Archive for January, 2009
Give Their Room Style With Childrens Art
As a designer I am always looking out for the next really cool design idea. Many times it’s for adults but sometimes the kids win out and this is one of those times. Finding artwork for a children’s room can be a very hard task as it seems that most art is either too kid like and would only work in a baby or toddler room or it’s too adult and would only work in a child’s room where no one lived.
That is all about to change as I have now found Magic pumpkin art a site for children’s art that actually carries things that young girls and boys would love for their rooms. I have included a couple of my favorite ones in this post, but they have many to choose from includeing animal pictures and sports art.
Encourage Your Children To Design and Build
If you talk to most interior designers or architects they will tell you that they grew up playing with blocks and building things. Sometimes that is all it takes for a person to decide what they want to do in life. If you have children and your looking to find a way they can be creative and learn check out a magnet building set and see what they can come up with.
If you look at design today, many things are put together with magnets though many people are not open to the idea, having toys that are like this may help to push this trend even more. My 8 year old niece loves magnetic toys and building materials for kids. I know she would just love to get her hands on a Mega Brand system set because she loves building houses, machines and more. In my eyes we are opening her mind to a world where she can design anything and that is how designers and architects are made.
I actually would love a set of these, how cool would it be to come up with a design and be able to put it together without glue or cutting? You could even redesign your home with these things, well if it were multi- colored and had holes in it you could!
Geothermal Energy Part II: Systems
There are four types of systems when it comes to geothermal systems.
There is a closed loop system and a open loop system a slinky loop system and a pond loop system. Open loop systems are simple systems that draws ground water from an aquifer though one well, the water then passes though the heat pump’s heat exchanger, then is discharged to the same well though another pipe that is a good distance from the first pipe. This installation is good if you have a source of ground water to draw from.
The closed system has a pipe that is continuous. The length of the loop pipe varies depending on the temperature of the ground, the thermal conductivity, soil moisture and system design. There are two ways to install this type of pipe; horizontal or vertical. Horizontal pipes are better for small installations and are less expensive then vertical pipes. Horizontal pipes are better for commercial use or schools because of the lack of land around these types of buildings.
Slinky loop systems are pipes that overlap each other and are used to help keep more heat in the pipes. This is also helpful to use in small spaces. Pond loop systems are exactly the same as closed loop systems, but they use the heat from the bottom of ponds or streams to heat the water. They are usually installed at the bottom of the river bed or pond.
Part I: Geothermal an Introduction
Part III: Geothermal Codes and Design
ABC’s Of Fine Design Top Post For 2008
I have made a list of what I believe are my top post for 2008. I have selected one per month. If your new to the blog check these out first.
January: Why you should jump to LEDs
February: Furniture Friday: The history of the mirror
March: Save Energy and Keep Your Home’s Style
April: Cool Your Home With Less Air Conditioning
May: No Green Thumb, that’s okay
June: Feng Shui Friday: Remove Negative Chi
July: Design your own faucet!
August: Get A Wall Tattoo
September: Save Money Go Tankless
October: Get Dark And Warm With Your Curtains
November: Save Money By Upgrading Your Toilet
December: Let Your Fireplace Make A Statement
It’s Not All About The Interior
Spring will soon be here in the northern parts of the world and now is a great time to start thinking about outdoor areas. Usually you think of your own home, but how about this year you think about you and your community. Maybe you could start a community garden, or park. Maybe your school needs a good garden area to help teach kids about plants and encourage them to learn by doing. If you love this idea then I have some great information for you.
The 2009 Project Orange Thumb grant is a grant for communities and schools to help them improve the areas around them. There will only be 20 communities who will get these grants, but I encourage you to apply for it if you are in a community that is very strapped for cash and needs something like this. You can also apply if you had a community area that has been neglected and you want to bring it back. You do have to be a group as individuals can not apply, but think about what it could do for your community to have an area where things can grow, people can enjoy themselves and maybe even get some good food out of the deal.
The grant is open to any group in the US, Canada and Australia. The winners in the us will get $1,500 in Fiskars tools and up to $800 in gardening materials and Australia’s winners will get $1,000 in Fiskars Tools and up to $1,000 in gardening related materials to help you get started. The grant application deadline is February 17th and the winners will be notified on March 25th.
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