American Clay is heading off to Charleston, South Carolina as a vendor in SALI’s 23rd Annual Stenciling, Decorative Arts and Faux Finishing Convention and Exposition.

Put on by SALI (Stencil Artisans League, Inc.), the convention aims to teach, show and inform people on the art of stenciling and decorative painting. With numerous classes, lectures and vendors, no doubt the show will inspire a great many to pursue deeper the arts that SALI is dedicated to preserving.

If you’re in the area, make sure to stop by and say hello!

American Clay will be an exhibitor at The 3rd Annual Dwell on Design Conference & Exhibition in Los Angeles, CA, June 6-8, in the Los Angeles Convention Center, West Hall A.

To purchase tickets, go to Dwell on Design’s website here.

If you plan on being in New Mexico this coming weekend, make sure to check out the U.S. Green Building Council’s Green Built Tour.

Part of the weeklong event, Sustainability Week, this self-guided tour showcases the most sustainable homes in Albuquerque, Santa Fe and Taos. And the best part is, many homes on the tour feature American Clay, providing an exceptional opportunity to see our plasters in their natural environment!

If you’re hoping to catch a glimpse and actually feel American Clay walls, make sure to check out these houses.

Furbush Adobe Renovation
9828 4th Street NW
Directions:
From 4th Street and Alameda, go north on 4th Street to just north of the Chavez Community Center; at yellow fi re hydrant turn east down a gravel lane; 9828 is the first house on the left.

Mesa Vista de Corrales
10 Twin Tree Court
Directions:
Take I-25 north to Alameda Boulevard; turn left on Alameda; turn right (north) on Corrales Road 5.3 miles to Paseo Cesar Chavez; turn left (west). Road turns right onto Calle Contenta. Travel a short distance and turn right onto Mesa Vista Road. The home is on the left.

Santa Fe Dream Home
875 Camino Francisca
Directions:
Go north on St. Francis from Cerrillos and take Highway 599 exit to Ridgetop exit. Go South on Ridgetop; then left onto Camino Francisca to 875; house is on the left.

The tour is scheduled for May 17th and 18th, from 10am-4pm. To purchase tickets click here.

American Clay was off to the Lone Star State this past weekend, exhibiting at the Austin Green Living & Home Products Expo.

With seminars on everything from green building to organic gardening, the show aimed to find green options that fit each individual’s personal lifestyle.

The show was a huge success, with American Clay taking home the award for Best Home Improvement Product.

Also, congratulations to Michele Milivojac for winning our drawing for $1,500 worth of American Clay products!

“Join us at the Green Builder VISION House, a glamorously green demonstration house on the shores of Lake Apopka, to experience a stunning example of the implementation of green building concepts, from water conservation to proper land use to energy efficiency to healthy indoor environment quality. Visit our VISION House website to learn about the project and email us to find out how you can visit the house during IBS.

Please stop by our booth S11301 Feb. 13-16 for the latest transportation details and schedules for our VISION House show home.

Wednesday Feb 13:
1:30-2:15 PM W1421 Presentation on at the Weyerhaeuser Co., iLevel booth about the fundamentals and landscape of green building.

Thursday Feb 14:
10:30-11:15 AM West 203A Official Press Conference on the subject of the National Green Building Standard™.

1:30-2:15 PM W1421 Presentation on at the Weyerhaeuser Co., iLevel booth about the fundamentals and landscape of green building.

3:30-5:00 PM Greenwash vs. Green Integrity,
West 311 A-D
Speaker(s): Jillian Pritchard Cooke, Paul Deffenbaugh, Ron Jones, Dennis Creech
Our panel of experts, including a builder, architect and interior designer, will discuss the many green products available in the building industry and which products are helping the green movement versus which hindering it.

Friday Feb 15:
1:00-2:30 PM Green Building, Defined, West 314
Speaker(s): Vladimir Kochkin, Ron Jones,
Lauren Forgacs, Allan Bilka, R.A.
In an effort to bring uniformity to sustainable building practices, the ICC and NAHB partnered to develop the first residential green building standard. Have this new industry benchmark explained by the authors that defined it.

3:00-3:45 PM W1421 Presentation on at the Weyerhaeuser Co., iLevel booth about the fundamentals and landscape of green building

Saturday Feb 16:
8:00-9:30 AM Green Building, Defined, West 308
Speaker(s): Vladimir Kochkin, Emily English, Ron Jones
In an effort to bring uniformity to sustainable building practices, the ICC and NAHB partnered to develop the first residential green building standard. Have this new industry benchmark explained by the authors that defined it.

We look forward to seeing you at IBS!”

This past Monday and Tuesday, Los Angeles hosted the GreenXchange Global Marketplace Conference. “The focus of the event,” reads their website, “is to enable and accelerate the diffusion of sustainable, green tech innovations into the global marketplace.” Conference topics included non-renewable energy; renewable energy; air, water and waste; clean technology, transport and infrastructure; capitalizing green technology; and climate change technology. Definitely a heavy load encompassing crucial frontiers for the green movement.

New Mexico Governor and Democratic Presidential candidate Bill Richardson gave a Keynote speech, presenting his plan for a New Energy Revolution. Additionally, appearances were made by Davis Guggenheim—Director and Producer of An Inconvenient Truth—, Mary Nichols—Chair of the California Resources Board—and presentations by senior executives from organizations including Google, Honda, Toyota, Wells Fargo and BMW.

