Black Widow or False Black Widow?

...s living in my outdoor worm bin. I like spiders and all they do around the garden, and have a no kill policy toward them in general. This particular situation, however, has had me a teeny bit nervous. They hang out on the underside of the lid of the worm bin for the most part, though I’ve seen them on the surface of the worm compost once or twice. Obviously my concern is that I will touch one when opening or closing the bin, or while burying my ki...

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Bucket Crapping

...the fine folks at the World Toilet Organization have come up with a clever design for an improvised flush toilet using just a five gallon bucket, a coat-hanger, and a plastic bag. Now, not to be too graphic, but thanks to the Sierra Club we’ve had the opportunity to #2 in a five gallon bucket before and surplus stores even sell toilet seats for buckets. But the World Toilet Organization design has some distinct advantages, mainly keeping odors to...

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Bee Trellis

...ragglers from negative canine and homo sapiens interactions. As usual, the design process around Root Simple begins with the realization that our 1920s house looks best when surrounded by fuddy-duddy landscaping (that flipper fence was a mistake!). Inspired by a trellis in the front yard of a house in the neighborhood, I sketched out a few ideas on paper and then spent an afternoon with Sketchup finalizing the design. Not liking the trellis option...

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Who Needs Windows?

...ks at Hershey’s, Original plans for the building called for a conventional design with windows and awnings. As the foundation was being dug, Milton Hershey became intrigued with the idea of a windowless facility. Such a design would dramatically increase the efficiency of the heating and cooling systems. At Mr. Hershey’s direction, architect/builder D. Paul Witmer, quickly drew up new plans and construction continued without any delay. The buildin...

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I Built a Set of Gerritt Rietveld Crate Chairs and So Can You

...se connections visually interesting. I’ve built reproductions of furniture designed both by architects and furniture makers. While I was building the chair I could tell that it was the product of someone who appreciated both good design and the practical details of furniture construction. It’s also more comfortable than it looks and the original had cushions which I might also make. Associated with the DeStil movement, Rietveld’s furniture work ra...

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