Eco-Luxury Candles to Indulge In

Posted on 28. Dec, 2010 by Sesshu Design in Blog, eco-friendly design, gifts, glass, green design, home decoration, luxury design, repurposed, reuse

We believe that luxury and eco-friendly living are not exclusive of each other, and these wonderful candles showcase that philosophy perfectly.

Soothing aromatherapy candles make a wonderful gift for anyone you know who deserves some relaxing, but the glass containers they come in are not so eco-friendly. Until the introduction of EkoMiko candles. Created by actress and environmentalist Izabella Miko (of Coyote Ugly and Deadwood fame), the luxurious line of hand-poured candles are made from a luscious organic coconut butter wax and a repurposed glass bottle holder.  Even the special wick is organic, non-toxic and nearly smokeless.  Thinking through all the details, the biodegradable box can be planted to sprout wildflowers.

The 100% certified natural vegetable wax, created by Stone Candles, is a coconut blend made with luxurious biodegradable elements, which are  non-GMO, pesticide free, raw materials. This wax is primarily coconut based wax with some traces of palm wax, beeswax and essential oils which are fair-trade and organic.

The unique wooden wicks create a crackling wood fire sound while burning.  The wood wicks are 100% natural grown, 100% organic, and made with absolutely no chemical treatments. This special wick does not require trimming, there is little to no debris. and minimal carbon buildup. Wood Wicks efficiently burns all waxes and are grown, manufactured, and sold in the USA. They are surprisingly long lasting, too – expect about 40 hours of burn time.

The frosted green reclaimed vessel comes from reclaimed wine, water and other bottles rescued from the North American waste stream. The re-purposing process requires only a fraction of the energy needed to make glasses from recycled glass. Using a unique wine bottle-to-goblet conversion patent each glass thus retains the essence of the original bottle, preserving the artistic contour, vibrant color and design of the original bottle. The decoration of the glass is applied via silk screen printing process using an environmentally friendly, lead-free ink as a barrier for the frosting process. The frosting is achieved from sandblasting instead of the non-environmentally friendly method of acid etching. Sandblasting medium is aluminum oxide, which is totally inert and is re-used over and over again.

Continuing the philosophy of bringing new life to items no longer needed, the seeded box was a perfect choice for EkoMiko’s packaging material.  Planting the box in soil and watering it will allow the embedded seeds to sprout into beautiful wildflowers.

Nuts About These Colorful Bowls

Posted on 09. Nov, 2010 by Sesshu Design in Blog, eco-friendly design, eco-friendly interior design, gifts, home decoration, locally made, recycled, sustainable, sustainable design, sustainable interior design

A room is never quite finished until it is accessorized – and a touch of whimsy or personality is exactly what is called for.  I just love these fun and functional bowls made from Macadamia nut husks because they provide both.  Each one is unique, and still contains bits of the original shell that show through in the colorful interior coating.  The wood-like outer shell contrasts with the vibrant colored hand-polished lining, created though a process of grinding, polishing and waxing.

Designed and crafted by Marc Harrison in his native Australia, he hopes these bowls create an emotional connection between the product and the end-user.  Hand-crafted with local materials and manufactured using low-impact processes these Husque bowls are a great example of artistic and sustainable design.  Each one arrives packaged with the story of the design’s origin and the history of the macadamia nut.

Available in an array of bright colors, these bowls would add a nice accent to any room.  Used to serve nuts, display fruit, or just as a piece of art they are sure to grab attention and the story of their creation makes a great conversation starter. In addition to the bowls which come in two shapes, the Husque collection includes a tray and vase in the same colorful options.

Clean the Air Inside Your Home with Green Plants

Posted on 19. Oct, 2010 by Sesshu Design in bamboo, Blog, eco-friendly design, eco-friendly interior design, environmentally friendly tips, green living tips, healthy homes, home decoration, indoor air quality, innovation, local companies, nontoxic cleaning, scottsdale interior design, zero-VOC

The air quality inside your home is one of the most important yet overlooked areas of green interior design.  The range of remedies can range from rather expensive options like replacing carpeting or serious HVAC systems for moving air, to one of the least costly and also aesthetically pleasing – adding live plants to every room.

A NASA study shows that live indoor plants do indeed help to create a healthier environment inside your home.  The study shows that

• indoor plants not only absorb CO2, they also release oxygen
• living plants scrub the air of pollutants commonly found indoors from our carpeting, paints, and cleaning products.

