Laura found this Amish chest at the Kane State County Fair in 2000, and loved the vintage hardware and cool aesthetic of a wooden trunk. However, the chest had seen better days: dilapidated and moisture-stained, it needed some refurbishment. We intrepidly (well, mostly Laura) sanded the chest on the back porch, revealing a lovely layer […]
Materials
How to save money on taxes by being energy efficient
It’s tax season again, and we could all use a break. Luckily there are some financial breaks related to energy saving components of your house or building that you might not have been aware of, recently brought to light by the IRS. Under 179D deductions, you can claim deductions on any project or addition that meets […]
A Look into the Architectural Process: Wild Blossom Meadery
Our new project, Wild Blossom, will be Chicago’s first meadery. Believed to be the world’s oldest alcoholic beverage, mead is a drink made by fermenting honey with yeast. Read more about mead at Wild Blossom’s website and then engage with this great interactive display on how mead travels from bee to bottle at Maine Mead Works. […]
Out of the Woodshop: Reclaimed Bowling Lane Bench
Our first finished project from our two Indiana reclaimed bowling lane is a bench/console, perfect for sitting, reading, and displaying a TV, record player, or anything you don’t want on the floor.
In the Woodshop: Reclaimed Bowling Lanes: UPDATED 1/18/13
We recently acquired some reclaimed bowling lane wood for our furniture projects. Come see what we’ve created with it in our woodshop!
moss' Parklet in Inhabitat
Our parklet is featured in Inhabitat! See the article here. Check out our project progress report here from just last week.
Andersonville Parklet Wrapping Up
The Andersonville Parklet (or People Spot, according to CDOT) is just wrapping construction now. We have added a robust .006 acres to Chicago’s park system. Details and progress photos inside.
X Task Desk
All over the world, trees are being felled to clear space for agriculture and to produce all kinds of wood and paper products. As recently as 2005, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization estimated that over 13 million hectares of forest are removed every year. Domestically we have managed to wipe out almost all […]
Friday Favorites: Reclaimed and Recycled Leather Shoes
What’s an eco-conscious, vegetarian-leaning gal to do when she loves leather shoes? We don’t need to wax on about the positives or negatives of leather; both are well known and both sides are valid. We can’t imagine a scenario in which leather is considered “humane”, but we’re also hard pressed to think of a better […]
moss design at NeoCon 2012
Next Wednesday, June 13, Matt will be speaking about reclaimed materials and architecture at NeoCon. The panel, called Innovation in Reuse: Designing Green Buildings with Reclaimed Materials will explore the use of salvaged pieces and their role in more sustainable architecture through case studies, with the aim to help promote this helpful practice. Matt’s talk, […]
LAX Task Desk
There’s a newer version of this post: Read it here! Maybe it was The Jetsons 1960’s interpretation of futuristic furniture or my time in Southern California that explains my affinity for Googie style architecture. Unfortunately for the popularity of Googie architecture, it sounds strikingly similar to the world’s number one search engine. Nonetheless, the style was a continuation […]
moss and Studio Murmur’s parklet in Treehugger
Our Andersonville parklet project is featured in Treehugger. Check out the full article here. Read more about the parklet on our original post, and view renderings here.