Global Green's Pre-Oscar Party

Our very own green fashionista, Tracey, who selects all the sustainable clothing you'll find on the All Shades racks, attended Global Green's Pre-Oscar Party last week.

What is Global Green?

It's Southern California's very own environmental non-profit that works on a global scale, creating sustainable cities and other climate change-curbing efforts. For example, it's working on rebuilding a greener New Orleans and has a whole resource center for green building in Santa Monica.

But back to the party.

(That's Tracey on the left.)

Tracey reports that a large portion of Hollywood turned out in support of the Global Green Pre-Oscars event. And a lot of other Angelenos showed up, too--the eager line wound around the block in organized chaos. 

Celebrity supporters including Leonardo DiCaprio, Sheryl Crow, Gavin Rossdale, Kate Bosworth, Rosario Dawson and Neil Patrick Harris who all joined Global Green to celebrate and support Green Schools--G.G.'s new effort to lighten schools' footprints and create healthy classrooms for the kids inside them.

Tracey's report:

"I missed the first part of the show but arrived in time to see Gavin Rossdale perform acoustic guitar. It was a rare treat to walk into the event and be greeted by the music of the former lead singer/guitarist of Bush.


Sheryl Crow followed performing songs the crowd all seemed to know.

All in all the evening was a teeming with people all friendly and happy to be out in their glad rags in support of a really great cause."

For those of us who missed the big bash, at least we can still get involved at the Global Green website. Then we'll get the news about party time next year...

Home Performance Testing

All Shades will be offering Home Performance Testing from now on (but especially starting in September when our green building professional, Natalie, gets back from vacation).

If you're looking for more health, more comfort, and more efficiency, this kind of test may be right for you.  Essentially, by using a blower door to pressurize the house and using noninvasive gadgets to peek around in your walls, crawl space, and attic, we can help you determine where you're losing energy, how much, and how to fix that, all for a few hundred dollars.

For people with allergies or other health concerns, making sure your house is heating and cooling itself well can do a world of good.  Plus, you'll save money as we often let 40% of our AC or heat out the door if our house isn't up to its fitness snuff.

At the end of the half-day, you'll get a report of recommendations to help your house perform optimally like replacing or repairing you HVAC system or reconfiguring or upgrading your insulation.

So, if you'd like to make your home run as smoothly, safely, comfortably, and efficiently as possible, give us a ring at the store and we'll tell you more about Home Performance Testing.

(323) 665 - 7454.

To a happy, healthy, green home!

Green Renovations With Our Design Center (and a deal for business owners)

If you're doing any renovating this summer, whether it be replacing a light fixture or re-imagining a whole room, we hope you'll consider making your renovation green.

By applying green building techniques you can save 30-50% in energy costs, create healthy indoor air for you and yours, and use resources wisely, leaving more to go around or stay where they belong in the first place.

If you don't know where to start, don't worry.  Natalie, our Green Building Professional at All Shades knows the ins and outs of sustainable design and can direct you to an eco-friendly home building product for almost any project you're cooking up.

Some of what's in our showroom:

*Cork, bamboo, and reclaimed hardwood flooring.

*Water-saving appliances and fixtures (low-flow toilets, showerheads, and faucets).

*Natural, sustainable cabinetry made from wheat, sorghum,  and sunflower seed hulls that doesn't contain formaldehyde.

*Countertops and vanities made from concrete, recycled glass, aluminum scrap, and bamboo.

*Energy-efficient lighting (LEDs and CFLs).

*Elegant, innovative eco-resin room dividers.

*Window treatments and shades made from natural fibers.

And, if you're a local business owner, we've got a special deal going on for tankless water heaters and dual-flush toilets through July.  Buy a Takagi tankless water heater or Caroma toilet, and get 15% off one or or 20% off if you get one of each.

As things heat up, energy and water costs go up with the temperature. With a tank/conventional water heater, for every dollar spent heating the water, only $0.62 is going to heating.  The rest, $0.38, goes down the drain, so to speak.

Tankless varieties use only what's needed for the job--wasting nothing.

Learn more about Takagi Tankless Water Heaters here.  

And here's the scoop on Caroma dual-flush toilets that save up to 18,000 gallons a year.