Energy Efficiency | Hudson Valley Style Magazine

Unpacking Earth Day and Environmental Justice – by Naomi Harris

Millennials, our grade school Earth Day memories are probably very similar: images of “Save The Earth!” posters & discussions centered around the the “3R’s” – reduce, reuse, recycle. Protecting the earth responsibilities meant that we were encouraged to simply take shorter showers, turn the lights off in every room, & snip plastic rings on packs of soda cans to save sea turtles. While taking actions of sustainable living to protect our environment is very important, here is the uncomfortable truth: most of what we learned about environmental justice growing up was flat-out greenwashing to shield government & major corporations from […]

3 Healthy Home Projects to Improve Indoor Environmental Quality

(BPT) – How healthy is your house? After spending more time at home due to quarantine and social distancing, many homeowners are asking themselves this question. This has inspired an increase in home improvements that go beyond aesthetic enhancements. Homeowners want eco-friendly upgrades that improve indoor environmental quality (IEQ), which means improvements that support the health and wellness of the people who live in the home. If you’re curious how to improve your home’s IEQ, here are three key projects to consider: 1. Hydronic radiant heating systems Conventional forced-air systems push heated air through ductwork in the walls and ceilings. […]

Maitopia - Modern Rustic Energy Efficient Retreat in Red Hook, NY - Photo Story by Maxwell Alexander

Fresh air, inspiring design, warmth and comfort… Maitopia Photo Story by Maxwell Alexander

Escape the craziness for a few days and keep a healthy distance from the rest of the World in Maitopia, Hudson Valley’s hidden modern rustic gem in the middle of the woods in Red Hook, New York. This beautifully designed passive glass & wood modern cabin offers elegant details and the warmth that only an upstate energy-efficient retreat could. With a soaking egg tub, fires at every turn and a year-round hot pool you will fall in love with the place and the towns nearby. Not to mention Hudson Valley parks and hiking trails that are open for business and […]

2020 Hudson Valley Style Magazine Awards Nomination: EcoCapsule - Sustainable off-grid micro-home - Sustainability and Social Responsibility

2020 HudsonValley.Style Awards Nomination: EcoCapsule – Sustainable Off-Grid Micro-Home

Ecocapsule® is a smart, self-sustainable micro-home, which utilizes solar and wind energy. It allows you to stay in remote places out of reach of infrastructure, with the luxury of a hotel room. Ecocapsule® is a stylish way to approach off-grid housing. It can serve as a cottage, pop-up hotel, caravan, mobile office, research station, or anything you want it to be. The product has been designed and engineered from scratch to be as self-sufficient, practical and functional as possible. Join Ecocapsule® and change the World! 2020 HudsonValley.Style Awards Nomination: EcoCapsule (Slovakia, EU) Nomination Categories: Style, Design, Sutainability, Social Responsibility Read this […]

New Year’s Resolutions with New Better Meanings

As I go online to search for the most popular New Year’s resolutions for 2020, I find it satisfying to see more people focusing on truly important issues: reducing debt, maintaining financial responsibility and stability, self-care, emotional and physical health improvement, education. These are all great. However, I’d like to add one more resolution that would be beneficial to us personally and to the world as a whole. I want 2020 to be not only about us and what we do to improve our own lives, I want people to start thinking beyond and bigger. In the new year, we […]

Could European EcoCapsule become a Solution for the Housing Crisis in the United States?

As a Designer, I firmly believe that Beauty will eventually save the World and looking at this egg-shaped aesthetically pleasing product of Design I feel that Europeans might be the new saviors of the American Dream that is currently experiencing a bit of a relevance problem. The Ecocapsule could be the first commercially available technological solution that will disrupt humanity’s understanding of how sustainable/eco-friendly housing looks like, with a shift from heavy, static and inefficient boxes of all sorts, to the sleek, compact and energy-efficient appliance-like personal pods that for sure look like a visitor from the future. But what […]

Give Your Home Some Space! Interior Design Tips for Small Living

Whether your house is big or small, a stand-alone structure or an apartment, it will go through a facelift sooner or later. You will have to repaint the walls (or get rid of the wallpaper), jettison junk that as accumulated over the years, and perhaps go in for some new furniture. It is easier for us Millennials, just because we used to “living small”, however, it applies to everyone who’s home doesn’t have a lot of square-footage: does it mean that your home has to feel claustrophobic? Not at all! Smart, clean and sustainable (in multiple definitions of the concept) […]

