
From the ground, the Bolton Eco House may not look like much at all -- just a few stone walls that could easily be mistaken for ancient ruins covered by grass. But from the air, the picture is stunning, revealing an impressive architectural design shaped like an abstract flower. The bold, earth-conscious residential design comes courtesy of Make Architects, who landed it the distinction of being......read more
Surrealist sculpture and green architecture collide in this hillside Austrian home that might make M.C. Escher blush -- and Mies van der Rohe cringe. The detached house, designed by Weichlbauer Ortis Architects, is covered in a soft synthetic turf, offering a strange yet somehow literal take on green wall design. With willfully superfluous windows extending from other windows and weirdly placed......read more
With the rising cost of energy and the depletion of resources traditionally used to power our lives, homeowners all over the nation are searching for alternate sources of energy. Of primary interest are solar panels, which provide free, renewable power by capturing energy from the sun. The problem? The upfront investment -- typically over $30,000 -- exceeds most homeowners' budgets. Enter solar......read more
Judging from his portfolio site, twenty-six year old Aussie photographer Timothy Evans spends a lot of time on the road. At his site, you'll find photographic evidence of jaunts to faraway places like Laos, Tanzania and Cuba. But here, we present an Evans series shot in and around his home on Australia's Gold Coast (an amazing place, if you haven't been, go), where he shows off a freewheeling......read more
For great-looking, guilt-free homewares, look no further than Core Bamboo. The eco-minded housewares brand has bamboo design applications for every room in the house, from the kitchen to the bedroom to the bathroom. Our favorite? Core's kitchen bowls, which are as good as they get, with lively splashes of exterior color contrasted against warm wooden interiors. And the durable, lightweight bamboo......read more
Late starters, catch up on spring planting with this set of six EcoForms, made from compressed grain husks with natural, water-soluble binding agents. EcoForms are built to withstand extreme temperatures, with efficient drainage systems and insulation to keep plants happy and healthy. The manufacturing process uses no pollutants, all byproducts are recycled, and at the end of their......read more
Santa Monica-based green building specialist LivingHomes has unveiled the C6, the company's first affordable (starting at $179,000) LEED Platinum prefab home. Designed with a post-Katrina New Orleans in mind, the C6 meets LivingHomes' ambitious "Z6" environmental goals: zero energy, zero water, zero indoor emissions, zero waste, zero carbon, and zero ignorance. The "C" in the......read more
Designed for a local artist, this stunning rural home from Toronto-based studio Altius Architecture near Collingwood, Ontario communicates beautifully with the natural surroundings, with dark-framed glass walls and vertical windows that flood the interiors with natural light. Completed last year, the Clearview Residence features a broad selection of sustainable......read more
The food-based locavore movement is maybe best defined by the "100-Mile Diet," which involves eating only what's available in your region. Now, that concept is being applied to architecture with the "100-Mile House," an approach to homebuilding that involves using only materials available in your immediate environment (duh). The idea is being promoted by the 100 Mile House......read more
Berlin-based architectural outfit Studio Aisslinger has created what may be the most stunning modular home ever built. The conceptual building, dubbed Fincube, is "nomadic" in the sense that it can be easily dismantled and reassembled on a new site. The prototype, pictured above, has been constructed near Bozen in Northern Italy, almost 4,000 feet above sea level, with the Dolomite......read more