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are gases that pollute indoor air quality.  They can be found in many common household products, including paint, paint strippers, cleaning supplies, glues and adhesives. Breathing these compounds causes symptoms that range from allergic reactions to respiratory tract irritation to more serious conditions like asthma and cancer.

There are now paints, carpeting products, and indoor cleaners that have low or zero VOCs. Regardless, NASA found that a house plant for every 50 feet will help reduce VOCs and improve home air quality.

Even the act of living and breathing inside your home adds to the problems for healthy air because human respiration removes oxygen, and emits carbon dioxide.  If your home is extremely air-tight, over time the levels of CO2 can rise quite dramatically without some form of air transfer or cleaning.

Although all live plants take in CO2 and create oxygen, some are more efficient than others.  Many of the best are very common and easy to find.  The top indoor air scrubbing plants found by NASA are listed below (this plant list came from Zone10.com):

• Bamboo palm, Chamaedorea seifritzii
• Chinese evergreen, Aglaonema modestum
• English ivy, Hedera helix
• Gerbera daisy, Gerbera jamesonii
• Janet Craig, Dracaena “Janet Craig”
• Marginata, Dracaena marginata
• Mass cane/Corn plant, Dracaena massangeana
• Mother-in-Law’s Tongue, Sansevieria laurentii
• Pot mum, Chrysantheium morifolium
• Peace lily, Spathiphyllum
• Warneckii, Dracaena “Warneckii”

In Scottsdale, my favorite source for incredible indoor plants and creative plantscape design is Plant Solutions.  They are passionate about green design, and have even developed an innovative solution called the living wall- a vertical installation of live plants which takes up very little floor space while adding multitudes of living plants to improve your indoor air quality.  Green interior design addresses many areas, and it can sometimes be costly to implement, but live plants are easy to add and inexpensive.

Easy LEED-Homes Platinum Certification?

Posted on 12. Oct, 2010 by Sesshu Design in Blog, cost of green design, eco tips, eco-friendly, eco-friendly design, eco-friendly interior design, eco-friendly lighting, energy efficient design, energy saving, energy-star, environmentally friendly tips, flooring, green building products, green design, healthy homes, LEED, recyclable, recycled, repurposed, resources, reuse, sustainable, sustainable design, water saving tips, zero-VOC

Here’s a great true-life story of how it is possible to design a great green build home easily and within your budget.  This is reprinted from Green Building Advisor and chronicles the complete gut rehab green design of a row house in Washington DC by the owner utilizing an experienced green builder and the LEED Checklist as her guideline.  She also shares some of the pitfalls and things she wished she had done differently.

Washington, DC

Sep 3 By Peter Yost 

This photo shows Levin’s completed LEED Platinum gut rehab of her row townhouse. From the scourge to the envy of the neighborhood. And those beautiful river run stones at the front of her yard? Reclaimed from the excavated basement.

Green realtor Amy Levin uses her background in construction, housing market savvy, and sheer will to achieve Platinum on her LEED for Homes gut rehab of a DC rowhome

“It was easier than I thought,” says Amy Levin when first asked about her LEED for Homes Platinum gut rehab. This would not be the last time my jaw would drop when dealing with Amy; she is a completely unflappable, sharp as a tack, force of nature. She is a born problem-solver and her favorite retort is most certainly “why not” rather than “why.” The devil is always in the details; here is the rest of the context on Amy’s “easy” version of LEED Platinum.

Using the LEED for Homes checklist to drive the process
Amy used the LEED for Homes rating program and checklist to drive her own green building learning curve as well as her design and building process. “I had done some green building in the past,” recalls Amy, “but it was not a comprehensive or integrated process. We did not use the LEED for Homes checklist as prescription, we used it to learn, evaluate, and prioritize. The LEED for Homes program checklist is a really great organizational tool.”

“While this approach is not the ideal, it is quite common and can work” says Asa Foss, Amy’s LFH rater, her primary green building consultant and now Manager for LEED Technical Development at the USGBC. “The danger in having the checklist in the driver’s seat is turning your project in to a point-chasing exercise. While point-chasing was definitely not an issue with Amy’s project, it’s an important hazard to avoid.”

