Sitting pretty
Looking for the perfect perch? Manayunk-based furniture designer Mariah Wren and her husband Mark Cooper have the answer with gorgeous, handmade seats from their tiny furniture studio, Wren & Cooper. These custom and catalog pieces come in the form of luxurious hardwood lounge chairs and ottomans upholstered with hand-printed fabrics, and charmingly versatile benches with top panels that flip over to become convenient coffee tables. Each piece is adorably named for a Philly neighborhood. Manayunk bench, $1,950-$2,650; Center City lounge chair plus ottoman, $3,025, wrenandcooper.com

Home improvement
Eco-friendly updates that can
save you green
We already knew that conserving energy is as good for our wallets as it is for the environment. But now, government incentives are making energy-saving home improvements more cost-effective than ever. Here in Pennsylvania, for example, the government is handing out money—free money!—through programs like the Keystone Home Energy Loan Program (Keystone HELP), which offers loans and tax credits for home energy efficiency improvements, and the newly funded Pennsylvania Sunshine Program, which helps cover the cost of solar panels.
Philadelphia-based certified energy auditor Jamie Horan launched his firm, Alternegy, last fall, and he’s already saved clients thousands of dollars.
“I save clients energy, and that saves them money,” says Horan, who starts with a comprehensive audit of each home, determining heat loss, energy movement and other factors. He then generates a predictive analysis as to how much energy and money would be conserved by specific changes like adding insulation, re-sealing windows or purchasing new heating and cooling equipment. Then, he’ll also analyze the benefits of adding solar or wind generators if desired. “The idea is to save the most energy for least possible cost,” he says.
When Horan began last year, he was the first in the Philly region to be certified by Residential Energy Services Network (RESNET) and Building Performance Institute (BPI), the two major certifiers. Now, there are a few dozen competitors springing up, given the trend toward energy conservation and especially the end of the Pennsylvania electricity rate cap in 2010 and 2011. Electricity rates are widely expected to shoot up by as much as 30 percent once that cap expires.
And the savings can be very real. Horan is currently auditing a typical suburban home similar to those on the Main Line. “They’re a typical family, a couple and two daughters, and they’re spending $10,000 a year for gas and electric,” he says. “I plan to save them 40 percent of that; I’m working on a model to get next year’s bill down to $6,000.” Since he figures the total changes he’ll recommend will cost around $4,000, they’ll see a return on investment within the first year.
Horan’s services cost $450 including initial and final energy audits, plus $200 if you want him to coordinate and manage any needed contractors. He says it’s a foolproof investment: “Given where we are right now economically, an investment in conserving energy in the home without having to change your lifestyle is well worth it, because it pays you back for the life of the house.”
For more info on conserving energy at home, check pahomeenergy.com. Or, call Jamie Horan of Alternegy, 215-847-0131, alternegynow.com

The registry
Philly area lovers of handmade goods have been falling for the sweet flowers, birds and foliage on Linda Johnson’s Little Flower Designs pottery for a few years. Now, from the Abington ceramic artist comes the coolest wedding registry since Tiffany’s. Couples can create an online listing for their custom china—including plates, bowls, mugs, serving pieces and vases—and Johnson will create exactly the items requested, complete with handmade gift cards. (The “Anemone” patterned pieces shown range from $27 to $50. ) It sure beats wandering around a department store with a scanner gun. 215-939-4923, littleflowerdesigns.com

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   Posted by Main Line Magazine, Fall 2009 :: Wren & Cooper | October 29, 2009, 8:33 pm