Sustainable Home Design

The green-building movement has produced hundreds of "how-to" books and websites that are filled with tips about green building and what homeowners should do to go green. While helpful and informative, when it comes to making actual purchasing and installation decisions, these books do not make it any easier for a homeowner to prioritize against a budget. Here, Melisssa Rappaport Schifman shares her knowledge and experience for others to use in their journey toward a greener way of living.

Permaculture is more than just a way to design gardens; it is a way of life centered around building an ecosystem that thinks and behaves just like nature. Not only does it favor reusing and recycling, but it also limits potential waste, allowing you to design a slice of nature in your own backyard. In fact, permaculture makes nature your partner in going green… And all you need to do in order to get started is open your eyes and observe.

With this book, your currently uninspiring backyard can be transformed into an oasis using the principles I will teach you. You no longer need to worry about how to utilize space because you will understand how to implement the principles of landscape design covered in this book. Other than bringing you daily joy, having a gorgeous garden benefits you in ways you can’t imagine. This alone will make you feel happier and improve your well-being.

Since available information in this regard is incomplete, DIY Source has prepared a practical guide on how to set up DIY solar power systems. DIY Solar Power for Beginners will guide you in customizing your grid, tied as well as mobile and off-grid solar power systems. We will walk you through the whole process of building your own solar system, including calculating your electricity needs.

Mini Farming describes a holistic approach to small-area farming that will show you how to produce 85 percent of an average family's food on just a quarter acre - and earn $10,000 in cash annually while spending less than half the time that an ordinary job would require.

Written for novice and experienced DIY enthusiasts, this is an A-to-Z guide to ensure your success in turning a plain shipping container into a beautiful home.

When Christine Platt set out on her journey to live with less, she never intended to become The Afrominimalist. She just wanted to tame the chaos in her closet! But after struggling with the austerity and whiteness of mainstream minimalism, Christine realized why minimalism often seems unattainable for so many: the emphasis on all-white, barren aesthetics distracts from the practice of living with intention. And so, she decided to do things her way by curating a life of less influenced by the African diaspora.

Are you ready to transform your home into an eco-friendly haven without sacrificing comfort, style, or breaking the bank? Eco-Friendly Home Design is your ultimate guide to creating a sustainable living space that’s not only better for the planet but also better for you. Inside this book, you’ll discover simple, practical strategies for every room in your home, helping you reduce your environmental footprint while enhancing your quality of life. From choosing sustainable materials and improving energy efficiency to adopting green cleaning practices and conserving water, this guide ...

Using the latest evidence and research in wellbeing and Biophilic Design, learn how to transform every space in your home to create a restorative and nurturing environment. Discover the many benefits of connecting to nature, maximising natural light, improving air quality, and the right way to add colour, texture, and pattern to create spaces that improve relaxation, recuperation, social connections, and sleep.

Discover how your dream of affordable, stylish, open-concept, sustainable living can become a reality, no matter your budget! The dream of creating a personalized space often feels out of reach for many, with traditional home-building routes presenting a maze of expensive choices, overwhelming legal requirements, and endless design decisions. Did you know? An estimated 1,000 new barndos are built every year in North America. See how many people are jumping into this movement?

Essential Rainwater Harvesting is a comprehensive manual for designing, building, and maintaining water-harvesting systems for the warm and cold climates of the world. Presenting design considerations and approaches for the most common household rainwater supply scenarios.

Step right into the world of "Sustainable Solutions for Independent Tiny Homes", a book that beautifully encapsulates everything you need to know about leading a modest yet gratifying life off the grid. Pioneering an era where size does not define satisfaction, this book is a multifaceted guide that accommodates nearly every topic under the sun, from tiny home designing to solar energy basics, and everything in between. The introductory chapter opens onto an enlightening dialogue on off-grid living, tracing the synergy between these two life-altering concepts. Diving into the heart of the ...

Dive into the world of imaginative re-creation with "Stitched Renewal," a transformative guide that unlocks the secrets to giving new life to forgotten textiles through the art of upcycled embroidery. Discover the satisfaction of sustainable crafting and embrace the philosophy of textile reinvention that intertwines creativity with environmental consciousness. With this captivating eBook, delve deep into the heart of upcycling as you explore innovative techniques to select and prepare your canvas – whether it's breathing vibrant new life into a worn garment or refreshing your living space...

Residential designer Jamie Gold has spent years exploring how simple changes to things like lighting, fixtures, storage, and outdoor space can impact our health and wellness. In Wellness by Design, Gold offers a room-by-room guide to refreshing your space so that it supports your wellness journey. Good news, it doesn’t require a yoga room and can be done in small apartments as well as large houses. This book explains how simple changes can make a huge difference in how you feel every day.

Tiny House Living: A Comprehensive Guide to Downsizing, Designing, and Living in Tiny Homes" is your essential guide to embracing a life less ordinary. This book navigates you through the entire process of transitioning into a tiny home, from making the decision to downsize, to designing a functional and comfortable space, and finally, to thriving in your new lifestyle. This comprehensive guide not only addresses the practical aspects of tiny house living but also delves into the philosophy behind it. It explores the freedom that comes with minimalism, the joy of lower living costs, the ...

For a home design to be successful, it should boost your mood, but it also needs to reflect the owner in an authentic and personal way. At the same time, it should offer good flow and functionality so that it is livable. Effective design calls for creative problem-solving skills, and of course, the space must offer aesthetic appeal and absolute enchantment for the design to be considered a true success. Interior design encompasses much more than just creating a pleasing-looking space. It involves accepting yourself and your way of life. It enhances both our quality of life and how we live ...

Earth tubes (earthtubes, or earth-air tubes) are underground tubes that use geothermal energy to cool or heat temper the air for your home. It works like cheap air conditioning because you can build it yourself for several hundred dollars and it is FREE to run (no electricity needed). Being completely passive, this is a sustainable technology based on designs that are 3,000 years old and still used today around the world to cool homes.

You may think you don’t have the time or the money to start a big permaculture project. But permaculture doesn’t need to be overwhelming. You can start as small as you like, and you can move at a pace that suits you. Don’t feel you have to learn everything in one go and rush out to transform a whole wilderness in a year. Just deal in manageable chunks, and you’ll do just fine. Even if all you have done is tend to a few tomato plants on your window ledge, you can become an expert gardener; all it takes is a little time, patience, and practice.

For beginners and owner-builders, green building is a sustainable construction method that has a low impact on the environment. Green buildings usually incorporate LEED standard construction requirements in order to become certified; however, a homeowner can be an “owner builder” and construct their own home without the need of hiring a General Contractor in many cases, plus they usually do not need certification even if they build to LEED standards. Although standard construction methods and materials are often used, such as 2x4 or 2x6 framing with fiberglass insulation, or SIP panels,...

Building Your Permaculture Property offers a revolutionary holistic method to overcome overwhelm in the complex process of resilient land design. It distills the authors' decades of experience as engineers, farmers, educators, and consultants into a five-step process complete with principles, practices, templates, and workflow tools.