Fully utilizing local green resources
Amy is quick to point out that she was fortunate during her project. “First,” says Amy, “I had Asa as my ace; his availability, knowledge, and willingness to work with me as the general contractor was a huge green advantage.” “And discovering local resources like Marcus Sims (Treincarnation) and The Community Forklift were key for green rehab.” TreIncarnation supplied lots of surplus salvage finish materials and The Community Forklift’s salvage retail operation was a great two-way street for the project, taking from and supplying to Amy’s project.

Making the numbers work
While Amy had a substantial budget for her project, it was definitely finite: “My budget was $500,000 and we came in at $495,676.92. I kept expecting the green building BigFoot to come and crunch the project, but I really believe that there was no real premium. Think of it this way: my apartment rental income covers more than what my mortgage would be on this project. My peak monthly utility bills are less than half those of my neighbors, and my home is more comfortable with better air quality.”

Amy is clear that some individual components came at a premium: higher SEER AC unit, her solar water system, top-of-the-line household appliances. But here is a list of project elements where she is sure she saved money going green: a salvaged kitchen cabinet and granite countertop for her rental unit kitchen ($500), powder room vanity made from site-salvaged lumber ($50), river-run fieldstones for front yard landscaping (free from her 4 feet of basement excavation).

And as a realtor, Amy is confident she can take the value of her LEED Platinum project with her if and when she sells her home. “There is real value here that I can show, from the comfort and health perspectives, but also by simply sharing my utility bills!” says Amy with a smile.

An interesting twist: Salvaging art as well as the building
The emphasis on salvage is pretty clear in Amy’s home: the reuse of the original heart pine flooring, rough framing planed and used for the powder room ceiling exposed latticework, the upstairs laundry framed with salvaged two by fours. But the most impressive and unique salvage during the project was not building materials. It was the paintings of EJ Martin that Amy discovered half-buried in the dirt of the basement and even behind drywall from previous renovations. EJ Martin lived at 1834 Ingleside Terrace for many years, at times even paying his rent with his work.

“They were far too beautiful to toss,” says Amy. “It was more than worth it to restore what we could and keep them with this house.” EJ Martin’s paintings are hung throughout Amy’s home.

Lessons Learned

Amy was not particularly fond of being a green guinea pig for some of her materials. “The Columbia Forest Product Purebond door on the largest cabinet never worked; it warped badly,” says Amy, “and we finally just had to replace it.“

“I also completely underestimated the need for residential lighting design,” adds Amy. “We got energy-efficient lighting products, but the location of lighting is sometimes an issue and also the balance of task and background lighting is wrong.” Amy wishes she had known about residential lighting design guidance from IBACOS (High Performance Lighting Guide) and from RPI (Builder’s Guide to Home Lighting).

“Frankly,” says Amy, “it was the regular headaches that had little to do with green that I wish I could do over again, like finding the right plumber!” Amy wrapped up by saying how hard it is to figure out the right way to “divvy up” four stories of a rowhouse between the rental and the live-in portions.

Peter Yost

Tags: LEED for Homes, LEED Platinum, remodel, Gut rehab

---

Image Credits:

1. Amy Levin
2. EPA Energy Star

Easy LEED Platinum? | GreenBuildingAdvisor.com

General Specs and Team

Location: Washington, DC
Bedrooms: 5
Bathrooms: 3
Living Space : 2600 sqf
Cost (USD/sq. ft.): $190/sqf

The rowhome has a finished basement that is a fully independent rental unit, quite typical of the area.

General Contractor – Amy Levin
Builder – Leon Home Improvement
Insulation contractor – Anchor Insulation
Electrician – Michael n Sons
HVAC – Argent Heating and Cooling
Renewable energy systems contractor – Capitol Sun Group

Construction

Click here for REMRate report with construction details

Energy

- Air tightness = 4 ACH50
- Heating efficiency (heat pumps): 9.0/8.2 HSPF
- Cooling efficiency (heat pumps): 17 SEER
- All ducts in conditioned space
- Water heating: 0.82 EF (see below for solar water heating)
- Energy Star windows (U-value=0.3; SHGC=0.29) (glazing to floor ratio=12%)
- Seagull Energy Star Lighting
- KitchenAid Energy Star appliances
- Evacuated tube solar water system (supplying 77% of total hot water)

NOTE: Jeldwyn Doors and Marvin Windows from Midsouth Building Supply Co. (only companies meeting size and historic requirements)

