Coast Modern - A film

An interesting film called , "Coast Modern,"  will be playing at the Northwest Film Forum December 11-13. A special pre-screening happy hour will take place December 12 at 6 pm, sponsored by ARCADE, with the filmmakers in attendance! Tickets available online. 

Here is a link to a trailer. I'm intrigued.

http://coastmodernfilm.com/

K

Demolition? De-construction? Salvage?

You've probably seen it recently. An older worn out home in your neighborhood is suddenly sold and one day a big dumpster shows up with a gigantic excavator not far behind. In a day the entire house is gone. Certainly convenient, but not the most environmental thing to do. Especially when there are other options out there. Here are a list of the options beyond traditional demolition.

Guys from SecondUse picking up items
to be sold at their showroom in the SoDo area

• Moving a house
• Green Demolition
• Deconstruction (Full or Partial)
• Salvage

I'd like to focus on the idea of Deconstruction. Deconstruction is the process of removing an entire building with the intent of salvaging as much as possible. (See Diary of a Remodel #1). More and more companies the focused on traditional demolition are now getting into deconstruction as a more environmentally friendly practice. It takes longer since a crew is surgically removing items from the house piece by piece, but if there is enough to salvage, it can be a money saver and help you score points on your LEED or Built-Green checklists. Even if you are not taking down and entire house there might be items that you can remove that can be re-used and re-cycled resulting in lower dump fees, cash in your pocket, or a tax write-off. Below are a few links to companies in the Seattle area that specialize in doing this. They will even pick it up for free!

A variety of items removed from a typical

home that can be salvaged

Deconstruction/Salvage
Second Use
Re-Store

Demolition/House Moving

D.B Davis

....and if you need a dumpster? 

ABC Hauling

Oak flooring if removed properly can be
 put down again, sanded and refinished

     

Looking for a modern home?

www.seattlemodern.com

If you you've been looking for a contemporary styled home and find it frustrating sifting through all the local real estate company websites trying to find one, here is a website worth looking at. 

This site is about properties/real estate around the greater Seattle area, with modern architecture and design in mind.This site online now for over 10 years, listing mid-century retro architecture to newer modernist architecture and great design, matching up buyers, sellers, landlords, owners, with enthusiasts of modern architecture and cutting edge modern design. This site is by an experienced, currently licensed and practicing real estate broker who can put deals together, a former licensed builder who has worked in AIA architectural offices for a half dozen years doing working drawings, an architecturally experienced designer/enthusiast of restoration and preservation of the spirit and essence of the philosopies of what historians and preservationists are now calling the "recent past" Also the spirit and essence of LeCorbusier, Mies van der Rohe (happy birthday to him) and others who inspired the local architects here in the midcentury and beyond. 

I've followed this site for years and I find myself going to his site multiple times a week to see what he is able to find. There are some amazing mid-century modern  homes out there just waiting to be updated. Homes built for Northwest living. Tremendous value in the market right now. 

Contact Tom Holst: cell: 206-841-0003 moderntom@yahoo.com, with Madison Partners Real Estate

Timeless design

http://bigthink.com/ideas/19589 

Trend today gone tomorrow? Massimo Vignelli talks about the Art of Timeless design in this interview. A good reminder to stay rooted in good design values and avoid trendiness and cheap tricks. He suggest that designers  should seek "intellectual elegance" in design. Good words to live by. 

Massimo Vignelli is the iconic Italian designer who's work includes graphic design, interior design, and furniture design. He once said, "If you can design one thing, you can design anything" There is truth in that. 

k