homes & Lifestyles!  You HAVE to visit US!

Please join us in the celebration early March (details to follow), our new home will be 7800 NE Bothell Way Suite 150, Kenmore WA

Always green, Christine

Microwave ovens – will we replace them with Steam ovens?

Years ago, Miele (German manufacturer of appliances), introduced the ‘Speed Oven.’  It was the first hybrid of a microwave and a convection oven.  It is still one of the leading technologies of microwave/convection because it not only cooks either microwave or convection, but it can utilize both at the same time to increase the speed and quality of the cooking.  Miele was  mindful of the limited space in some kitchens and used the microwave (which has become a mainstay of the contemporary kitchen) to double as a second oven.

Recently Miele has taken its Steam Oven and combined it with a Convection oven (called a Combi-Steam oven.)   According to the representative, the Combi-Steam oven is overtaking the Speed oven in popularity, mainly due to the healthy benefits of steam cooking over microwave cooking.

Once considered a ‘specialty’ appliance, the steam oven is working its way into the standard kitchen appliance list.  Everyone knows that steam cooking is the healthiest way of cooking, mainly because it retains the nutrients, vitamins and minerals of the food.  It also maintains the moisture in the food and you do not need to use any oils or fats.  Because of the lack of oils and fats, cleaning the pots/pans is extremely easy.  In our new ‘health’ oriented society, steaming is ‘in’ and microwaving is ‘out.’  Although the FDA claims that microwave cooking does not reduce the nutritional value of foods ‘any more than conventional cooking,’ steam cooking experts claim that up to 60% of the nutrients and glucosinolates can get damaged by boiling or microwave cooking.

I’ve noticed that with every two steps forward in technology, we demand back a little of our old fashioned values, eating whole foods, raw or steamed, not boiled or fried, buying food from local farmers or even growing it ourselves to try to encapsulate the vitamins and minerals that are often lost in mass production.  Asking if the food has been genetically engineered, looking for quality products, grown in quality conditions, to put inside our body.  Keeping our bodies healthy….we all may be steaming soon!

Your Body is Your House

Toxins in our homes have been in discussion for several years.   LEAD based paint is most certainly in 70% of the homes in Seattle (all homes built before 1978 are suspect).  Even if the layer of lead based paint is five layers down, you are in danger of lead poisoning.  When would you disturb a layer that old?  When you remodel!  Toxins enter the body either through our lungs or by accidental eating (a microgram of lead dust is enough to cause lead poisoning.)   Do your children or grandchildren play with or suck on car keys?  Keys contain lead.  Even handling your keys and eating finger food can deliver a significant amount of lead into your mouth.  The dangers of lead poisoning are many.  LEAD is a highly toxic metal that can profoundly suppress immunity.  Lead poses significant health risk for adults but are particularly dangerous for children causing damage to the brain and central nervous system, can cause decreased intelligence, reading and learning difficulties, behavioral problems and hyperactivity.  This damage can be irreversible, affecting children throughout their lives.

The bottom line is that your house can be dangerous to your health.  The double bottom line is that some of the items we purposely put in our body also contain lead.  Things like…hmm… Vitamin supplements! 

Surprisingly, one of the biggest sources of lead in your life (assuming you are not remodeling a home built before 1978) may be your nutritional supplements.  Lead contamination in calcium supplements has been a significant problem, even though an FDA warning on this issue was published in 1981.****  Since then, studies have confirmed that many forms of calcium still contain lead in amounts that exceed EPA safety guidelines.  Since many people (including children) are taking large doses of calcium, this is a matter of concern.  Supplements that we TRUST to put in our body may be making us SICK.  In 1993 researchers tested 70 brands of calcium supplements and found high levels of LEAD in a significant percentage.

How can you tell if your supplement contains high amounts of lead?  Ask for ‘certified heavy-metal assay’ from the manufacturer.  If they can’t give it to you switch to a company that will.

This sounds nuts but the truth is that there are different levels of QUALITY in vitamins and nutritional supplements.  They are not all alike.  Stephen Cherniske, CSO of Univera remarks, 'The bottle that says Calcium is not the same as the bottle next to it that says Calcium.  We exasperate the problem because we want ‘good deals’ and look for the cheapest brand at the cheapest price.  Is that the way to make sure you put healthy supplements into your body?  NO!  Think about it, if it takes more time to keep toxins out, if it costs more money for research to show the benefits of a product, if it costs more money to purchase purer base materials, then it will cost more.' 