NOTE: All sealants from AFM Safecoat

“>”>Click here for REMRate report with energy efficiency details

Water Efficiency

- Limited turf: 17% of landscaped area
- Drought-tolerant plantings: 100%
- Roof rainwater harvesting system: 63% of roof area
- High Efficiency Fixtures (toilets, faucets, showerheads)

NOTE: All plumbing supplies, including Toto dual-flush toilets, from Thomas Somerville

Indoor Air Quality

- Ducts sealed off during construction
- Home flushed continuously for one week prior to occupancy (windows open)
- No attached garage
- MERV 13 air filter

Green Materials and Resource Efficiency

- Framing waste factor = 0%
- Advanced framing techniques
- Construction waste diversion rate = 90%
- Salvaged heart pine flooring
- Salvaged kitchen countertop and cabinet set (basement rental unit)
- Site-salvaged river stones for landscaping

NOTES:
a. Metal stairs with FSC-certified treads from The Iron Shop
b. Paint – Harmony
c. FSC-certified interior doors- MidSouth Building Supply
d. Concrete – Fly ash, recycled aggregate: DC Materials
e. Cabinets – Eco Green Living
f. Countertops and bath sink Eycon
g. Recycled ceramic tile – Nature Neutral
h. Trex decking – MidSouth Building Supply

Certification

LEED for Homes Platinum Rehab (Click here for Amy Levin’s Final LEED for Homes checklist)
HERS Rating = 63

Greenwashing – How to Avoid Being BAMBOOzled by Green Labels

Posted on 05. Oct, 2010 by Sesshu Design in Blog, eco tips, eco-friendly, eco-friendly design, eco-friendly interior design, energy efficient design, energy-star, environmentally friendly tips, green building products, green design, green living tips, healthy homes, indoor air quality, innovation, LEED, new technology, recyclable, recycle, recycling, resources, sustainable, sustainable design, sustainable interior design, Uncategorized, water saving tips, WaterSense, zero-VOC

Green-wash | green’wash’ | verb: The act of misleading consumers regarding the environmental practices of a company or the environmental benefits of a product or service

If you look around, you’ll see that companies left and right are all jumping on the “GREEN” bandwagon.  Unfortunately, this has become a case of buyer beware, because too often they are just slapping on an ‘ECO-FRIENDLY’ label and that does NOT mean the product is actually environmentally responsible.  To add to this confusion, there is often no consensus on what ‘GREEN’ means.  This ‘Greenwashing’ has become a real problem for consumers looking for products and materials that are eco-friendly, sustainable and responsible.

The best defense against this type of deception is doing your homework, and looking for third-party certification seals.  These show that a process of independent, reliable testing has been applied to the green building material or product in question.  Even here there have been a number of imposters who try to make something look official when it isn’t.  Learn to recognize the following green labels on products and services which are truly ‘Green’.

ENERGY STAR

A joint program of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the U.S. Department of Energy which is dedicated to helping consumers compare and buy energy efficient products.  Energy efficiency is an important first step in protecting the environment.  The ENERGY STAR mark is the national symbol for energy efficiency.   www.energystar.gov

Carpet and Rug Institute’s Green Label and Green Label Plus

You have probably never heard of the Carpet and Rug Institute, much less their green labels. Your designer probably has – if they are educated about green interior design.  The labels refer to a carpet’s VOC (Volatile Organic Compounds) and other chemical emissions. The carpet, adhesives, cushions and even vacuums are tested by an independent laboratory using a methodology developed with the help of the EPA.

Unfortunately, indoor air quality is usually considered a small (and very under-emphasized) component of the environmentally sound life. Things like sustainable material sourcing, durability, and green company practices are too often seen as being more important to green living.

WaterSense

Launched in 2006, WaterSense is an EPA-sponsored partnership program designed to protect the future of our nation’s water supply by promoting water efficiency and water-efficient products, programs, and practices.