6 ways to turn your home into a natural oasis

As the year comes to an end, many people make resolutions to start the New Year strong. This might mean ramping up your workout routine, increasing your self-care regimen or finding time to de-stress. The EPA reports we spend 90 percent of our time indoors, but most people feel that spending time in nature has a positive effect on their mental well-being and stress level, according to a recent YouGov study commissioned by VELUX. So, if your goal is to de-stress, here are some healthy behaviors and design tips to help you bring nature’s sanctuary indoors. 6 ways to turn […]

Winter is a great time to make your home come to life - Interior Design and Plantscaping Tips from Maxwell Alexander

Winter is a great time to make your home come to life – Interior Design and Plantscaping Tips from Designer Maxwell Alexander

Plants are a powerful but underused tool in interior design. Their green, leafy bodies can add life to even the coldest rooms and they are versatile enough to be able to be included either as a major feature or as a last-minute detail. But as living creatures they are, plants can be tricky to work with since they need good lighting, settings, and the right planters to look their best. So make sure you keep these tips in mind to breathe style and nature into your home’s interior. Planters are more than just containers Plants and planters go together like […]

Escape New York City life in this tranquil Hudson Valley Style retreat created by HUDSON DESIGN

Lake House Project by HUDSON DESIGN Interior Design by Jarlath Mellett Photography Courtesy of HUDSON DESIGN Hudson Valley is home to many world-renown architectural & design marvels and architecture firm HUDSON DESIGN is keeping up with the tradition of creating structures that merge art and architecture with aesthetic acumen. They just unveiled their latest project in Putnam Valley: a modern, minimalist home designed for a picturesque lakefront setting on Lake Oscawana. Escape New York City life in this tranquil Hudson Valley Style retreat created by HUDSON DESIGN In line with authentic Hudson Valley Style, the home is designed in sync with nature […]

Your 2020 guide to climate-friendly holiday gifting

(BPT) – Each year, many people count down the days to the holiday season and save their money for festive decorations and gift-giving. In fact, the average American will spend over $1,000 on holiday gifts, according to the National Retail Federation. But before you start checking gifts off your list, consider how you can do even more this year. A gift that is ENERGY STAR certified not only has the latest features and styles, but also saves energy and prevents climate change. It’s a gift that does a world of good for your loved ones and the planet. Cutting-edge electronics […]

5 ways to bring the outdoors in this fall – Hudson Valley Style Magazine

5 ways to bring the outdoors in this fall (BPT) – With the weather cooling down and trees changing to vibrant colors, it’s no wonder many consider autumn their favorite time of year. Fall draws people outside to apple orchards and pumpkin patches and fills homes with the smells of seasonal baking. A recent YouGov survey commissioned by VELUX found that most people (over 69%) think exposure to daylight, fresh air and nature has a positive effect on their well-being, including reducing stress. Yet according to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), people today spend 90% of their time indoors. Even […]

How bad is your air?

How bad is your air? by Katya A Williams, Hudson Valley Style Magazine Editor [ Sustainability and Social Responsibility ] Clean air is something many people are desperate for. Air quality varies from one region to another, and the way the air is treated and maintained highly depends on the infrastructure and economic development, and the pollutants that are being produced by various sources. Air pollutants are gases and aerosols in the atmosphere that cause harm to humans and the environment. The pollutants can be natural (volcanoes, fires, dust storms) and anthropogenic – caused by human activity – fuel, oil, […]

2020 Interior Design Trends by Designer Maxwell L. Alexander

2020 Millennial Interior Design Trends by Designer Maxwell Alexander

Top 10 Interior Design Trends for 2020 by Designer Maxwell Alexander #Millennials Just a few weeks ago I started working on 3 interior design projects exactly at the same time, they are still in their beginning stages and are to be brought to life sometime in 2020, so yes, as Designers we often have to predict the future or as we call it – set the trends. So here is the Top 10 Interior Design Trends that also happened to be Millennial-inspired and driven: #10: Space-saving Interior Design The era of spectacularly oversized mansions is officially gone along with the […]

