The Murphy Bed

The adage “Necessity is the mother of invention” holds absolutely true with the Murphy bed.

The original "Murphy Door Bed"

In the early 20^th century, William Murphy lived with his wife in a small, one room apartment in San Francisco, and their bed took up most of the floor space. Wanting to entertain guests, but not wanting the bed to be the main attraction, he invented what is now simply known as “The Murphy Bed,” a bed that pivoted on the doorjamb of a dressing closet, and then lowered into a sleeping position. In 1916 he was granted a patent and The Murphy Wall Bed Company began production. The rest (forgive the pun), as they say, is history. The company is still in business and is one of the oldest furniture manufacturers in America.

Murphy beds are an immediate go-to solution for decorating small apartments, guest bedrooms, college dorms, or any room where floor space is at a premium and there’s a need for multiple functions within the area.

The Murphy Bed concept is no longer limited to having a bed fold out of a closet. Bookcases that incorporate a fold down bed are becoming increasingly popular, as well as wall units that convert from a dining or work table to a practical, if not luxurious, sleeping space.

The deign of the Murphy Bed has come a long way since its inception.

A Google search for “murphy bed” will show you thousands of sites for how to incorporate this clever idea into a design solution. The Murphy Bed Company is the original resource to find this solution. California Closets is another maker of  “wall bed” solutions, while Flying Beds leans to a more modern approach with clever shelving solutions in their designs. If you want to build your own wall bed solution, you can buy just the mechanism and be limited only by your own imagination. 

The Murphy Bed is truly a Resource We Love, and one we couldn’t do without!

This article is for informational purposes only and in no way endorses specific manufacturers of the products shown herein.

Photos courtesy of The Murphy Bed, California Closets, and Flying Beds.­

Do you know what “Lyptus® Lumber” is? You should!

The lyptus tree is a natural hybrid of Eucalyptus grandis and Eucalyptus urophylla and is a species that thrives in the warm climate of Brazil as well as other South American countries. Its fast growth in this warm climate permits harvesting in just 14 to 16 years as opposed to 50 to 70 years in colder regions. Lyptus forests produce 30 times the volume of lumber per hectare per year when compared to an unmanaged temperate forest. 

Plantations are a mosaic of eucalyptus and native tropical forests which were previously agricultural and grazing lands. More than a third of these plantations are managed as permanent native forest dedicated to environmental protection and are certified to Brazil’s national sustainable forestry standard.

Mills that transform the trees into building products use virtually every portion of the log, and then the residuals are used as bio-energy for the kiln drying operations.

Characteristics and Benefits

Lyptus lumber’s properties are comparable to hard maple, and with a straight, even grain it rivals cherry and mahogany in its appearance.

Trees are manually pruned during their growing years, so logs are more uniform and have fewer knots resulting in a high conversion rate of logs to clear lumber.

Lyptus lumber has good working qualities:

- It’s well suited for a variety of interior applications, including flooring, cabinets, and laminates.

- It has good machining and turning properties.

- It holds glues and fasteners well, and sands to a smooth, semi-polished surface.

- It absorbs both oil and water based finishes and stains evenly.

Additional useful information about Lyptus Lumber can be found here: http://www.lyptus.com/

Vendors that sell Lyptus lumber and products made from it can be found with a Google search.

And now you know about Lyptus lumber.


Photos courtesy of Lyptus.com's web site.

Eddie Bauer and Airstream Collaborate

Ever wish you could just walk out the front door, turn the key,and travel to parts unknown for an indefinite period of time?

Eddie Bauer and Airstream will soon make this wish a reality: they’ve collaborated to bring you a new experience in road travel: the Eddie Bauer Airstream.

This 25’ Aistream trailer comes complete with a queen-size bed made up with an Eddie Bauer goose down duvet, pillows, and throw, maple and soapstone laminated surfaces throughout, and stain-resistant Sunbrella upholstery on the interior. It even has an oversized hatch for loading and unloading things you want to have on this adventure, like a bike and a kayak. 

The Eddie Bauer Airstream will unveil at the Sundance Film Festival later in January, and be available to purchase in February. At an MSRP of $73,702, it’s not for just any traveler, but for someone who wants the adventure of the open road but not leave behind all the comforts of home.

Of course, you’ll also need the appropriate vehicle to tow it, but that’s another story.

This is definitely a RESOURCE WE LOVE, or maybe it's just the fantasy of it. But in any case, it's worth dreaming about...

Specs and details are available to view here: http://www.airstream.com/products/travel-trailers/eddie-bauer-airstream.html 

Solar Shingles

As someone who believes that the exterior appearance of a home is as important as the interior, and who also believes that whatever we can do to be more energy efficient is a good thing, here are solar panels that are as attractive as the homes they’re serving.

Whether you call them solar shingles, photovoltaic shingles, or building-integrated photovoltaics (BIPVs), they’re solar cells designed to look like conventional asphalt shingles but they contain thin film photovoltaic cells to harness the sun’s power.

Because they’re so discrete in their appearance, they blend into the appearance of conventional roofing materials for a seamless look.

Are these asphalt or solar roof shingles?

To designers, architects, and homeowners alike, it’s an amazing breakthrough in the solar energy market, and especially useful if the esthetics of a house matters to you.

There are many companies in the market who have introduced solar shingles, and even one who offers solar roof tiles that conform to the curved shape of clay roof tiles.

These curved solar panels are from SRS Energy.

