MAK Design Build

[an error occurred while processing this directive]

Green Tips

Turn on your fan…to get warm!
Ceiling fans have a switch at the base of the fan which changes the direction the blades turn. Warm air rises – while most of us stay grounded. When fan blades turn in “reverse”, they move the warm air settled at the ceiling back around the room to where we can enjoy it. A general guideline is to remember to change the fan direction when you change your clocks for daylight savings – downward in summer and upward in winter.

Faves + Finds

In honor of Lance Armstrong’s visit to Davis this February, we are profiling a nifty little reuse idea: a clock made from bike gears! You’ll have to get Lance’s signature on your own though – we won’t be recycling any of those we get our hands on. The Desk Pendulum Clock is available at Greenfeet.com.

Upcoming Events

Davis Green Homeshow – March 21 and 22, 2009
MAK will have a booth at the Davis Green Homeshow again this year. Ken will also be presenting a seminar on Sunday afternoon. We have a few tickets to share – email us if you are interested. For more information: http://davisgreenhomeshow.com/

Heart of the Home Tour &ndash May 2, 2009
MAK will be supporting the Red Cross by including a remodeling project in the Heart of the Home tour this spring. This project, a Craftsman-era remodel and addition in Old North Davis, will feature the kitchen and a local food or wine demonstration. 25 homes
tasting. Tickets can be purchased at http://www.yc-arc.org/


Closing out 2008 with a Bang NARI CotY Awards MAK Design+Build was presented with 3 Contractor of the Year awards by our local NARI chapter this fall. NARI, the National Association of the Remodeling Industry, recognized MAK’s innovative designs and quality craftsmanship for three projects: Best Residential Bathroom $30,000-$60,000 Best Residential Kitchen over $100,000 Best Residential Entire House Remodel $250,000-$500,000 MAK is proud to be recognized by our peers for our hard work, and thankful to the homeowners for allowing us to create such satisfying projects for them! Homeowner Seminar MAK hosted a homeowner seminar at the office in downtown Davis in late November titled “Planning Your Essential Remodel.” The MAK team was on hand with facts, photos, helpful references and sandwiches to help educate homeowners who were considering a remodel. Attendees also received a binder full of helpful tips and ways to get the planning process started. The crowd was eager and engaged, and brought a lot of helpful questions to the discussion. If you would like to attend a future homeowner seminar, email MAK let us know you’d like to be included. If there are topics you’d like to hear from us about, send those along too!

Victorious Gardening (by Ellen Moriarty)

We’ve been hearing a lot about the return to the Victory Garden concept lately and there are many good reasons for that. When you eat fresh from your own garden, you enjoy food free from the mechanical processes of mass harvest, packaging, refrigeration and shipping. Growing your own fruits and veggies also provides some biodiversity in the garden and the valuable blossoms to keep our pollinator population happy and healthy.

Growing your own food does require an investment in time and energy to get started, but if you choose to plant perennial producers you will enjoy the rewards in the most delicious way for years to come. If you hit the local nurseries this weekend you will be just in time to pick up some bare root grape vines, berry starts, and fruit trees. If you are working with a small space look for dwarf and multi-variety fruit trees. It is not uncommon to find four or five different varieties of cherry, apple, or pears grafted to one bare root trunk. These multi-grafted trees supply the cross pollination some fruit trees require and also stagger the harvest as different varieties become ripe over time. Talk to your local nursery staff, they will be happy to help you choose the right plant for your site. Two local nurseries with wonderful staff and plant selections are Redwood Barn Nursery and 3 Palms Nursery. Davis Ace also carries grape vines and Four Winds fruit trees (cultivated in Winters!).

It may take a few years for your bare root stock to take off and produce the abundance you are looking for, but with a bit of care for the first year or two you will enjoy many years of delightful fruits of your labor.

If you are interested in harvesting this year, an annual veggie garden is probably what you are looking for. If you already have space to plant the time is nigh to get your seeds started. If you are just starting out, there is plenty of help available: books at the library; many dedicated sites, blogs and foums on the web; the Farmers Market demonstration garden; and the Yolo County Master Gardeners. Davis local Margret Lloyd has been making news lately as a finalist in the bid to be veggie gardener to the White House. While Margret probably has her hands full she may be able to steer you to some other available and capable hands.


Copyright MAK Design Build 2009