We wanted to let our customers know that we are off this week and we will not be making any shipments during the holiday break. We will be returning to work next week beginning on Monday January 4th and any order placed during our off week will be shipped out upon our return.

Thank you for your understanding and we look forward to working with you in 2010!

We wanted to say Merry Christmas to you our Blog visitors and most importantly, to our customers who have supported us all year. We appreciate the support our customers have shown of our family small business in 2009. You have our assurances that we will continue to work hard in 2010 to earn your business again on your next remodeling project. We have several new products on the boards for 2010 so check back often to see if one of our new designs might make a nice addition to your home upgrade plans in the coming year.

Thank you once again for your support and Merry Christmas from all of us at AnchorBayTile!

More than 25,000 attendees are expected to swarm in to Phoenix, Arizona this week for the Greenbuild International Conference and Expo from November 11 – 13th. Former Vice president Al Gore will keynote the event with a speech at Chase Field on Wednesday November 11th followed by a concert with nine time Grammy winner Sheryl Crowe who is noted for her longtime environmental awareness.

The event promises to be chock full of education, new products, and noted green building speakers. If you are in any way connected to the green building industry you probably are on your way to Phoenix this week for the festivities. We expect to also be there and we will let you know what we see.

The tax credit set to expire on November 30th for first time homebuyers and those who haven’t owned a home in three years has so far been a strong driver of home sales in markets across the country. Pending home sales have surged for six straight months and economists estimate that the tax credit will generate 400,000 new home and existing home sales.

Activity has been particularly strong for homes priced below $100,000. In the West, the supply of homes priced below $100,000 has dipped to a paltry two month supply where a six month supply is generally considered a healthy balance between buyers and sellers.

Buyers looking to take advantage of the tax credit need to get moving if they want to qualify for the credit before it expires. Loan departments at lending companies are overwhelmed these days with loan modifications and clean-up work, so new purchase activity has seen delays in many areas across the U.S. Buyers hoping to qualify for the credit are advised to get under contract by mid-October to ensure their home closing is complete before the November 30th expiration date.

The US Green Building Council is a non-profit organization of members of the building and trades communities who work together to develop standardized practices for Green building. The USGBC has developed a site for consumers at www.greenhomeguide.org that lists Green Building resources such as a summary of green building programs across the country, green remodeling guidelines, green product resources, and video tutorials on the LEED for homes program, carbon calculators and just about anything else you might need when planning a green remodel.

For those researching and planning a green remodel we thought the REGREEN Guidelines for Green Home Renovations were especially helpful. The USGBC has partnered with the American Society of Interior Designers (ASID) “on the development of best practice guidelines and targeted educational resources for sustainable residential improvement projects” as explained on the green home guide website. Take the time to read through the 108 page REGREEN GUIDELINES 2008 document which contains comprehensive information for anyone planning a green remodel.

Here are some tips for those planning a green Kitchen or Bathroom remodel that you may find useful in planning a project.

Kitchen tips:
* Choose energy efficient appliances that have obtained an Energy Star rating
* Use low, or no-VOC paints, sealers, and caulks
* Position the refrigerator away from the oven and out of direct sunlight
* Take advantage of natural light with well-placed windows

Bathroom tips:
* Replace older toilets and fixtures with low-flow models for the sink, toilet, and shower
* Use natural light provided by a skylight over the shower
* Avoid carpeting in high moisture areas. Tile the floor and walls throughout the bathroom. Consider recycled tile products for bathroom installations
* Select vanity cabinets made from Bamboo or other green materials

In the AnchorBayTile online tile showroom we offer several different types of recycled glass tiles and we soon expect to offer a line of subway tile made from real Bamboo. Read through the REGREEN guidelines to answer most any of your GREEN remodel questions. Feel free to contact our team at AnchorBayTile if we can offer assistance with questions about our recycled glass tile products or our upcoming line of Bamboo tile products.