WaterSense helps consumers identify water-efficient products and programs that meet WaterSense water efficiency and performance criteria. Products carrying the WaterSense label perform well, help save money, and encourage innovation in manufacturing.  www.epa/gov/watersense

Green Seal

Green Seal is a non-profit independent agency that uses science-based environmental standards to certify green design products, materials and services.  Green Seal works with the manufacturers, purchasing groups, industry sectors and the government to improve the ‘green-ness” of the production and supply chain.  Only after undergoing a strict evaluation beginning with product creation and through recycling and disposal can a product be Green Seal Certified.  www.greenseal.org

Cradle to Cradle

Cradle to Cradle certification evaluates products using a series of environmental and social criteria based on the principles of Cradle to Cradle design, developed by design and consulting firm McDonough and Braungart and detailed in their book by the same name. Their basic principle is that a product should be designed such that it can be used for something else at the end of its original life – nylon carpet into fuel, for example.

Cradle to Cradle is one of the most rigorous of the green labels for certification of eco-friendly design products. Their standards are publicly available, and they get at the heart of the problem of sustainability for a culture of consumption.

UL Environment

UL Environment is a subsidiary of Underwriters Laboratories which helps to support sustainable  products by assisting businesses in standards development, education, as well as third-party assessment and certification.  www.ulenvironment.com

Forest Stewardship Council

The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certifies timber and wood products as well as forest management. An international organization founded in 1993, FSC provides certification other agencies which label products and companies as green certified according to the FSC’s standards. Standards for wood include: no genetic engineering, no harvesting in conservation areas, and no harvesting from conversion of natural forests.

The FSC green label has been criticized for conflicts of interest because anyone can join the General Assembly that sets the rules, even if they have allegiances elsewhere. The certification has also been accused of not making clear distinctions between natural forests and managed forests, which are seen as little more than plantations, and standards that change too frequently.

LEED

The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design rating system developed by the U.S. Green Building Council is rigorous and thorough. It is still constantly being refined and updated, although professional builders often find faults with the system. To get LEED-certification on a home you must focus on things like energy efficiency, water conservation and indoor air quality. There are four levels to the LEED certification point system– Certified, Silver, Gold, and Platinum, with each one increasingly elite.

Although government buildings have been required to achieve LEED Silver or better and the USGBC works closely with the government on legislation, USGBC is a non-profit not affiliated with the federal government.

The LEED program legitimacy is well-established and the standards are strict. The program certainly encourages green design, especially the provision that awards credits for innovation.  www.usgbc.org

These are just some of the many legitimate certified green label programs.  I’ll be continuing this listing in future posts, so check back to keep learning what you need to look for and shield yourself against unscrupulous businesses.  (Subscribe to our RSS feed with the orange button on the top of the page to get them delivered directly.)

Please share your thoughts, questions and comments- I’d love to address them.

Handcrafted Furniture from Reclaimed Teak Creates Sweet Dreams

Posted on 13. Apr, 2010 by Sesshu Design in Blog, eco-friendly design, home decoration, local companies, luxury design, recycled, scottsdale interior design, sustainable design, sustainable interior design, woods

A hand carved chest from Jason Scott Collection

The Jason Scott Collection line of reclaimed teak wood furnishings has options that are rustic or refined, in traditional or contemporary styles.  All are beautifully hand-carved by craftsmen who have honed their skill for many years.

All the teak is reclaimed from architectural structures from Java, and then created by Javanise craftsmen who have been woodworkers for generations.

Headquartered in Phoenix since 1995, the Jason Scott Collection has become well known for the beauty the carvers find in each piece of wood and the history they preserve in each piece of furniture they create.

For more photos and examples of their work, visit their website: http://jasonscottcollection.com or contact us to commission your very own piece.

Luxury is in the Details at Spring Market

Posted on 08. Mar, 2010 by Sesshu Design in Blog, eco-friendly design, fabrics, furnishings, innovation, local companies, luxury design, scottsdale interior design

Last Friday was Spring Market day for 2010 at the John Brooks showroom in Scottsdale.  They hosted designers from all over Arizona and treated us to presentations by Nick Berman from Berman Rosetti Designs, Samuel & Sons Trim, and Mark Boone of London Boone Designs.

The message of the day was that luxury is all about the details- not fussy, over-done adornments, but simple, clean, modern touches that reflect our current lifestyle and the way people truly live today.  Timeless patterns and motifs such as the Greek key pattern are showing up in designs, but in an updated style and done in new materials.

Rose Quartz beaded trim by Samuel & Sons

Samuel & Sons presented their new line created by designer Lori Weitzner, featuring hand-blown glass beads as well as semi-precious stones like jade, amber, rose quartz, and seed pearls sewn onto simple braids and flat ribbons. 