Why would companies knowingly produce and sell low quality products with high levels of LEAD to the general public?  Because THEY CAN, and they are betting that you will buy it.

Creating healthy living choices – My new favorite appliances

Calling these small units appliances may be stretching it but I use them every day and they have changed my health for the better.  Coincidently both were Christmas gifts. The first one was from my dad – a single induction burner with accompanying cookware.  My first reaction was “but dad, I already have a stove, a nice gas one that works really well.”  “Oh but this is different, it is better, I saw it on a commercial” (two for one plus shipping and handling) he said.  Reluctantly I accepted the gift bringing it to my office to experiment cooking at work.   WOW! I am sold!  ’ NuWave Precision Cook Top’ is better than any other cook top I have used.  Plugged into a regular outlet the unit has an internal fan that keeps the fire alarm from going off.  Place your pot or pan on the unit and you can boil water INSTANTLY.  No more waiting for the water to warm up, induction cooking is truly instantaneous and safe.  Once you remove the cookware the cook top stops heating the pan, you can touch the cook top and it is not hot, you will not get burned.  I have known about induction for a while and always regulated this type of cooking to the ‘good for when you get older’ category.  I knew about the safety, however I did not realize how much faster the cooking process is.  Your food starts cooking immediately after turning on the burner.  This cook top came with 2 non stick (safe) frying pans which make washing dishes a joy.  I also received a ‘pot’ that has 3” sides that can cook an entire meal.  While you are cooking your dinner, you can place the steamer unit (same size, also comes with the package) on top of the pot to steam your vegetables.  A single glass lid fits both the pot, the steamer and the large frying pan. I do not need any oil to cook my food, I am eating healthier and washing less dishes.  Plus it uses up to 90% less energy than the typical gas or electrical cook top.  I even have a fondue accessory that fits onto the pot that holds the fondue sticks (also came with the package.)  What a bargain! ($19.95 for everything). 

My second ‘appliance’ was obtained at a Christmas gift exchange from my Aunt Jane.  This small blender/mixer is cute and portable.  But since I didn’t really blend food, it took me a while to appreciate it.  Now I use it every day and it has also changed my health.  With Bella’s Rocket Blender, I can make a single serving (or half single serving) smoothie and guess what?  After blending, turn the cup over, remove (unscrew) the blade and the cup turns into your drinking cup.  There is also a top that you can screw onto the plastic cup if you want to take the juice to go.  So, besides being very small and portable, you do not have to wash a blender AND a cup, it is one and the same! My morning breakfast has changed from a ‘breakfast burrito’ to a very yummy and healthy smoothie created from Vanilla Yogurt, Vanilla Metafuel (Univera meal replacement), 4 oz of Xtra (Univera antioxidant energy product) 3 oz of Aloe Gold (Univera immune system protectant) and 3 oz of water.  When I feel wild and crazy I will add in fresh blueberries (more antioxidants) and/or cocoa nibs (more antioxidants). The last time I went through the drive through at McDonalds the cashier said, ‘where have you been, we miss you!’  ‘Sorry’, I said, 'I am working towards a healthier lifestyle!’ Between daily yoga, a healthy diet, and my life changing supplements, I am going to live forever!’ (I’m going to learn how to fly – FAME!) - I think I just dated myself,

Eating green, Christine

Dark side of SuSTAINable Materials

In the Northwest we have embraced the Green movement, embraced the move to utilize materials that are manufactured in a sustainable way, materials that use recycled materials and or can be easily recycled themselves.  So with dismay I discovered that one product that I was very excited about turns out to be VERY SCRATCHABLE and another popular product turns out to be VERY STAINABLE!

Buyer Beware!  BEWARE what the manufacturers tell you whether in person or in their websites.  Ask for telephone numbers of people that have used their products and call them to see how they really hold up. Obtain a sample from the company and try to ‘kill’ it.