Saw this recently and we wanted to pass this on to our readers as a heads up. On Wednesday the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a wide recall of about 5.5 million roll-up and Roman window shades sold by such retailers as IKEA, Williams Sonoma, and Target Corp. stores due to strangulation risks and deaths.

Of the six voluntary recalls issued on Wednesday, the largest was one urging consumers to stop using 4.2 million roll-up blinds imported by Lewis Hyman Inc. of Carson, CA and sold at Target stores because two infant boys were apparently strangled in the blinds lift cord. The Consumer Product Safety Commission is aware of 11 incidents since 2005 of children becoming entangled in the inner cord of a Roman shade and three of those children died according to a letter from the CPSC to the Window Covering Manufacturers Association posted on the CPSC website.

In the case of Target, there are instructions on the Target website on how to check the product to see if the unit was equipped properly when sold. If not, consumers should stop using the product immediately and contact Lewis Hyman for a free repair kit. IKEA has also posted a notice on their website on how consumers can obtain a full refund. We could not yet locate information on the Williams-Sonoma website regarding the Shades product recall.

We always encourage our readers to send in any deals they find locally at their neighborhood hardware stores, home improvement centers, and home & garden centers. We stumbled across this timely deal on the L.A. at Home Blog from the Los Angeles Times and while it may only apply to our readers in the Southern California area we wanted to share the idea with our readers as a reminder that fall planting season is almost upon us.

It seems that for a couple of years now, Oxnard, California based Agromin Premium Soil Products has been supplying 99 cents only stores in Southern California with 4-quart bags of its organic potting soil. Branded as Organic Grow and distributed in Southern California by Spring Valley Floral, these lightweight bags provide just the right amount of potting soil for planting a few flower pots in the backyard or the front porch. Better yet, those living in apartments or condominiums certainly appreciate not having to lug the larger potting soil bags home for the 5 – 6 scoops of soil that they actually need.

Check back soon for our upcoming fall planting tips articles where we will offer tips on what to plant for the fall gardening season.

For those readers who have a passion for green design and the green products that go in to those new projects we will soon be introducing a new subway tile product that might pique your interest. Our product developers have designed a new subway tile collection made from real Bamboo. This product will be for interior applications only in dry areas such as kitchen backsplashes, powder rooms etc. We will post product photos soon so check back frequently for photos, product information, and availability.

We hope you don’t mind if we pat ourselves on the back and share our news with readers about our tile being included in this months Better Homes & Gardens magazine. Our Solana Glass Subway tile was a part of the home remodel story beginning on page 149 in the August issue of BH & G. One of our customers is a publicist and she did a pretty nice job both with the remodel of her family’s home and in working with the editors at Better Homes and Gardens to have her family’s beautiful home featured in the magazine.

The color shown on the remodeled kitchen backsplash is our smooth grey color which adds a nice soft hint of color to a room without appearing overpowering to any cabinets, fixtures or appliances also in the room. If you like our glass subway tile colors then stay close by since we will soon be offering matching glass mosaic tile blends that will be a wonderful complement to our Solana glass subway tile choices.

Unfortunately there are too many stories out there of the weekend warrior tackling a home improvement or repair project at home then one thing leads to another and there is an accident and an injury to report about. Many of these incidents normally could be avoided if only more DIY’er’s took greater care to follow standard safety procedures. Here we thought we would review some well heeled advice we have come to cherish over the years.

* First and foremost, wear protective eyewear such as safety glasses when doing any sawing or hammering
* Anchor your ladder securely or have your partner hold the ladder while performing tasks at extreme heights. Falling from a ladder is one of the most common residential injuries reported.
* Do not wear loose clothing. Long pants such as jeans and a long sleeve shirt together with sturdy footwear are good choices to protect against flying debris.
* Increase ventilation in your work area when working with paint and any other chemicals
* Unplug the power cord when taking extended breaks from your project and never leave your power tool unattended.
* Finally, keep a first aid kit with supplies available, just in case

These tips might seem trivial and more common sense than anything, but you’d be surprised at the number of incidents that could have been prevented if only proper safety procedures were followed. Good luck to all of the DIY’ers out there.