Her Oasis line is inspired by and rooted in nature with materials like jute embroidery on linen and polished wood beads.  The look ranges from urban sophisticated glamour to organic, natural and soothing.  Wood beads are polished to a satin finish in their natural color- no dyes or stains are used, and they replant trees to replace those used in the manufacturing process.  The line includes two tie-backs fashioned of natural tree pods in two options – both are stunning and would work well in environments where a traditional tie-back would be fussy and out of place.

Mark Boone

Mark Boone inspired us with photos and stories of a recent renovation project he completed in Southern California.  The before and after was amazing- we enjoyed knowing that every designer faces similar challenges in gaining the trust of the client to create the vision.  He put it as “a semi-blind date’ – the client meets the designer, they see their work, but they really don’t know much else about them as the designer, and the same is true from the designer’s side.  There needs to be a chemistry between all parties in order to have the best possible results because building (or remodeling) a home takes several months- if not years!  The details of how the homeowners live are important to the designer’s ability to create a space that truly functions well for them.

High-end Sportscars Go Green

Posted on 03. Mar, 2010 by Sesshu Design in alternative energy, Blog, carbon footprint, cost of green design, eco-friendly design, electric car, geneva auto show, green design, hybrid sportscars, new technology, sustainable design, Tesla Motors, zero emission transportation

Several of the luxury sports car manufacturers have just recently announced plans to develop or introduce hybrids soon, including Porsche, Lotus, and Ferrari.  Personally, I am thrilled!  For far too long the car enthusiast had to choose between performance and fuel economy.  While the typical Ferrari owner isn’t concerned with the price of a gallon of gas, those who wanted to be conscious of the environmental consequences of their choices weren’t so lucky.

I love fast cars, and luxury models, but just couldn’t justify the measly 13-15 mpg most of these cars get.  The Tesla Roadster is a great option, but the limits of geography for repair work was a serious drawback for anyone who lives somewhere other than in California, Texas or Washington, D.C.

Being highlighted at the 2010 Geneva Auto Show , these newcomers to the green car craze are going all out.  Ferrari, which just unveiled its first hybrid: the 599 HY-KERS, designed as a ‘laboratory car’ that brings Ferrari’s latest racing technology to the streets, the vehicle features a 100hp motor linked to a kinetic energy recovery system, taken straight from last year’s Formula One program.

Porsche‘s freshly unveiled electric concept car is their first plug-in hybrid ever.  The 918 Spyder, this stealthy-looking ride supposedly gets 78 miles per gallon, has emissions of 70g CO2/km, can go 16 miles on electric charge alone, and does 0-60 in just 3.2 seconds. Oh and it’s drop-dead gorgeous too- even to a non-Porsche lover like myself.  The technology is a parallel hybrid just like the Prius except much, much sexier.

Lotus entered the field with its recently unveiled Evora 414E Hybrid concept, a sleek supercar that looks ready to take on my beloved Tesla Roadster. Lotus has used green technologies before, including the omnivore engine and the Eco Elise, and now they are getting serious about fuel efficiency. Two of the most exciting features the vehicle claims- its extended range of 300 miles and two electric motors capable of going from 0-60 in 4 seconds.

Eco-luxury Resort in Napa Valley

Posted on 06. May, 2009 by Sesshu Design in Blog, eco-friendly design, green design, LEED, luxury design

The newest Napa Valley luxury hotel is an eco-resort- the Bardessono- and it looks to be a nicely sustainable gem. When designing the inn and spa they took care not to disrupt the area’s natural habitat while including a host of green building strategies including rammed earth walls, grey and black water treatment systems, and solar and geothermal energy. Completed just a few weeks ago by eco-developer Phil Sherburne and architect Ron Mitchell, the project is currently pursuing LEED platinum certification.

Building a luxurious restaurant, spa, and hotel in the middle of Napa Valley’s Yountville was a challenging project for Phil Sherburne and architect Ron Mitchell. They needed – and wanted- to be sustainable while also building a relationship with the community.

The architect and developer used recycled cypress wood to build all of the doors, desks, floors and ceilings. They also focused on the interior, targeting elements that would ensure the property’s natural feel. The environmentally rich 62-room hotel stands proudly, with the support of the neighborhood, right on the Bardessono family’s six-acre farmstead in Napa Valley.