Better Homes & Gardens Green Home

Today, I visited the Miami Home Design & Remodeling Show at the Miami Beach Convention Center. After remodeling two homes now for the price of my future first born child (just kidding), and duking it out with contractors, I had had enough of remodeling. I needed a break! At the request of my mother who could not drive during her recovery, I went under protest. In the end, I did have fun. Plus it was fun to watch my mom act like a teenage kid at a rock concert when she met Angelo Surmelis from HGTV, Rate My Space.

The booth that most impressed me was the Better Homes & Gardens "Green Home" replica. Well known and new-to-the-average-person brands collaborated to present a stylish and eco-friendly home.

Upon entering the booth, I was greeted by the twelve dwarfs--dwarf sample tiles of counter top called EnviroGlas " a composite made from recycled materials such as toilets, sinks,...and mirrors that can be used as counter tops, flooring, and other rigid surfaces." The samples looked identical to the silestone I used for both my bathroom counter tops last year! If only I had discovered EnviroGlas sooner. But then I learned the price was quite hefty. New technology always carries higher prices. They will come down with time.

Turning to my left was the bathroom demonstrating the blue and white counter top, with recycled glass (actually from car windshields) for a mosaic glass tile wall, and Kohler faucets and fixtures. Look the cabinets and drawers are from an old bedroom dresser! What a great idea!

In the theme of cleaning, baskets of a yellow cutout flower pasted on a 4 x6 recycled card promoted Green Works, a new, natural, household cleaner by Clorox. The cutout of the yellow flower contains wildflower seeds embedded in the petals. The idea is to plant the "yellow flower" and nourish with water to watch the flowers grow. To get a $0.50 cent Coupon to for the Green Works cleaner, go to www.GreenWorksCleaners.com/savings You will have to install the coupon program but I tried it and it was safe. It automatically limits two coupons per computer.

From the bathroom, I moved onto the kitchen decked out in cabinetry by Bertch, a cork flooring by Natural Cork, and counter top by EnviroGlas. Sleek, stylish, and eco-friendly. I loved it! The cabinets resemble maple but upon close inspection, it's actually bamboo, a grass that's durable and renewable. It's also in style.

Then I moved into the living room. Everything from the Pella triple-pane windows to the chair were designed for Green Living. Like most women who love accessories, a stand-alone chair caught my eye--it was beautiful. The stylish chair below in the picture is made from soy-based cushions, with a certified frame, recycled filling, with many organic and natural fibers from Lee Industries. Contemporary and organic. I loved it!

In the epicenter of the circular booth, were laptops to assist visitors in learning about Green Living. Behind the laptops were panels, each with an easy tip to go green. In the next posting, I will share the "10 Easy Ways to Go Green".

BHG is touring the Living Green Home in several major cities. If you are interested in a simple, easy approach to learning how to remodel, it's worth a visit. I highly recommend it.

Overall, the booth and its details were easy to follow and understand. It inspired, simplified the barrage of noise out there on green living, and motivated me to start implementing the 10 steps, one at a time. It was evident that a lot of time and planning went into designing the "green home". It paid off! This amateur green homeowner, is a little more educated and armed with information for the next project--painting the bedrooms. The hardest part is picking the color--chartreuse or periwinkle?