 A Google search for “solar roof shingles” brings up many vendors. Here are just a few of them in no particular order of preference:

Premier Power: http://www.premierpower.com/solar_energy_residential/roof_solar_tile.php

OkSolar

http://www.oksolar.com/roof/

Uni-Solar

http://www.uni-solar.com/

SRS Energy

http://www.srsenergy.com/

This article in no way endorses either the companies herein or the products they offer. It’s merely intended to point you in this direction.

Welcome to our new location!

Thanks for checking in to see what's going on here.

Fortunately, I was able to migrate the many "Resources We Love" articles that were on the Beryn Hammil Designs' blog site, so you'll still be able to access the complete library of all these wonderful resources. They're in the "Blog Archive" section on the right side of this page.

Sign up to receive notices whenever a new resource is posted so you don't miss a single one! I promise you, they'll be great!

Thanks for your support and encouragement!

Jefferson Mack Metal, Inc.

Heavy Metal Man

The most obvious question that comes to mind when meeting a craftsman in an antediluvian art form is, “What drew you to this profession?” In the case of Jefferson Mack, the ultimate Iron Man to architects and designers, the answer is a bit surprising. “I felt like I was connecting to something in a past life,” he responds with absolute sincerity.

Forging iron and steel into works of art, practical household items, and the ultimate in green furniture is not a profession that one goes into lightly. It requires an intimate understanding of how to make metal do what you want it to do, innate physical strength, and an ability to translate a vision into reality using materials that are heavy, unwieldy, and often uncooperative. Jefferson Mack has those skills and more, and applies them with sensitivity to both the material and the environment.

His most recent ecological find is architectural steel bracing bars dating from the mid 1880’s that were used in a now dismantled building. Jefferson is transforming these bars into cabinet hardware that maintains the unique characteristics of the old iron. Instead of honing and polishing the metal beyond recognition, he focuses on those interesting details so each piece tells its own story.

Repurposed metal bracer bars become cabinet hardware under Jefferson's care.

In this same spirit, Jefferson is fabricating a large, curved bench for a client. Made from steel plates that were commissioned several years ago for barges but were never used, it will be the breakfast banquet in a conscientiously green home. Instead of recycling them into new steel, the owner of the plates sold them to Jefferson. “By using the plates in their present state we saved that step and reduced their carbon footprint.” Again, when designing this piece of furniture, Jefferson focused on the unique details of the steel. In the end, the finished piece of furniture tells the story of the metal and the artist who made a practical work of art instead of sending the metal to the scrap heap.

Jefferson’s team of talented workmen forges heavy metal into his designs for lighting fixtures, fireplace screens and utensils, cabinet hardware, and banisters. Jefferson Mack Metal, Inc. also works with architects and designers to fulfill whatever their imaginations can conjure for custom pieces.

An artist and businessman, Jefferson Mack knows that an old art form has a place in saving the environment and making beautiful objects at the same time.

Jefferson Mack Metal, Inc. pieces are sold through designers, select retail stores, and the company’s web site: http://www.mackmetal.com/

Laura Villaseñor

A Wonderful Surprise in A Simple Request

Recently, a friend was visiting San Francisco and we spent a joyful day together going to museums, catching up with each other, and sharing our delight in having a few hours together where 3,000 miles weren’t separating us.

At the end of the afternoon, as we were crossing the courtyard of the Legion of Honor museum, I politely asked a young woman if she wouldn’t mind taking a photograph of the two of us with my iPhone’s camera. She politely agreed, but I detected a faint shrug, and took the iPhone from me. She suggested an alternative place for us to stand than where we were; she put our backs to the setting sun. A few seconds later, click, click, and we were digitally recorded for posterity.

But wait! As she handed me my iPhone, she reached into her tote bag and pulled out a professional camera. What’s happening?

Unbeknownst to me, this young woman is a professional photographer and wasn’t satisfied to capture our happy moment with just a cell phone’s camera, even an iPhone!

In thirty seconds she snapped half a dozen pictures with her own camera. Done! Thank you’s were expressed, and I gave her my business card so she could email me the pictures.

A few hours later the pictures arrived in my in-box. OMG!  What she captured was no less than amazing. Not so much the subjects, modesty prevails, but the lighting, the emotions, the depth of feelings that my friend and I share; all recorded by this women’s amazing sense of the moment. And all in thirty seconds!

After looking at Laura Villaseñor’s web site I was astounded at the images I saw there. Not satisfied to send her just an emailed thank you note, I called and we agreed to meet for lunch. We met a few days later, and I sat in rapt attention, listening to her amazing story:

After studying photography and working for 12 years as a photographer in her native Mexico, Laura Villaseñor came to San Francisco four years ago to study photography at The Academy of Art College. Her talent was immediately recognized by the college and she received their prestigious Presidential scholarship.

The images she captures of her subjects contain, as she says, “the essence of the person.” That’s her main objective when looking in the viewfinder. “That, and the feeling of the moment. It changes quickly, and I have to be sensitive to what’s happening in front of me.”

Her studies have included how to maximize the images she captures. “Now the photographer has the lab in the computer, so changes can happen there instead of someone else doing it.” With the true eye of an artist, Laura now has the ability to completely control the final image the viewer sees, both of the subject and her ability to capture it.

Laura photographs people, of course, but also architecture and interiors for designers, special events, and being an artist who sees the world somewhat differently than the average person, what she sees is reflected in her fine art images. Her work has been seen on numerous magazine covers in Mexico, as well as in marketing and PR campaigns.

Laura Villaseñor’s professional photography web site is viewable only with computers and devices that have Flash players: http://www.lauravillasenor.com/, but in the meantime, here’s a small sample of her work to peruse.