What is Sustainable Living?
A sustainable lifestyle is living your life trying to have as little of an impact on Earth as possible. There are a number of easy choices you can make; like limiting the amount of energy you use, using eco-friendly products, and starting a compost.
How to live Sustainably
By using less energy in your home and work space, you can help to reduce carbon emissions. There are many ways to save energy in your home and work, including switching off stand by appliances, turning your heat down, and hanging your clothes to dry.
2. Use Reusable Alternatives
Single-Use products, particularly plastic ones, usually end up in landfills and/or the ocean. This can have detrimental effects on the surrounding ecosystems and cause harm to the wildlife. You can prevent this by choosing to use eco-friendly and reusable products. This can be as simple as cutting out plastic water bottles and investing in a nice hydro flask bottle! Here is a great list of the best eco-friendly water bottles.
3. Recycle and Reuse
Make sure you're recycling correctly by putting your waste in the correct bins! Make sure to keep food and liquid out of your recycling and not put any loose, plastic bags in there. For more help, visit the Waste Management website.
4. Save Water
Saving water can save you money. You can save water in and around your home by making a few small changes. Try installing a water butt to make use of grey water to avoid wasting drinking water. Here is a great video on how to install one.
5. Donate Unused Items
If you no longer use a product or wear a piece of clothing, give it to a charity shop or someone you know would use it to reduce waste.
At Great Lakes Reclaimed, we are always on the hunt for old barn wood, vintage items and trinkets to salvage and make into our own piece of custom furniture or décor.
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Fortunately, we have built a solid reputation on customizing tables that go with our clients various decors.
Tip 1: Get Motivated
We have hundreds of various decor and tabletops on our Pinterest Page. If you need some inspiration, visit our page!
Tip 2: Compare and Contrast
Referencing the picture in this post, feel free to print it out and see which color will best match your color scheme! Our darkest finish is our espresso finish. If you would like a splash of color as seen below, we can customize that.
Tip 3: Let us Help
Lisa is an artist and has designed homes, furniture and interior décor for over 25 years. We are happy to hear what you are wanting to accomplish with your space, look at pictures of your room, and provide finish recommendations.
Need more help? Give us a call at 719.322.3344 or email us at greatlakesreclaimed@gmail.com.
]]>A dining table can be an illusively large piece of furniture, and you should always take into account the space around it.
We suggest you have at least 3 feet of space between the table and the exterior to comfortably sit in a chair and move around.
To find the proper size for your dining table, start by measuring the length and width of the area. Then subtract about six feet from those two measurements to get a target dining table region.
For Rectangular Tables:
For Round Tables:
For Square Tables:
Pro Tip: Use Painter's Tape
Painter's tape is a great tool to help you visualize your table size and ensure that you have adequate space to move around. Draw the length and width of your table on the floor and adjust accordingly.
Coffee table height typically ranges between 16 to 18 inches.
Dining table height is approximately 30 inches. This height is suitable for chairs that have a seat height of around 18 inches.
Counter height tables typically range from 34 to 36 inches and require stools or chairs with a height of 24 to 26 inches.
Bar table height is about 40 to 42 inches. This height is designed to accommodate bar stools with a seat height of approximately 30 inches.
Desk height is approximately 28 to 30 inches, which is similar to a regular dining table. This height is suitable for chairs with a seat height of around 16 to 18 inches, the average height of an office chair. Standing desk table heights can range from 36 to 48 inches.
Console table height ranges from 30 to 36 inches. This height is suitable for hallways, entryways, and other areas where space is limited.
With fall and the season of harvest in front of us, it makes us all think of Thanksgiving and time spent around the dining room table together. Although 2020 has been one of the strangest years; from our politics to developing new ways of going to the grocery store, family gatherings and relationships are still what we can cling to for comfort. So, as you are preparing for your large or small gatherings this fall season there are a few things you might be considering;
The Table:
The table is the place that you eat, play, and converse so why not have it custom-made to suit your space and style. At Great Lakes Reclaimed were offering a custom cottage pine round (60" in diameter) table with a pedestal base for your holiday gatherings. If this style table isn't the right fit for your home gatherings, email us with your personal design wishlist and we can help customize something for you!
The Decor:
Now that you have your gathering place planned out, you may want to add your custom flare. What better way to do so than with an arrangement of Plush Pumpkins! The beauty in these pumpkins is more than just the huge color selection, they also add texture and softness to round out your table style. The Plush Pumpkins can be used for making your space unique up until the Christmas tree goes up without any rotting!