The beautiful and elegant GLASS2 product turns out to be difficult to work with by both glass and stone trades people.  Furthermore, the surface is so delicate it can be scratched with your fingernail.  Not a great product to be used as a counter, and unfortunately it is being promoted as such and sold by the slab next to granite and marble slabs that are sold and made into counters. Is this why there are only 17 pictures on the website of examples of use?  We tried 2 slabs over 4 months to create a simple bar counter, without success and came away very disappointed.

VETRAZZO is another very beautiful and stunning material.  Made of recycled glass of fairly nice size chunks, it has a tendency to chip away, particularly at any edge.  (The piece of glass breaks off leaving a hole.)  So the holes are supposed to be fixed before the counter gets to the customer but…..such is not always the case.  The hole problem, however, is not the whole problem (Hah!).  The bigger problem is that the cement that the glass pieces are floating in is extremely porous.  So we have a counter product that instantly stains!!!  IF you ask Vetrazzo, they recommend removing the stain with some liquid soap and water.  Well, that does not work.  If you ask their recommended fabricators, they will tell you to use bleach, which does work.  Further along in the ‘care and maintenance’ document they mention ‘sealing’ the product which ‘is applied during installation’ then further on they recommend that you apply wax to the surface after installation (right away) and ‘a couple times of year thereafter.’ (translation: every six months)  Yet in another paragraph in the document they recommend that ‘when the mood strikes you, buff it with wax a few times a year…’ (isn’t that every four months now?)  It seems to me that if you are up front with the issues and provide a detailed schedule for maintenance you will have happier clients because they will have consciously decided to install this product with the knowledge of the level of maintenance.

I’m disappointed and disillusioned and have stains on my green fingers.

Christine

My Peace - My Space - My Energy Savings

Sometimes you cannot be the person who invents new energy sources or figures out how to take wheat board and make it into edible salad croutons.  Sometimes you are just the person who follows the mandatory recycling/composting rules, watches documentaries on global warming and takes walking vacations in Spain (my father said, you call that a Vacation?)

How can I still make a difference?

My Peace – meditate for inner peace.

My Space– it is suggested that low-tech actions such as weatherizing homes and installing more-efficient water heaters could reduce household carbon emissions by 20% within 10 years.

Appliances – BIG energy savings can come by replacing old appliances with energy efficient EnergyStar appliances. (dishwashers, washers, dryers, refrigerators, etc)

Toilets– need I tell you again? Replace the old water wasters with HET (High Efficiency Toilets) and watch your savings on your utility bill.  Installing a HET can save up to 22,000 gallons of water per year. 

Water Heaters – install more efficient water heaters

Insulate – my home, like many other older home had NO INSULATION in the exterior walls. When remodeling, add insulation and watch your heating bill dwindle.

Windows – replace old windows with the double paned variety, no more drafts!

Plumbing Fixtures– look for the WaterSense label to curb your water usage.

Leaking pipes & faucets– can waste as much as 7 liters a day.

Yard – selecting plants that coordinate with our weather will reduce watering costs

Rainwater harvesting – collecting rainwater, primarily from your roof, can offset your irrigation/yard watering costs.  If you want to go further, you can install a filtration system and plumb the water back into your home to be used to flush your toilets.

New Habits – turn off the water when you are brushing your teeth, take shorter showers, use the dishwasher only when you have a full load, thaw frozen food in the microwave

My Energy Savings – makes me happy and brings me full circle to my inner peace…..I am just ‘me’ and that is okay.

Water Conservation in the Wet Northwest

As my relatives in Minot North Dakota are being flooded out of their homes, I feel sadly blessed that we have been spared the wrath of natural disasters that have hit the world this year.   Who was it that said, 'take care of nature or nature will take care of you?' Actually, I think it was me.

Anyone who knows me, knows that I am a fanatic about water conservation.  I hit several brick walls in my efforts to implement conservation programs over a large population base, mainly because the cost of water to us is so low.  We do not have an economic incentive to conserve water.  We conserve water only when/because we want to do the 'right thing.'

