No digital version is available now, but you can find these groupings at the stores featuring Kohler. Ask for the Affordable Remodeling collections.
Grab bars have been considered a necessary evil- to be avoided if possible due to their ugly, utlilitarian design.
Ginger, the bath accessory company gingerco.com has changed all that. Now you can get grab bars that are the same design as your towel bars, etc- so you can prepare for the future without your bath looking like it’s wearing pocket protectors.
A great showroom for Ginger and all stuff plumbing related, is Crawford Supply, crawfordsupply.com. Martie runs the showroom and is very knowledgeable- and fun to work with!
Green Home Chicago is at 213 N. Morgan in Chicago and is way worth a visit, on site or online: www.ghcdesigncenter.com.
Products range from local artist’s work to furniture from reclaimed wood, to fabulous contemporary fireplaces, cabinetry, and tile.
Goods are green-ranked using the following criteria:
1. Recycled content
2. Non-toxic
3. Local
4. Sustainable/renewable resources
5. Cradle to cradle - product can be used, recycled
and used again without losing any material quality
6. Green manufacturing processes
7. Certifications
8. Artisanal/handmade
9. Community building/poverty alleviation
10. Vintage/reclaimed/repurposed
I write about Robern bath cabinets a lot, because they are so innovative. The newest is the Uplift- a door that moves up and down to open the cabinet, not from a side hinge like a normal cabinet.
What’s the big deal?
You can put the cabinet right behind your tall faucet, even all the way down to the counter.
You don’t have to worry about crashing into light fixtures, shower doors, spouses, etc, with the swing of the door.
Because the mirror can sit on the counter, you can sit down in front of the sink, for makeup application, instead of having a separate area. This will also benefit accessibility/ADA.
The mirror can be opened partially, so you have mirror AND access to contents at the same time.
Yes, you can get all the fun Robern features along with the Uplift, including an LCD TV mounted inside.
see them at: http://www.robern.com/press/release.rbn?articleId=uplift
Pebbles (smooth round stones set on mesh, often called river rocks) have been around awhile now- 4-5 years ago, they were fairly hard to find, and very limited selections were available.
There are a LOT more choices now, widely visible at Coverings. Some options: stones “standing”- set in vertical orientation, irregular edged stones, different varieties of the stones- with color variations or quartz in the stones for transparency, marble pebbles, and even squarer edged stones standing, so that they look like a miniature wall. There are also pebbles that have been shaved to create flat tops.
The best selection of pebbles (and other tile) I saw at the show was by Solistone, http://solistone.com/pebbles_tiles.shtml.
Nothing beats the foot-feel (massage-like!) of the traditional rounded pebbles set in a flat format, but with all these choices, pebbles can go anywhere- think backspash, listelli, fireplace surround, etc. The look is perfect for the very popular nature-inspired look, and real stones add dimension and texture that slab marble or granite cannot give.
I loved a shiny green, semi-precious looking stone that’s glass- Tavoos is what they call it: http://solistone.com/freeform_glass.shtml
Check out the metal pebbles, too- they take the look to a fab, fun, mid-century place: http://solistone.com/metal.shtml
Slow to upload but packed with info, Schluter, the maker of tile accessories and kits for installation, provides this site for people hiring a contractor, contractors, and DIY’ers.
http://www.schluter.com/house/
Concepts and technology, designing, and installation techniques are covered. This is a great tool if you want to know more about the tile you put in your home, and how to avoid problems, even with tricky situations.