The Food:
Your gathering place is custom to your space and your style, but now what do you serve?
With it being apple and pumpkin season, how about making either a delicious pumpkin pie or this beautiful apple crisp to fill the bellies and souls of your guests.
Below is a delicious pumpkin pie recipe from epiccurious.com
https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/pumpkin-pie-102601
Flower boxes - Whether you want custom boxes fitted to your window sills or some standing boxes that can stand under a window, along a pathway, or strategically placed in your garden area, adding greenery and color are always my go-to choices for Spring.
Freshen up your seating: Porch swings and Benches are a great way to increase your seating and create more space for relaxing and connecting. First, I cannot do without my benches no matter WHAT season we are in. In the winter they serve my hallway well for removing boots and snow pants. In the summer, flip flops and sand are halted in the hallway so my floors stay a little cleaner. Outdoor, deck/patio, and fireplace benches work great to keep everyone outdoors a little longer by being a nice convenient landing place after dinner or chores. Increasing your seating choices outside just may increase your chances of keeping everyone out there enjoying the outdoors a little longer!
Porch Swings are not just for Southerners! We enjoy them Up North too. There is something about that soft sway back and forth on a swing that is just not easy to replace with anything else. The little ones just love to be rocked in a porch swing after a long day of sun and water fun. We are making these to order so that they fit your exact space needs. Email greatlakesreclaimed@gmail.com or give us a call 719-322-3344 if you need a quote on any of our custom porch swings, flower boxes or benches.
Enjoy the beginning of SPRING!
Lisa
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The Dotski barn was built in 1865. This was one of the first families to begin farming land in the Cheboygan area. Several roads are actually named after them and their later generations. The land originally farmed (over 2,000 acres) is still in the family to this day. The barn was built mainly of hemlock which falls under the pine category. All of its beams are hand hewn. We take a great amount of satisfaction in being able to salvage these beams and fashion them into beautiful, functional furniture. Keep checking back with us to see what these eventually are transformed into!
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This small grey barn was a little different. It was in good shape and had maintained itself thru many a Michigan winter. When i got inside it the sun popped out and created some unique patterns with the wood and light. I just stood inside and enjoyed the picture show. The patterns and colors were like being on the inside of a black and white kaleidoscope. A memory i will never forget. This barn gave me more than wood for a table.
Jim
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We get our napa valley wine barrels shipped from California... We found out that the wine industry cycles out their barrels every 5 years. There are plenty of barrels to be reclaimed and we have anywhere from 8 to 16 brought in every 6 months. We make other products from the reclaimed wine barrels and we go thru them pretty fast. One of the highlights of our deconstruction of the wine barrels is the wonderful smell of the wine that has soaked into the white oak staves. Especially when we are sanding we get an amazing aroma in the shop.. Almost makes you want to stop and have a glass of wine!!!!
You can hang these on horizontally on a wall, upright on a wall (need high ceilings) or you can put them on your ceiling. You can link to our website here and get the dimensions and more pictures of them action. https://www.greatlakesreclaimed.com/collections/napa-valley-wine-barrel-products
Thanks for checking out our store... If you are in Petoskey feel free to stop in at our shop. If the lights are on we are working... Jim
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tote. Great Lakes Reclaimed was off and running. We turned our dining room into a shipping department and had fedex pickups daily on our front porch. We had great neighbors who never complained about the shop noise and the trucks going in and out of our driveway.... Never negate the day of small beginnings because when the holiday season arrives it can change fast....
Christmas orders for 2013 went thru the roof. We had over 400 beer totes in the Que. I enlisted my son Matt and my 3 nephews to help us build. It was a great introduction to the maker movement and how not to be ready for the holiday season...
We moved back to Michigan in the summer of 2014 and opened our shop here in Petoskey. We now make wine racks, furniture and home decor items. We learned a lot these past four years and greatly appreciate all of you who have ordered from us and entrusted us with making you a high quality product. Jim
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Our Farmhouse Harvest Tables have been the big surprise this year and we are happy to offer these with a huge array of customizable design options. You asked for it and we listened! You can now pick your stain color (match your kitchen/dining area), pick your table or bench leg design (square, tapered or turned) as well as your overall exact dimensions. Need it downsized for an apartment? Want a mammoth size to fit a large family? We can do it all. After all these are selected you can even give us the level of distressing you would like; little to heavy and everything in between...
Here's to a great Holiday Season and to many gatherings around your table!
Lisa
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