Beautiful Plaster Finishes in Natural Clay

We just finished a small remodel at our office, and used a terrific product in one of our conference rooms- American Clay Plaster. It is all natural, coming straight out of the earth, and has absolutely no nasty odor- even during application! It is hand troweled on and can be finished in a variety of techniques that range from very rustic to more polished and smooth, similar to Venetian Plaster. Painted Earth Finishes did the installation for us, and were fantastic to work with.
Manufactured in and using materials from the United States, American Clay uses natural clays, recycled and reclaimed aggregates, and vibrant natural pigments in each of three beautiful finishes: LOMA, PORCELINA, and MARITTIMO.

Earth Plasters are non-dusting, mold and fade resistant, repairable and moisture controlling. For projects in Scottsdale, they would also qualify for LEED MR 5.2 regional material credits. American Clay may contribute up to 7 LEED credits (8 if you include the recycling area as all of American Clay’s packaging is recyclable), and 5 in most areas.

American Clay is available in a wide range of standard colors, and custom colors are also an option, making it the perfect choice for any space.

Ensure Healthy Indoor Air with Airpod

After sealing and insulating your house to create a more energy efficient home, you also need to be sure you are creating and maintaining healthy indoor air quality. Enter the Airpod, which packs a high quality HEPA air filter into a compact, modern package. Perfect for bedrooms, office, or nursery, this affordable air purifier will have you and your loved ones breathing easy.

Quite often, poor indoor air quality is responsible for prolonged illness, difficulty sleeping, and respiratory discomfort, although it is often overlooked as the cause of these symptoms. With a high efficiency silent HEPA-Air filter, such as the delightfully designed Airpod by Blueair, you can filter out at least 99.97% of impure airborne particles in your indoor environment, which will in turn improve your family’s health.

Compared to air filters with comparable performance rates, the Airpod uses approximately 60% less material in its design and manufacturing. The Airpod costs less to run than a single light bulb, and it does not generate ozone byproducts like Sharper Image’s Ionic Breeze.

Air filtration units used for large areas of space (approx. 200 sq ft-600 sq ft) range anywhere from $150 to $800, which means it can be quite costly to purchase such units for every room in your home. The Airpod allows for good air quality in your smaller personal spaces: it covers up to 50 square feet and costs just $99.95 at most retailers.


The sleek design and easy mobility allows the Airpod to go work with you, so that you can filter out those unwanted particles floating in your office air. The Airpod is perfect for your child’s playroom/area as well. The easily movable unit can dock next to your baby’s crib while he’s sleeping, and then transfer to wherever you go to nurse, cuddle or play with your baby.

Healthy Sleep with Organic Mattresses

Looking for a quality mattress that will let you sleep healthy, deeply and well? If you suffer from allergies, asthma or environmental illnesses, a natural mattress is exactly what you need. Several all-natural mattresses are now available, but one of my favorite is from Savvy Rest. Originally developed as the Savvy Baby Organic crib mattress, now all Savvy Rest mattresses are free of toxic chemicals, just as your sleep should be.

Several factors play into creating a healthy mattress, including the following:
Hypoallergenic
Most mattresses and pillows—even most organic ones—are welcoming habitats for allergens. Dust mites cause breathing problems, stress the immune system and can trigger asthma attacks. A chemical-free organic mattress should also be hypoallergenic, or you’ll just be trading one problem for another. Savvy Rest is made of natural latex rubber, in which dust mites can’t survive.

Pressure Relieving
Your mattress should support you in supreme comfort. Most conventional mattresses, particularly those made with innersprings or coils, produce painful pressure points that cause you to toss and turn.

Natural latex rubber, the core of a Savvy Rest, is pressure relieving and promotes the deepest stages of sleep. You can choose very firm, very soft, or any grade between (on each side).

Comfortable
A removable mattress casing made with certified organic wool fiber quilted to certified organic cotton fabric (not cotton fiber—see cotton fiber vs. cotton fabric for the crucial difference). The wool’s lanolin is naturally repellent to dust mites and microscopic scales covering each strand keep the internal ticking environment dry. So you’ll sleep warmer in the winter and cooler in the summer on a Savvy Rest.

Savvy Rest mattresses are available in Scottsdale at Natural Territory, or through your designer.

Eco-friendly Wallpaper goes Mod

Many traditional wall coverings often use PVC, a harmful and toxic material (VOC)that has been known to off-gas into the air. Buying toxin-free textiles is an important health consideration that can’t be ignored, especially for homes with infants or people who suffer from respiratory illnesses. One company, Mod Green Pod was founded by Lisa and Nancy Mims as a means to offer safer and fashionable alternatives to conventional textile prints. Their products are not just graphically gorgeous, but completely green too. They are completely free of vinyl, and use water-based inks on 100% certified organic cotton-based fabric.

In addition to these wonderfully playful yet sophisticated wallpapers, Mod Green Pod offers organic, eco-friendly fabrics in coordinating patterns and colors.
Mod Green Fabrics
Who says being Green has to mean "earthy"?

Truly ZERO-VOC paint - in any color

Benjamin Moore has released Natura, the first ever truly Zero-VOC paint that is virtually odorless, and has fewer VOCs than any other paint on the market. With zero VOCs in both the base and the colorants, you can match virtually any color without sacrificing the green benefits. They put their Green Promise seal on this product- assurance that it meets or exceeds the strictest industry standards with excellent performance.

One of my clients used this to paint their entire interior, with rave reviews. It goes on easily, dries fast, has excellent coverage and great durability. Best of all - with no odor, you can still live in your rooms while you're painting. You can breathe easy, knowing the air is free of the harmful and toxic compounds found in standard paints (which is what we know as "that new paint smell").

Benjamin Moore has gone beyond the EPA standards to evaluate not just VOCs, but all the elements that affect indoor air quality. Natura exceeds the LEED criteria for the environmental safety.

The Natura range includes a primer plus three sheens—flat, eggshell and semi-gloss—and, of course, the infinite selection of colors. Offered in quarts and gallons, Natura is $49.99 a gallon, MSRP.

For more information on Natura and its availability, visit www.benjaminmoore.com. The site includes a retailer locator to help find where the paint is sold nearest you, or ask your designer to specify Natura on your home.

**Update:
The April 2009 issue of Dwell compares 4 popular lines of eco-friendly interior paint - Benjamin Moore Natura, YOLO Colorhouse, AFM Safecoat, and Mythic. All rated farily well, but the Benjamin Moore was clearly the winner, both from an expert's view and the editor's. It ranked espeically high on color choice including darks and brights.

Healthy Indoors with Green Plants

This excellent chart from Good Magazine shows you which plants are best at eliminating which specific toxins commonly found in your home. What a great tool!
This is the easiest and cheapest way to improve the air inside your home, office or other space. You also don't need any special equipment or to incur construction costs or time.