New: Products of the Week, 12.30.11
Posted: 12.30.2011 Filed under: New Products | Tags: bath, decking, drywall, lighting, new products Leave a comment »Happy New Year! Here are five new products to close out 2011, including lightweight gypsum, a 1930s-inspired vanity, and a deck-gate kit. Read the rest of this entry »
Buzz: Product News Roundup – Royal Wave Edition
Posted: 12.27.2011 Filed under: Buzz | Tags: alternative energy, color, fireplaces, green, paint, solar, trends Leave a comment »The holidays didn’t slow the flow of interesting building product news last week. Here are a few stories that caught our attention, including Queen Elizabeth’s alternative energy installation, solar-generating paint, 2012 trends, fabulous fireplaces, and more.
• The Queen’s Gone Green: A pair of turbines installed in the River Thames will generate enough wave-powered electricity to power most of Windsor Castle. Read the rest of this entry »
Innovation: Schlage Introduces First Alarmed Lock
Posted: 12.22.2011 Filed under: Innovation | Tags: doors, locks, new products, security Leave a comment »
Earlier this month, Schlage unveiled the industry’s first residential door lock with a built-in alarm. Unlike traditional security systems, which trigger after an intruder has already gotten in the house, this entryset sounds when it detects vibration or motion at the door.
Showcase: 10 Unique Backsplashes
Posted: 12.20.2011 Filed under: Showcase | Tags: bath, kitchens, tile 5 Comments »With the vast array of glass, porcelain, and metal tiles on the market, the options for creating one-of-a-kind backsplashes in the kitchen and the bath are limitless. Here are 10 that stand out for their elegant simplicity, creative combinations, or artful aesthetics.
Simply Radical
A truly one-of-a-kind option, this colorful backsplash made with recycled skateboards is featured in a kitchen in the Lofts at Cherokee Studios multifamily project in L.A. Read the rest of this entry »
Buzz: Product News Roundup—Treasured Islands Edition
Posted: 12.19.2011 Filed under: Buzz | Tags: kitchens, LEDs, light bulbs, links, outdoor, solar, universal design Leave a comment »What’s new in the world of building products this week, including 30 kitchen island ideas, climbing material prices, prepping for “Bulb Apocalypse,” super-efficient solar, universal design trends, and much more.
• From round to hexagonal, purple to yellow, metal to wood, this collection of 30 kitchen islands will inspire creativity no matter your design style.
• Can streetlights save lives and create jobs? Chattanooga thinks so.
New: Products of the Week, 12.16.11
Posted: 12.16.2011 Filed under: New Products | Tags: bath, tile, tools, trim, tubs Leave a comment »Five new products, including two luxurious soaking tubs, nature-imitating tiles, and class-leading band saws. Read the rest of this entry »
Buzz: Product News Roundup—Green Megatrends Edition
Posted: 12.13.2011 Filed under: Buzz | Tags: drywall, green, LEDs, solar, staircases, trends Leave a comment »Green building predictions, wind turbines aflame, pond-scum-inspired solar, and other building product news of note this week.
• The top 13 green stories of 2011…
• …and 10 green building megatrends for 2012.
New: Products of the Week, 12.11.11
Posted: 12.11.2011 Filed under: New Products | Tags: LEDs, new products, sinks, wallpaper 2 Comments »A farmhouse-sink vanity, Hitchcock-inspired wallpaper, modified wood, and two other products that caught our attention this week. Read the rest of this entry »
Testimonial: FrogTape Painter’s Tape Delivers Crisp Edges, No Bleed
Posted: 12.09.2011 Filed under: Testimonials | Tags: paint, testimonials Leave a comment »
Laurie March, contractor/interior designer extraordinaire and owner of Improvemental in L.A., swears by FrogTape for getting clean paint lines and tidy jobs.
In Practice: Acetylated Wood Windows, Siding, and Bridges
Posted: 12.09.2011 Filed under: In Practice | Tags: doors, in practice, siding, windows, wood Leave a comment »Last week, Products Insider had the pleasure of touring a few projects in the Netherlands and the UK featuring Accoya, a modified wood product made by Accsys Technologies, a client of this blog’s parent company. Client or not, we were impressed with the diversity of applications and aesthetics we saw.
Accoya wood undergoes a nontoxic proprietary modification process called acetylation that renders it an unrecognizable wood source, preventing fungal decay while increasing its dimensional stability. The material is sourced from FSC- and PEFC-certified forests and is Cradle to Cradle Gold certified.
Here are a few of the projects we visited:
Moses Bridge, Fort de Roovere, the Netherlands:
This unique sunken bridge was constructed to provide pedestrian access across the moat of a 17th century Dutch defensive line. It's functional yet subtle--designed to emulate a trench-like aesthetic and appear invisible upon approach.
Buzz: Product News Roundup – Raise the Roof Edition
Posted: 12.06.2011 Filed under: Buzz | Tags: bricks, drywall, energy efficiency, light bulbs, roofing, toilets Leave a comment »Introductions, insights, and inspirations from the world of building products this past week, including brick-laying robots, growing demand for roofing, more Chinese drywall cleanup, and ultra-hip toilets.
• Good news for the roofing market: Demand is predicted to rise an average of 5.7% per year between 2010 and 2015, a turnaround from the previous five-year period, in which demand shrank 6.1% per year.
New: Products of the Week, 12.3.11
Posted: 12.03.2011 Filed under: New Products | Tags: appliances, decking, faucets, new products, tools Leave a comment »Filtering faucet, tubular skylight fixtures, fresh-boosting refrigerators, and two other products that caught our eye this week.