Recently I received a couple publications from Seattle Public Utilities that gave me a glimmer of hope.  The first was the Drinking Water Quality Report which reported that our drinking water was very clean, that it costs us LESS than a Penny a Gallon to have water delivered to our taps, and that we have one of the best drinking water systems in the nation.  Quite impressive.  In the very last paragraph, however,  SPU noted that elevated levels of lead and copper are often found in our drinking water due to corroded plumbing systems.  ALERT!  SPU is working hard to get clean water to you, but if you actually want to drink or cook with clean water you need to confirm that you do not have corroded plumbing.  In a city that is mainly compromised of older homes, I would guess that there lots of households that have not replaced the plumbing in their homes.  Health Tip of the Day: When you remodel a kitchen or bath, due yourself a healthy favor and replace as much of the old plumbing that you can afford to.

The second flyer had a section on a new program that was MY IDEA (thank god someone is implementing it!)  Qualified customers in Seattle can get a FREE water-efficient toilet and have it installed by a licensed plumber for FREE if they meet income guidelines.  (My program did not offer the toilet nor the installation for free, so this is actually a better program) Household income for 2 people can be up to $3,273 a month to qualify. PLUS, the picture that is in the flyer is the stylish Kohler Persuade toilet.  I am hoping this is the toilet being given away, but even if not, it indicates that it is probably a Kohler toilet and that is a good thing.  American made, family owned company in Kohler, Wisconsin, Kohler has made an effort to meet and beat the WaterSense guidelines for water conservation and have a large array of HET's available.  HET is tech talk for High Efficiency Toilets.  Who said I wasn't a techy?  Ciao!

Sustainable living -Let's stay home

Most of us want to stay in our homes until the very end.  In other words, none of us wants to go to a 'rest' home or skilled nursing facility.  Unfortunately, the biggest obstacle to remaining in your home, Is Your Home.    As interior designers, we have both the knowledge to design safe environments as well as the aesthetic talent to keep your home looking sophisticated as opposed to clinical.  Almost of all of our suggestions can easily be incorporated into your current remodeling projects.  It just makes sense to plan for your future. 

There are quite a few opportunities to create safe healing environments so I will start off with a basic challenge:

BARRIERS.  Look at the picture above - this is one example of a curb less shower. It is not only barrier free, but it looks great!  While we are looking at it, notice the hand shower and the built in shelving for toiletries.  Other barriers in a home include doorways that are too narrow for a wheel chair to pass, unsafe or non existing transfer seats to safely enter a bathtub, and regular stairs.  Stairs to get in the house, stairs or level changes to move from room to room, etc.  For small elevations, ramps can safely be installed.  For a flight of stairs, there are chair lifts available that can move you from floor to floor.  If you have a 'vertical' home, consider adding an elevator during one of your remodels.  A typical closet or powder room is often located directly above/below another closet or powder room, making it the perfect location for your elevator!

Other 'sustainable living' issues that I will address in future blogs are safety and healing environments.

Keep safe!  Christine

Cabinetry & Formaldehyde

Did you know that 'regular' cabinetry off gasses urea formaldehyde into your home for up to five years?  And, if you have a done a great job insulating and weather proofing your house, those voc's (volatile organic compounds) don't leave the house, you simply breathe them into your lungs.  This is one example of why EPA has determined that the indoor air quality of our homes is 5 TIMES worse than the exterior air quality. 

The quick solution is to purchase cabinetry that is made with a plywood box.  Careful, there is plywood available that DOES have added urea formaldehyde in it.  Make sure that the plywood that you are paying extra for (and you will be paying an up charge) is formaldehyde free.

There are other options to complicate our decisions:  there is a new particle board (EcoCore) that consists of 100% recycled materials that also contains no urea formaldehyde.  There is also 'Environmentally Preferred Particleboard' which has extremely low amounts of urea formaldehyde.  Or, you can purchase cabinets and allow some time to 'air them out' in an area that circulates air out of the home (open the windows?).  They will still off gas into the years, but the majority of the formaldehyde will be gone.

Many of you may be asking the same question that I asked - why do all these products have urea formaldehyde in them?  And why can't we use 'solid' wood?  The answer is that solid wood reacts to water and moisture in the air which causes warpage.  That is why, if you order a 'slab' style door, it is never 'solid' wood, it is a wood veneer on a substrate that does not warp.  And, that is why cabinet boxes are not made of solid wood, because they would be constantly expanding and contracting and warping.  The materials that do not warp significantly are plywood (many layers of wood) and particle board.  Particle board is made up of many particles that are held together with binding agents.  Most of these binding agents contain urea formaldehyde.  That is why some plywood and most particle board off gas voc's.  Sometimes, by solving one problem, we seem to have created others.

