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A Note on Our Expert

A Note on Our Experts: Richard and Peter Schultz

After 20 years working for Knoll and collaborating with modern furniture titans like Harry Bertoia, Richard Schultz went into business for himself.

01.01.09
Design 101

Vampire Power

Probably the most evocative term among the otherwise technocratic energy vocabulary, vampire power is the continuous current that appliances and electronics draw from an outlet even when turned off.

written by: Sarah Rich

01.01.09
Design 101

On-Demand Hot Water

We don’t keep a kettle boiling on the stove all day for the one moment when we want tea, so why do we keep water heated around the clock when all we need it for is a shower or a load of laundry?

written by: Sarah Rich

01.01.09
A Note on Our Expert

A Note on Our Expert: Susumu Ueda

Executive chef Susumu Ueda was born in the United States and raised in Japan and has lived everywhere from Belgrade to Athens.

01.01.09
A Note on Our Expert

A Note on Our Expert: Steve Reczkowski

Steve Reczkowski has been a fine-art photographer for 15 years and finds working in a photo lab a most convenient occupation for supporting himself and his art.

01.01.09
A Note on Our Expert

A Note on Our Expert: Tony Espinoza

Tony Espinoza is the man behind San Francisco Soundworks, a full-service multiroom recording studio that’s putting the city back on the map as one of the top places to hit the charts.

01.01.09
A Note on Our Expert

A Note on Our Expert: Arshad Chowdury

Arshad Chowdhury is the cofounder of MetroNaps, the first company to provide midday napping facilities in the form of handsome fiberglass pods (shown opposite).

01.01.09
A Note on Our Expert

A Note on Our Expert: Peter Stathis

Peter Stathis is the principal of a leading collaborative design venture, Virtual Studio, which specializes in consumer products, and has worked with Arstecnica, KnollStudio, Nambé, and OXO.

01.01.09
A Note on Our Expert

A Note on Our Expert: Daniel Patterson

Daniel Patterson is the owner and executive chef of Coi Restaurant in San Francisco. Coi, which means “tranquil” in archaic French, is just that: a quiet refuge amid the flamboyant flash of strip...

01.01.09
A Note on Our Expert

A Note on Our Expert: Heather Wagner

Heather Wagner is a freelance writer and Dwell contributor and is currently writing a comic novel on the subject of modern etiquette.

01.01.09
Outdoor

Not Just Another Plant in the Wall

“Technically it’s a cinch,” Patrick Blanc says, and with a wave of the hand ticks off the ingredients needed to build a plant wall: ten-millimeter-thick waterproof PVC slabs...

written by: Michelle Hoffman

01.01.09
Design 101

Glass

No longer stuck in the ’50s pink- or yellow-tiled rut, today bath fixtures come in a wide variety of materials. For those who enjoy visibility (and Windex), glass is a clear choice.

written by: Virginia Gardiner

01.01.09
Design 101

Ceramic

Long considered to be the standard bathroom material, ceramic is no longer boring. New shapes and colors help redefine what was once only basic bisque or beige.

written by: Virginia Gardiner

01.01.09
Design 101

Plastic

The same qualities that make plastic so prized by designers—malleability, translucency, vibrancy—also make for one-of-a-kind pieces to place in your bathroom

written by: Virginia Gardiner

01.01.09
A Note on Our Expert

A Note on Our Expert: Kathleen Walsh

Kathleen Walsh is the founder and head designer of the Los Angeles–based design firm Walteria Living, which was established in 2004. Walsh and her staff of five specialize in usually clever,...

01.01.09
Green

Blame It On the Rain

The home’s water collection system makes capturing and storing fresh water so simple that you wonder why cities need a municipal supply at all.

01.01.09
Green

Iceynene

Spray foams are made from a variety of materials, some of which are toxic or harmful to the environment, so it’s important to know what you’re getting.

01.01.09
Green

Geothermal Heat Facts and Figures

No matter where you live, you can use the stable temperatures of the earth to condition building spaces. In winter, the ground is warmer than the air, so it can be used to heat a house. In summer...

01.01.09
Green

Eco-Hat

The EcoHat is as typical of the Oxley Woods design as an old-fashioned chimney. The unit is easily accessible from inside the home, allowing for repairs and updates to technology without the need...

01.01.09
Green

Straw House: Facts and Figures

Environment: About 200 million tons of straw go to waste in the U.S. every year. If all the wasted straw were burned, it would add up to nearly 6 percent of the total CO2 emitted annually by...

01.01.09
Green

Heat-Pump

One piece of correspondence that never darkens the mailbox of this Northern California beach house is a utility bill (nor are guests wandering around swathed in multiple sweaters).

01.01.09
Green

Around the Lighhouse

1. Windcatcher The ventilation shafts of the windcatcher reach several feet above the roof to pull cooler outdoor air inside. 2. Photovoltaic array Solar panels extend down the sloped roof, ca...

01.01.09
Green

Sit to Be Fit

If you ask Thomas Robertson, the difference between actively green houses and his passively sustainable Courtyard House is the difference between “a solar-powered yacht and a sailboat.

01.01.09
Green

The Mighty Ducts

Houston’s summers are almost unbearable, as anyone who’s ever experienced its humidity and relentless sun can attest.

01.01.09
Green

Trombe L'oeil

For heating a space of such peculiar dimensions, Bonnifait and Giesen turned to a solar design principle called the Trombe wall—after Félix Trombe, the French engineer who popularized...

01.01.09