A LANDSCAPE TO SAVE YOU MONEY, WRITTEN BY ECOLOGIST JACK PIZZO

No this is not the weed-patch of the long-haired, aged hippie living off the grid. Natural landscapes are cost effective, functional and beautiful. You may know that creating natural landscapes helps the environment in many ways - native plants help stabilize soil, prevent erosion, increase water quality, provide a habitat for songbirds and butterflies and provide beauty all year long, too. What you may not realize is that one of the real advantages of a natural landscape can be "the bottom line." Once established, your savings in maintenance costs can pay a huge dividend, by reducing maintenance costs. While we understand the need for sustainable landscape, we do not advocate removal of all lawn and traditional landscape, what we do advocate is creating an energy efficient, cost effective, and radiant landscape when the need for a new, retrofit or problem-solving installation arises.
Continue reading "LIVE :: Cost Effective Natural Landscapes Reduce Maintenance Costs" »
AN INTERVIEW WITH SUSAN KOOLE OF HERMAN MILLER
Herman Miller has long been at the forefront of modern furniture design. I was fortunate enough to be able to catch up with Susan Koole from Heman Miller's Zeeland, MI office to dicuss where the company's legacy began and where it is going in the 21st Century. Deeply rooted in classic modern ideals, Herman Miller is leveraging their rich design tradition to continue future innovations.
Continue reading "MAKE :: Herman Miller, Then and Now" »
AN INTERVIEW WITH ROBERT CARPENTER OF CASTLEONE DESIGN
Many noted architects have struggled with the challenge of low-cost housing throughout the years. Chief among them was Frank Lloyd Wright, whose 70-year career gave him several opportunities to try and tackle this fundamental question: How to design a system of affordable architecture based on principles. Robert Carpenter of Castleone Design has proposed a design for multi-family housing that looks to the principles of Wright's Organic Architecture as inspiration.
Continue reading "BUILD :: Castleone Design's Terraced Housing" »
AN INTERVIEW WITH DAVID FRIEDMAN OF CHICAGO'S EPIC BURGER
We're driving down State Street in Chicago's South Loop this past fall and my wife points out a restaurant with Nelson Bubble lamps hanging inside. We pulled over, walked right in and were struck by a visual treat...the aforementioned lamps and Saul Bass-like graphics on the wall. And this was only just the beginning of our love affair with a hip and socially conscious burger joint called Epic Burger. Owner David Friedman was kind enough to tell us a bit more about his fantastic hot spot that is a "must-eat" for any local or visitor to Chicago.
Continue reading "MAKE :: Epic Burger, A More Mindful Burger" »
AN INTERVIEW WITH RANDALL KRAMER OF KRAMER DESIGN STUDIO
Randall Kramer is my kind of guy. Not only does he have a passion for design, making furniture and architectural artifacts—but he can appreciate a good nature documentary as well. He recently contacted PrairieMod with more information on a Louis Sullivan inspired project he was working on and I followed-up to talk more with this intriguing designer. Enjoy the
interview and be sure to check out his website.
Continue reading "MAKE :: Furniture With A RePurpose" »
AN INTERVIEW WITH CHRIS NARDONE & GREG NEUHAUS OF FORM3
We were turned on by the clean and fresh designs that Form3
creates after getting an email from them several weeks ago. Wanting to find out more about how they got started and what they have been up to, I did an interview to uncover what Form3 is all about. Enjoy the interview and be sure to explore their website.
Continue reading "MAKE :: Form3's Minimalist, Modern & Eco-Friendly Design" »
AN INTERVIEW WITH EDUCATOR, ARTIST AND DESIGNER SHERILYN MCELROY
We received an email a couple months back from Sherilyn McElroy that piqued our interest. She shared with us her amazing portfolio of original prints using unique processes. With a passion for design and the Prairie, Sherri's two fantastic print series Prairie Fairies and Prairie Alphabet are something we recommend you explore for your enjoyment. She also shared the fascinating reasons behind why and how she does what she does.
Continue reading "MAKE :: Sherilyn McElroy's Simplicity of Form" »
HOPE IN THE IDEA THAT "SMALL IS BEAUTIFUL"
With all the talk of bailouts and panic on Wall Street, it seems
like nothing but bad news. The current administration's team of
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and Federal Reserve Chairman Ben
Bernanke had hoped that infusing the market with confidence via a $700
billion dollar bailout of the financial system would help act as the
shot in the arm the economy needs. Not everyone is sure this rush to
throw money at the problem will actually solve it and
Congress responded by voting down the Paulson plan on Monday the 28th. It remains to be
seen how government will deal with this economic quagmire, but most
everyone can agree that something has to change. In these unprecedented
times of economic anarchy, credit drought and an avalanche of
foreclosures, many of us are left wondering how we got here and what
the future holds. If we can permit ourselves to look beyond the barrage
of bad news, there may be a ray of hope to come out of this mess that can
lead the country towards the path we should have taken many years
ago. So what is this silver lining I speak of?
Continue reading "THINK :: Lessons From The Housing Crises" »
AN INTERVIEW WITH CRAFTY GURU AMY BUTLER
Amy Butler has taken her Midwest Modern design approach to the world with great success and was kind enough to talk with me about where she's come from, what she has been doing and where she is going. You'll also get some insight into Amy's “Mid Mod” philosophy, which takes inspiration from the natural world.
Continue reading "MAKE :: Amy Butler's Midwest Modern" »
SUBMITTED BY MIKE TRESCOTT
After reading the recent article on PrairieMod about David Rago's choices for Arts & Crafts collections worth visiting, I
started thinking about places close to me that I might explore on an
upcoming trip. I often look for "side trips" I can make while I'm
traveling to see amazing homes, museums, and collections. All of the
collections Rago mentions are great choices; however, I’m eager to find
additional places and things to see close by my home town.
Continue reading "CONNECT :: East Coast Arts & Crafts "Side Trips"" »