4 Fabulous Ways to Green Your Beauty Routine

4 Fabulous Ways to Green Your Beauty Routine (BPT) – Beauty routines, we all have them and no two are alike. Whether you are getting ready for work or for date night, your actions can actually benefit the environment too. No other state in the U.S. can match what California offers in terms of natural beauty, miles of coastline, stunning forests and idyllic weather and it’s up to each of us to do our part to keep it that way. From singing in the shower to styling our hair, we may be using more energy than we think, which can […]

Historic Hudson Valley Farmhouse Reinvented by Duncan Avenue Interior Design Studio

A Historic (Circa 1970s) Hudson Valley Farmhouse Reinvented by Duncan Avenue Interior Design Studio

Social Media Sensation: Historic Farmhouse Reinvented by Duncan Avenue Interior Design Studio Welcome to the historic (circa 1870) Hudson Valley Farmhouse in the heart of legendary Marlboro, NY. It has been completely reimagined by the Award-Winning Duncan Avenue Design Studio and has become an inspiring, stylish and extremely comfortable zero-emissions 21st century smart home just minutes away from NYC. Situated on top of a hill and an acre of picturesque landscape, it could become your turnkey second-home, a vacation home, rental or investment property, or an authentic Hudson Valley Style dream home for generations to come. The Farmhouse has been […]

DA SKY - Aerial Real Estate Photography in Hudson Valley, New York

Explaining Energy Sources. New York is Saying No to Fossil Fuels.

Electrical energy is essential for the world to work and produce. Explaining Energy Sources. New York is Saying No to Fossil Fuels. by Katya A Williams, Sustainability and Social Responsibility Editor, Hudson Valley Style Magazine Electricity is considered to be the secondary source of energy, while natural sources like sun radiation, geothermal energy, fossil fuels, wood, and nuclear energy are the primary sources. Generators, turbines, water, and gas can all generate electrical power by sending energy from the source to the location of use. Fossil fuels are the most used primary sources of energy, which are the leftovers of the […]

What is water? Seeing The Hudson River as a part of a water cycle by Katya A Williams, Editor, Hudson Valley Style Magazine

What is water? Seeing The Hudson River as a part of a water cycle. by Katya A Williams, Editor, Hudson Valley Style Magazine Water is a renewable resource, not one single living organism can live without. However, it largely varies how humans treat water around the globe. To people in developing countries, water is treasured – it forces communities that one hundred percent depend on agriculture, to escape droughts and migrate to other places with more water resources. But in developed countries, water appears to be one of the most common sources, easily accessible and very affordable almost anywhere, which […]

Solid waste: Is it time for a smaller garbage can?

Solid waste: Is it time for a smaller garbage can? by Katya A Williams, Editor, Sustainability & Social Responsibility People are creatures of their habits and patterns, where purchasing goods makes a part of a person’s daily routine. American businesses produce and promote a wide variety of services and products, available and accessible anywhere and anytime, for shoppers with all possible needs and demands. America is the nation of consumers! The more goods humans buy and use, the more waste gets produced. American businesses and homes generate an overwhelming amount of trash, also known as municipal solid waste (MSW), which […]

5 simple steps to getting started with solar panels

5 simple steps to getting started with solar panels (BPT) – With more Americans “going green” than ever before, you’ve probably already started thinking about doing it yourself. Perhaps you’ve increased your recycling efforts, started using more Energy Star appliances and light bulbs or upgraded to other greener technology options. Chances are, you also may be thinking about using solar energy to power your home, but don’t know where to start. It may be easier than you think to have solar panels installed in your home. According to residential solar experts, here are the steps involved in going solar. 1. […]

7 smart steps to improve indoor air quality at home

7 smart steps to improve indoor air quality at home (BPT) – Think about how much time you and your family spend inside versus outside. From your home to the car to work and to school, it’s not uncommon that the majority of your day is spent indoors. This modern phenomenon means increased exposure to indoor air pollution. Fortunately, with a few smart, proactive steps, you can help protect yourself and your family. People vastly underestimate the time they spend inside, assuming just four hours, when in actuality they are inside more than 21 hours each day, according to The […]