MNN - Mother Nature Network

TreeHugger reviews the facts in a "social media episode" involving Guardian Building Products and Energy Vanguard blogger Allison Bailes who posted photos of that company's fiberglass insulation installed in a less than flattering light. Long story short, Guardian sent Bailes an "improperly harsh letter threatening to sue for "libel, slander, and commercial disparagement" but then realizing the severity of their actions, sent out an apology letter.

 

Remodelista is head over heels (and so is Gizmodo) for a Norwegian boathouse (pictured above) built primarily from reclaimed materials that "is at once rustic and futuristic (indeed, it looks like it was rendered by a particularly ingenious video-game designer for a Myst-like fantasty world)." Called "Naust Paa Aure" the building is the handiwork of Trondheim-based architecture firm TYIN Tegnestue. Lovely stuff indeed.

 

Inhabitat drools over Quinta da Baronesa, a green-roofed, energy-efficient Brazilian vacation home built from bricks salvaged from a demolition project.

 

The New York Times profiles Alexandra Meyn, an out-of-work, Brooklyn-based interior designer who went about doing what any other recently minted interior designer struggling to find a job or internship in New York City would do: she built a treehouse from salvaged materials in her backyard. Something tells me that Meyn's struggles may be soon over ...

 

Curbed opens the polls for the first annual Renter's Week Horror Story contest. Which shudder-inducing tale of rental terror — "Pimps and Rats," "Bedbugs for Three Months," "Nunnery-Turned-Brothel," "Fifteen Mice and Lots of Rain," "Snow and Epic Mold," "Hot Toilet Water and Bees," "Mold Infestation," or "A Roommate Who Had Orgies" — will take home top prize (a free month's rent)!?

 

Re-Nest caters to the reuse-savvy oenophile crowd with a roundup "10 Upcycled Wine Bottles Turned Home Accessories"

 

Jetson Green likes what Denver-based residential builder New Town Builders is up to: salvaging wood from lodgepole pine trees that had been killed by mountain pine beetle infestations. The locally-sourced beetle-ravaged timber, which would otherwise been left to rot, is discolored but still structurally sound.

 

This Old House recommends "12 Easy DIY Fall Fix-Ups." On the list? Seal exhaust vents, beef up attic insulation, install storm windows, and remove aggressive vines.

 

The Los Angeles Times digs Cinema Posters, a new line of wallpaper from Weitzner made from recycled Bollywood adverts from India.