Bolt and Build - Modern Quick-Assembly (and Green) Prefab Housing

Irwin Weiner ASID - The Loblolly House by Kieran Timberlake is an amazing structure in Maryland that uses an aluminum beam frame with "smart" and "dumb" components bolted to it. (Smart components contain "stuff" like wiring, pipes, etc.; dumb components are filled with insulation and nothing further.)

Components are created off-site and assembled on the building site, and environmentally it's superior construction because everything can be unbolted, taken apart, and moved - or components that age can be switched out easily. Watch today's featured video to get a complete picture of the design and construction process of this vibrant future housing option.

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Video House Tour: Seaside Villa in Greece

Irwin Weiner ASID - Pardon the extremely bad pun, but even though it's Thanksgiving Day (happy holiday!), I'm serving you Greece instead of Turkey. You'll enjoy this video look inside and outside one of the White Key Villas on the Grecian oceanfront.

These homes focus on utility and comfort, not overdecorating, allowing the texture of the stone walls and the richness of wood and tile floors to do all the talking. I'm sure there is lots going on in these villas - it seems ideal for large family and guest gatherings, parties, and entertaining. I can't wait for my invitation!

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Active Lifestyles: Skateboard-Inspired Furniture and Architecture

The God Father Lounge Chair

Irwin Weiner ASID - Why shouldn't extreme sports like skateboarding influence the style of furniture and the way architecture informs how a home should be designed? Skate Study House is a unique collection of mid-century modern furniture, bowing to a love of California and everything to do with skateboarding.

The Comet Coffee Table

Designer Gil Le Bon Delapointe and architect Francois Perrin collaborated with others on a prototype home and community for skateboarders where everything from furniture to appliances stay out of the way of one's free access to skate up and down the walls and perform tricks on countertops and other surfaces.

Astro Clock, made from skateboard wheels and bearings

Today's featured video showcases the PAS House prototype in Malibu, CA, and Delapointe discusses the lifestyle features that are integrated into the furniture and architecture. As you know, Design2Share loves to showcase design that pushes the envelope; we think designing a home and furnishings around residents' personal needs, hobbies, and sports is a wonderful new direction.

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This Tiny House on Wheels Began With the Small House Movement

Irwin Weiner ASID - Massive Victorian homes and their contemporary counterparts, the suburban McMansion, take lots of land, energy, and raw materials that aren't in keeping with our more frugal and green times. Back in 1997, architect Sarah Susanka started the "small house" movement when she published her book The Not So Big House, and the movement has taken many forms. It's a lifestyle movement embraced by today's Millenials - scale back on possessions; it's a minimalist decorating movement; and it's a reduce-your-home's-footprint movement.

Click on the photo to learn more about this other tiny house on wheels. (photo: Stephanie Diani for The New York Times)

Today's featured video shows contractor Tory Smith (whose contact information is at the end of the video) discussing a tiny house he designed for a newlywed couple - and it's on wheels, making it a take-anywhere, completely portable housing solution. Note that the not-so-big-house movement is now miniaturizing to so-called "tiny homes." The interior is a revelation, finding nooks and crannies for every basic living function. And you must admire Tory's reuse of antique building materials. We often forget that the greenest thing we can do in our homes is to reuse and recycle something old into our remodeling and design schemes. Thank you, Sarah, for creating a vibrant movement that tells us "less is more." Click here for more information on Sarah Susanka and her range of not-so-big books.

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