The New Sustainable House: Planet-Friendly Home Design

Craswell (Reclaimed), the former editor of Artichoke magazine, delivers an arresting coffee-table book highlighting the environmentally friendly features of homes around the world. Several of the houses incorporate sustainable alternatives for standard building materials, including an Australian home constructed from hempcrete, a concrete substitute that “absorb[s] carbon from the atmosphere for the life of the building,” and an Indonesian mansion built almost entirely from bamboo, which grows much faster than most other timber. Other abodes take advantage of innovative structural components, such as the Catskills Mountain home with a wraparound, solid layer of insulation that enhances heat conservation by eliminating the need for joists and studs, which create drafts. Elsewhere, Craswell describes how a modernist home in India collects over 3,000 gallons of rainwater a year for reuse in its gardens, how an Australian farmhouse utilizes a massive solar-powered battery to stay off the electrical grid, and how a New Zealand abode incorporates reclaimed black maire timber for its floorboards. In addition to being eco-friendly, the houses are also uniformly sleek and striking, featuring creative juxtapositions of modern box-style edifices with curved facades or arched windows. Going green has rarely looked this stylish. (Jan.)