SETTING THE STANDARD

FOR INTEGRITY

Easy Being Green from page P16

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Caden designed a Bloomfield Hills

F redrick Jewelers

kitchen with mahogany cabinetry, coun-

ters of crushed quartz and a tumbled-
marble backsplash.

889 W. LONG LAKE ROAD • BLOOMFIELD HILLS

248-646-0973

www.fredrickjewelers.com

FREDRICK JEWELERS IS EXPANDING TO SERVE

YOU BETTER

SINCE 1953

LINGERIE

S. Old Woodward

Birmingham

8-642-2555

Hours:
Mon-Sat 9:30-6:00

P 1 8

• NOVEMBER 2009 •

TN platinum

sustainable bamboo crop" says Chris
Varady, a designer at Millennium
Cabinetry in Bloomfield Hills, which
designs and manufactures high-end
custom cabinetry. He's also seeing
a similar green trend with lighting:
LED lights are low-energy and main-
tenance-free, and now are available in
the warm light that emulates the look
of halogen bulbs.
Varady finds that often people
are willing to pay a little extra to buy
refrigerators with LED lights or to
install LED under-cabinet light-
ing versus halogen. Another recent
trend is induction cook tops — an
extremely efficient method that uses
an electromagnet that remains cool to
the touch but cooks food very quickly
— in Millennium's kitchen installa-
tions. And in his own kitchen, Varady
plans to install an automatic compos-
ter. Similar to a trash compactor, the
composter will create garden compost
from organic waste such as banana
peels and coffee grounds. Sound a
little extreme? Just last month, the
city of San Francisco passed a law
that requires residents to have a color-
coded trash bin for recycling compost.
Although it's true that there is a
higher price associated with the new
technology, Varady thinks costs will
come down as these products become
more mainstream. At the same time,
building an eco-correct kitchen may
increase your home's resale value. Says
Cindy Kahn of Prudential HWVVB
Realtors in Birmingham, "Selling a
home that uses less energy can help

your house stand out from other
homes for sale."
Still need some help getting start-
ed? Here, Caden offers some of her
top tips for creating a gorgeous and
green kitchen.
Use natural materials. Granite,
concrete or recycled glass countertops,
and cork or recycled wood flooring
are popular choices.
Choose formaldehyde-free cabi-
nets. Standard kitchen cabinets are
made of particleboard and can cause
toxic gas emissions and allergies.
Caden uses only natural products such
as maple plywood for the 'bones' of
the cabinets her firm builds.
Make recycling easier. Special pull-
out bins make it stylish and easy to
recycle your paper and cans.
Buy energy-efficient appliances.
Refrigerators such as the Sun Frost
can reduce refrigerator energy con-
sumption by a factor of four compared
to the typical household refrigerator
currently in use. Asko dishwashers
are another great choice, by doing an
excellent job of cleaning dishes with
a fraction of the water, electricity and
detergent used by ordinary machines.
Apply VOC paints and finishes.
Paint and finishes can release low-
level toxic emissions into the air of
your home for years. Michigan stan-
dard levels for VOC (volatile organic
compounds) are under 150. A low
VOC level is 50 or less after applica-
tion. Natura paint from Benjamin
Moore has a VOC level of zero. "It
costs a little more, but has a premium
finish and is odor-free," says Kevin
Westfall, owner/ general manager of
Teknicolor Paints (teknicolors.com ).
Install a water filtration system.
Filter Water filtration systems are easy
to install and filter out contaminants
in your drinking water. They also
can divest you from using throwaway
water bottles, therefore saving money
and environmental waste.
Hire local talent. Judee Lewis, an
interior designer that worked with
Caden Design on an award-winning
Bloomfield Hills kitchen, says the
homeowner is "really proud to have
used local craftspeople for all of the
woodworking, finishes and installa-
tion." N