sustainable living | S3 Interior Design

Inspire! Inquire?

January 8, 2016/0 Comments/in Inspiration, Residential, Sustainable /by Tracy D

In our office, we have regular Monday meetings to discuss our projects, goals for the week, timelines & progress. As part of these meetings we like to add a little fun by bringing in new knowledge, videos or readings that may inspire or bring questions to the group.

I was recently inspired by a video I saw while scrolling through my Facebook page and thought it was too good to only share internally. If you follow our website or social media accounts you are already aware of our passion for sustainability. The video I saw was titled “Off the Grid” which inspired me to press play.

The video captured a little island called Lasqueti which is located off of the east coast of Vancouver Island. It is home to around 400 people who have embraced the full meaning of sustainability. These residents have completely adapted to life off the grid.

I researched the community further and they describe their way of life in these words….

“Residents are accused of trying to put the clock back, living a self-sufficient lifestyle reminiscent of an earlier century. Lasqueti is the place where the conversation is more likely about solar panels or composting toilets than about microwaves or toasters — foreign objects for most of the 400 residents. Nobody can work a five-day week away from home because it takes three days work just to survive — to cut firewood, to maintain power, water, and waste systems, to work in your garden to produce your food. An island of individuals, with poets, artists, physicists, fishermen, loggers, tree planters, designers, professional musicians, published authors, some small scale manufacturers, some commercial agriculture, mariculture as well as professional consultants in education, engineering, forestry and alternate energy make up a population that Statistics Canada says is the most highly educated community in British Columbia.”

There way of life has shaped some of the most unusual yet beautiful architecture, as they have used all forms of building to create long lasting homes. Some of my favorites are below.

The Cod Houses formed by the Mud Girls

Their houses are formed by Cod, which is a combination of sand, clay, straw & water. The compound is often mixed & applied by hand which makes for a natural aesthetic. The technique allows the owner to create their own vision. There is no limit to the creativity whether they want clean lines or sculptural forms these house are truly unique.

Earthship Homes

House created by using both natural & recycled materials to develop the structure & creating the layout to utilize thermal mass & cross ventilation to regulate indoor temperatures. Typically most earthships are created by recycling old tires or glass bottles, filling them with sand and casting them in concrete. The ships are then carved into the landscape to blend into the natural habitat.

As designers we don’t shy away from the unconventional, in fact we welcome it. I am completely intrigued by the people of Lasqueti and will be placing it on my bucket list for future vacations as I’d love learn more about their way of life & how we could take lessons from their pursuit to live off the grid and apply it to the building practices of today’s society.

Carrie

Smart Sustainable Structures

February 13, 2015/0 Comments/in Design Build, Sustainable /by Tracy D

Structures? Yes, I said structures. There’s yet another ‘S’ to our story. At S3 we don’t like being bored, so we’re constantly adding to our repertoire of services. In our last blog post, Elaina introduced our Lighting Design Department. Today I’ll be unveiling S3 Design Build.

Smart & sustainable is our mantra at S3. However, our ideas and designs are only relevant if they actually come to fruition. Finding sustainably focused builders can prove to be challenging. It’s at the junction where ideas meet reality that projects can fall off the rails, or take a different turn.

So our team began the journey of seeking out like-minded builders and trades of all sorts. I’m happy to say we’ve found a number of kindred spirits. And wouldn’t you know it, one individual in particular became a regular face around the S3 office. He’s a burly, bearded character with an excitement about sustainable structures that’s comparable to a kid on Christmas morning. Let me introduce Sean. Sean has been in the building industry for 15 years and currently works as a site superintendent for a large commercial construction company. For the past 18 months we’ve been strategizing, planning and dreaming about what a sustainable design / build / development company could look like and I’m thrilled to say it looks pretty awesome.

What will be our focus?

You guessed it… Smart, Sustainable Structures.

What does that mean?

Looking at alternative building materials and how they can be used in practical, energy efficient and cost effective ways.
Working with conventional materials in new ways to achieve greater energy efficiency.
Designing with climate, site orientation, practicality and aesthetic interest at the forefront, not as an afterthought.
Not trying to compete in the conventional market, but creating a new market.

Why does this get us excited?

Because all of us at S3 dream about living, working and playing in environments that are unique, smart and cool… and we believe that there are people beyond us who share this dream also.

What’s up and coming?

Shipping containers anyone???

Stay tuned for an upcoming blog to find out more.

Tracy

Eating an Elephant

February 4, 2014/0 Comments/in Sustainable /by S3

Have you ever heard the expression, “How do you eat an elephant?”

The answer is “One bite at a time.” (Sorry to all our vegetarian and vegan readers.)

Well that’s sometimes how I feel about the challenge of living more sustainably. There are so many issues to tackle and sometimes they become overwhelming. It’s in those moments when I want to throw up my hands and say “what’s the use?” But I must remember that every journey is made up of many small steps.

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Since our team returned from Green Build in November, I’ve been trying to maintain the momentum we gained by making small, sustainable choices. Here are a few that I’d like to share.

Taking the good one-sided paper from our recycling bin and put it into our printer. Much of the printing we do is for in office use, so if the back side has printing or writing on it, who cares. New sheets of paper go in when we print for others (double sided printing if possible).