Due to the success of this year’s conference, big plans are brewing for GreenXchange 2008, scheduled to take place October 1-3.

For more information or how to sign up, go here.

Greenbuild Expo 2007 sprang to life yesterday, making its presence known all throughout Chicago. Signs cover the city welcoming the show and, with over 20,000 attendees, Chicago seems to be solely inhabited by people wanting to make the world greener.

Greenbuild is surpassing many attendees’ expectations. The sheer volume of information available is simply astounding. And, with keynote speaker Bill Clinton starting off the show in front of 7,000 people, inspiration is in the air. Some are comparing it to Woodstock 1969, “when the fences came down and everyone was welcome. But in this case, we really can change the world (or at least transform the market),” wrote Lauren Kuritz on Greenbuild’s online journal.

American Clay is in the thick of it, with Carol Baumgartel, Croft Elsaesser and John Day manning our new and beautiful booth. Its creation was a collaborative effort and quite different from anything American Clay has ever made for a show. Each surface shows a different application technique—everything from a simple sandy-finished Loma to the more advanced hard-trowel-polished Loma topped with a pigmented Mud Glue atomized through a stencil.

In addition to the booth, is a board of six different stencil techniques, including “proud stenciling”—where the stencil is raised—and “embedded stenciling”—where the stencil is covered with Porcelina, sponged to reveal it, then burnished.

The show runs through today and concludes tomorrow. For up-to-date happenings, go to Greenbuild 365 to watch filmed speeches and to read the online journal. Also, watch here for a final review of the show.

Taking place this past weekend was Western Interiors Design and Home Show in San Francisco. Aiming to promote fine furniture, new products and trends, the show provided 1-on-1 design consultations, an outdoor living showcase, a new product showcase and a presentation on green products hosted by West Coast Green. Mainly for interior designers and homeowners wanting to make changes, the show aimed to teach showgoers how to surround yourself with beautiful, while at the same time, environmentally conscious products.

American Clay’s Marketing VP, Carol Baumgartel, was on the scene as an exhibitor, among over 70 other leading designers and companies. Many of the featured products focused on improving interior air quality, attesting to the fact that interior designers greatly influence the quality of the air we breath in our homes.

The staff of Western Interior Magazine hosted the show vibrantly, says Carol. Michael Wollaeger, Editor-in-Chief, is elegantly committed and responsive to interior design and sustainability, and produces one of the few “real magazines.” Deborah Coburn, Interior Designer of Naturally Inspired—and who arranged and designed the 1,500 sq. ft. staged home—also is extremely committed to green living.

Carol also had the opportunity to attend the seminar, “Achieving Ubiquity: The Next Step for Green Design”, and was inspired by what Peter Liu—initial founder and vice chairman of New Resource Bank—had to say. He presented a new paradigm on banking, in short, a bank with integrity. Read about New Resources Bank here.

“Each of these people I spoke with or heard speak,” says Carol, “have an unwavering commitment to sustainability.” As far as products go, American Clay seems to be one of the few that continues to raise the bar on their commitment to sustainability as well.

Coming up in just a few weeks, is Greenbuild Expo 2007. Held this year in Chicago, November 7-9, Greenbuild is the world’s largest expo dedicated to green building and the statistics definitely prove it. Over 18,000 building professionals are already registered to attend the event, nearly 5,000 more than last year. Plus, with 850 exhibit booths, more than 100 educational sessions and over 40 countries represented, this year’s expo is gearing up to be a monumental event. Only a 3-day expo, it’s astonishing, to say the least, that so many conferences, speakers and tours can fit into it.

The expo starts off with a bang, with former President Bill Clinton as the keynote speaker of the opening plenary. Launching the Clinton’s Foundation Climate Initiative in 2006—which fights against climate change with a business-oriented approach—Clinton has certainly contributed to the green cause. “This is an unprecedented opportunity for our green building community to hear from one of the greatest philanthropic and environmental leaders of this century,” said US Green Building Council President and CEO Rick Fedrizzi.

The expo hit the nail on the head when it chose the city of Chicago as this year’s location. Chicago is taking great strides in achieving its goal as the “most environmentally friendly city in the world”, according to Mayor Richard M. Daley. Having the most LEED projects of any city in the world, and recently unveiling two new programs—the “Chicago Green Homes” program and the “Green Home Remodeling Series”—other cities find it hard to compete.

With so many activities to choose from and taking place in such a green-oriented environment, it’s hard to imagine anyone being disappointed with this show. Keep up with all the current news on the expo on their website, or better yet, go to the show in person!

American Clay will see you there!

Today marks the first day of The Traditional Building Exhibition and Conference in New Orleans. From October 17th-20th, architects, designers, contractors, developers, planners, building owners and historic home owners will descend on the city to learn about and discuss “historic restoration, renovation, and traditionally-inspired new design and construction,” their website explains.

“In four days,” the website continues, “you can explore the aspects of the region’s rich design legacy – from churches to theaters, public and commercial buildings, to the wide array of residential styles. Learn how well coordinated project teams of architects, developers, planners, building owners, and artisans utilize both high technology and centuries-old craftsmanship to maintain, restore and rehabilitate historic structures.”

With over 80 educational seminars and workshops to choose from, as well as over 200 exhibitors—including American Clay—show-goers will undoubtedly gain a vast amount of knowledge on rebuilding and restoring homes.

Keep a lookout here for news on how it went!