Breathe well & Have a Happy Thanksgiving,

Christine

Lead Based Paint and Healthy Home Remodels

Remodeling to add some 'greeen' features to your home?  Concerned about the formaldehyde that off gasses from most cabinetry?  Do you know how much lead it takes to cause a difference in IQ with your child, how much lead that can cause miscarriages?  Take a packet of Equal (the sugar substitute) and pore it onto the table.  Extract 15 (yes 15) granules.  That's is how much lead can cause lead poisoning.  Did I mention that it causes learning disabilities, lowered IQ and attention deficit disorder?

Lead based paint was banned in 1978.  So all homes that are older than 1978 have a chance of having lead based paint in them.  If you are lucky and live in one of those beautiful classic homes in our area, you can just about guarantee that somewhere under the many layers of paint on your wall, you have lead based paint.  Like asbestos, it is harmless unless it is disturbed.  What do we do in remodels?  We cut up the walls, removed some, add others.  In other words, we disturb the heck out of it.

I have been very concerned about the health of our families and the affect that our homes have on their health.  We are always talking about eating the correct foods to stay healthy.  How about breathing the right air?  There needs to be a different kind of construction/remodeling that takes place.  A different set of standards.  I have implemented a new safety and dust plan to capture all dust (lead or not) that may come from a remodeling project.  We need to keep everyone healthy, the home owners, the workers, our environment.  There is a new level of safety/health concerns and conversations that have been weaning its way into the Interior Design /Architectural /Construction set of morals, codes of conduct and codes of law. We're all still working on this one step at a time.  One day we will figure out how to provide good shelter for our bodies without poisoning ourselves.  On that happy note, I am proud to say that I am now an EPA Certified Renovator!  I can now Officially test for lead paint and perform quality remodels without harming the people who live and work in that home.  One baby step in the right direction.....

Is God Green? Is Sustainability the next religion?

As you read this article, I will be in the process of embarking on a religious pilgrimage in northern Spain.  Although I have not been particularly religious in the past, family health issues, my obsession with water conservation and my recent research into frequencies has led me to more questions than answers.  Thus, it was with divine timing that I was made aware of the new book ‘Dark Green Religion: Nature Spirituality and the Planetary Future’ by Bron Raymond Taylor.  As I wait for the delivery of this book (available only on line) I’ve been scouting the reviews:

Taylor ‘clarifies a belief system which many people adhere to, and in doing so provides an ethical framework for making decisions, especially about the environment and about our relationship to it.’  Dark green religion is defined as ‘the belief that nature is sacred, has intrinsic value, and deserves reverent care.’  ‘DGR may be a new phrase, but Taylor shows that it is an ancient force that has been rumbling in the depths of human consciousness for centuries.’  ‘The real possibility of DGR becoming a dominant force of world change is considered in the book’s final pages.’

When I return from my pilgrimage, I will write my own review of this book. Who knows, when I return, I may still be a regular ‘tree hugger’, but I will certainly be an ‘enlightened’ one.

Ethics in Design

Did you know that there are set ethical standards for Interior Designers? As a member of the Ethics committee for ASID (American Society of Interior Designers), I am proud to say that we hold our members to high professional standards, both in design standards as well as ethics and professional conduct  ASID's code of Ethics has a healthy emphasis on the designer's responsibility to the client as well as the public.  As we travel down the path of Healthy Homes, Sustainable Materials, Indoor Air Quality and Energy Efficiency, it becomes apparent to me that the role of interior designers, in fact the definition of the industry, is going through some changes.  As interior designers we specify every material used in the indoor environment.  You may be surprised to learn that many materials that are quite legal to use in residential interiors are actually extremely toxic to your health (Think FEMA trailers.)  I believe (as ASID does), that as an interior designer I have an ethical obligation to my clients to design with their health in mind.

Interior Designers have the knowledge, experience and training to design and specify products that are safe for both your family and the environment.  Next time you refer to me as your interior designer, you might as well call me your 'interior health advocate.'

ASID's written code of Ethics can be found http://www.asid.org/about/ethics/