
since this is portland oregon and it rains a lot, we’re always thinking up ways to use or divert all the water we’re faced with. many businesses and homes are beginning to incorporate rain gardens in their plans. the hawthorne hostel is the most obvious example in town.

the city itself teaches free rain garden classes and is beginning to install bioswales on city streets. bioswales and rain gardens not only slow down water during huge downpours, but also remove silt and pollution. this is a newly-installed bioswale drain on se belmont street:
and, oh wait, where did the week go?! i didn’t get a chance to show you a friend’s huge garden and yurt down the street, share some of my favorite shops and restaurants in town or some of the fun food cart designs [everyone talks about the excellent food available at our foodcarts, but of course the carts themselves are pretty awesome too]! sigh. oh well. you’ll just have to come visit us in portland and see it all for yourself!
maybe i’ll have my fantasy rural oasis closer to the coast all kitted out by then.
CLICK HERE for the rest of Jill’s final guest post after the jump!



i can’t decide between a yurt, from yurts.com, or a dome, from domeguys.com. both are located here in oregon.



thanks for spending the week exploring portland home ideas with me. see you soon! xo jill










11 Comments
Hi, where can I see a larger version of the image describing rainwater harvesting? Thanks!
Wow! This is awesome. :) I live in Washington so we have a whole lot of rain too (more, if that’s even possible)… I am definitely going to keep the rainwater harvesting technique in mind for my next home.
i’ve posted [larger] photos of these and a few more rain collection techniques here in portland oregon on my flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/jillbliss/sets/72157622623028235/
I’ve loved your post’s Jill! Thanks so much!
Hi Jill! These domes all seem to be geodesic- have you heard about monolithic domes? They are incredibly energy efficient and inexpensive to build. I visited the Monolithic Dome Institute in Texas a few years ago and was totally impressed. http://www.monolithic.com/
The yurts and domes are awesome! My husband and I stayed in a bed-and-breakfast yurt here in Indiana and it was great. Best thing: the owners said yurts are considered portable and so not subject to property tax in Indiana! The couple running the B&B had lived in Seattle for years.
Take a look at the ARCSA web site
Yurts make me happy.
Yurts are so GREAT! My friend (also named Kate) is crocheting a full-sized, self-supporting yurt from 500 lbs of locally sourced materials. Check it out at yurtalert.com!
Great post! Thanks
Thanks for the larger pictures, Jill!
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