A lot of cool stuff has found its way to the BUILDblog lately. Thanks to everyone for keeping us up to date. Take a peak and see if any of it should be on your radar…
BLOGGING
Our new favorite blog is Territoiredessens. Never mind that it’s French and, despite our frequent visits, we’ve yet to understand a single word on the blog. The photos and images are so clear and expressive that we think we know what they’re talking about -as if the French needed another reason to laugh at us.
READING
”…the state of Nevada offers developers property-tax rebates—up to 35 percent—for LEED certification. Don’t worry about the tons of jet fuel that will be used to deliver millions more tourists to Vegas each year—those visitors can help make up for that by reusing the towels in their hotels”
Finally someone’s got the kahunas to throw a few tomatoes at how fashionable “green” architecture has become. Hats off to Cathleen McGuigan on her recent Newsweek article “The Bad News About Green Architecture”.
CENSORING
Making fun of bad condos may be the only way to get developers to stop building crap. Recently the Seattle based blog cheapshitcondos.com was launched and it did just that – stuck it to the man -the cheap, crappy-condo building man. Photos and brief explanations called out Seattle’s worst new condos. Mysteriously the site “disappeared” last week but that’s not going to stop us from commending the anonymous author on such a great idea. Hopefully the crappy-condo mafia didn’t put a pair of concrete shoes on anything other than your blog.
ONLINE DESIGN SHOPPING
For those of you not familiar with Toronto let us put in our plug for an entire city: Toronto put the extra “v” in design savvy. Its newest addition to the cool-design-stuff category is UP TO YOU, a voyeuristic experience that changes the pattern of choice. Owner Dimitra carefully chooses designers from around the world, exchanges ideas, purchases the goods and promotes individuality amidst a world of cookie-cutter imagery and products.
TRAVELING
We like to think that we’re in the game with our Modern List downloadable PDFs but now and again we have to swallow our pride and point you to some truly inspiring resources. The Style-Files have put together an Amsterdam design guide that is a must-have for the design conscious traveling through the Lands of Nether. Touché Style-Files – we love what you’re up to.
LODGING
While you’re in the Netherlands make sure and get on board the recent and exciting development of the modern B&B. The Maff apartment is to us modernists what the rocking chair and front porch is to ma and pa. Apartment therapy did a very nice job covering this project back in August.
And if you’re on the west coast – don’t you worry, Portland has recently stepped up its game with UNdoMODERNDWELLINGS. Owners and modernists Tom and Keryn have traveled all over the world and have figured out the proper ingredients for the design savvy traveler. The refurbished mid-century modern home in the southwest hills “creates a modernist’s escape, created by people who understand”. Hallelujah! For those of you venturing to Oregon’s spectacular dry ranchlands east of the mountains, UNdo has you covered in Bend as well.
CONCEPTUALIZING
Strip-malls are so far off the design palette that if you’re anything like us you’ve been ignoring their entire existence since.. well since they existed. All the more reason why a recent competition, initiated by the city of Phoenix, caught our attention. The “Flip a Strip” design competition asks how we can reject the numbness of strip malls. How might we re-think and newly envision the potential of the Strip Mall. We’d give Phoenix a big round of applause had they not invented the strip-mall in the first place and propagated it all over the map.
REWARDING YOURSELF
If you’ve made it this far in the post you deserve a little something nice. The owners and restaurateurs of a recent project of ours, Picnic, are throwing the doors open on Thursday, October 16th from 5pm to 7pm for their grand opening. Located on Phinney Ridge at 6801 Greenwood Avenue North, Picnic is a food and wine boutique with great wine and eats. The owners Anson and Jenny will be there, winemakers Darryn O’Shea and Travis Scarborough will be there sharing tastes of their recently released wines and the BUILD team will be there. Stop on by, have a drink and say hello. Open the full size invite here.