Aside from alcohol and meditation, this portable induction hotplate from Avanti goes on the sanity saver list when the kitchen’s in the discombobulated stage between old and new.

Cork has a lot of things going for it:

• it’s insulative – both for sound and heat
• it’s renewable and managed
• it doesn’t rot
• it’s waterproof and naturally anti-microbial
• it repels bugs
• it’s lightweight
• it’s fire resistant

That’s quite a list of plusses. Most cork comes from cork oak trees found in Spain, Portugal, southern France and parts of Africa.  It is responsibly harvested, cultivated and managed to protect not only the life of the trees themselves, but animals who make them their habitat.

There are a lot more interesting tidbits about cork from the Canada based Jelinek Cork Group site, including the following:

The first stripping of the cork bark occurs approximately 20 years after a sapling is planted. After each stripping the cork tree fully regenerates its precious bark and is harvested over and over again every 9 to 10 years until the tree is approximately 200 years old. At that time the aged tree is removed and two new saplings are planted in its place, ensuring the cork forest continues to flourish and expand.

Want to know more? getwithgreen has an exhaustive list of resources to learn about cork, cork products & applications, & what you should know before you buy.

Congrats to Growing Power, Inc.: 2008 MacArthur Fellow

SmartWay was launched by the EPA in 2004 to provide cleaner and more efficient transportation methods in the United States. Subsequently, SmartWay Transport was begun as a joint effort between the EPA and the freight industry — trucking companies, railroad carriers, maritime cargo — to achieve the same environmental and energy goals.

To become part of the program, the EPA ranks each freight carrier’s fuel efficiency methods and environmental performance. Penske’s 200,000-vehicle fleet received a 1.25 rating, the highest score possible. Penske’s cutting-edge fleet technology, as well as other fuel efficient strategies and ongoing education of customers and employees alike, helped it achieve the score.

Why it matters to Eco-Modernism

We’ve been leasing trucks and vans from Penske for our IKEA® runs to the DC IKEA® store. It would appear we selected a conscientious business truck leasing option. Nice little tidbit to add to the green factor of our making one trip for many instead of the other way around. [via the awesome MATTER blog]

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Something rough and natural combined with something refined and polished lends credibility and honesty to material.

I see it as a balance of formal & informal: the informal aspect putting us at ease, and the formal letting us bring our own  flair to it. Stone Forest’s sinks & vessels embody the contrast wonderfully. Not necessarily the greenest or most sustainable, but definitely beautiful.

In a nutshell:

• keep counters uncluttered, even if it means storing bulky, occasionally used appliances in another closet elsewhere. If you only use the veggie steamer once a week, keep it in an out of the way closet or shelf to make room for things you use daily.
• use the walls for things like a magnetic knife holder and frequently used utensils
• use the insides of cabinet doors for storage where possible
• inventory what you use and keep it organized and easily visible when the access door/drawer is open. What you can’t see is useless and takes up valuable space

Space is green, too

Here’s where the space efficiency as part of the whole green design effort comes into focus. Green isn’t just about using managed forest materials, or buying locally. It’s also about using what you have wisely. That includes space.  Some kitchens are very small, but not necessarily torturous if all the nooks and crannies are taken full advantage of. Susan Serra over at her Kitchen Designer site has a post with several handy tips & tricks to keep a small kitchen from driving you crazy.

One doodad she points out is a product for organizing pots & pans called a Pantree. It fits in a minimally sized 15″ wide cabinet.

Here’s what it looks like unassembled and after assembly. In the before/after shot, it looks like you can’t get the pans out because of the leg in front. There are actually only 3 legs, so the opening is faced toward the cabinet opening.

We’re here, just busy with the next Ikea® run tomorrow. We also had a death in our immediate family last weekend and are absorbing that. We’ll be back to posting shortly, thanks for bearing with us. Peace.

Getwithgreen has a really helpful article on facts you should know about bamboo before you buy it, like, bamboo is actually harder than oak floors, and if the subfloor isn’t cured it can fade. Also some other good info,  including:

• Do you live in an arid region?  Because bamboo is used to high humidity, you will need to be sure it is properly finished and sealed to assure its durability.  The less expensive bamboo flooring may not offer the moisture resistant finishing.
• Strand Bamboo flooring is a third pattern, created as the bamboo is mashed up and bound.  It is much denser than either the Vertical or Horizontal grains and said to be nearly indestructible.

October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Microplane® is donating $1 to the National Breast Cancer Foundation for each purchase of their limited edition zester/grater. Their grating products are made of surgical grade stainless steel, they have end tabs so it won’t scratch the counter or whatever you’re grating on, and it has a comfortable soft touch handle.

I didn’t know until tonight that Microplane® got its start with woodworking tools , and that their graters are made are made by chemically dissolving holes in a piece of stainless steel. Microplane® products are available directly through their website, and through Amazon. The October limited edition grater looks like it may only be available directly through Microplane®.