When it comes to renovating, one of the easiest ways to enhance the aesthetic of your home can be a simple coat of paint. A fresh colour can brighten a room, revitalize old furniture or make your home stand out in the neighborhood. When choosing new paints or stains, indoor air should be the top priority to an ecologically sound home. Choosing less-toxic paints or stains will guarantee healthy air in your lungs while preserving the earth.
Unfortunately, there can be some serious health hazards posed by choosing highly toxic paints. Luckily we recently discovered a new brand that is doing its part to provide an ecologically sound product that is safe for us and the environment. Eco Brush is a local painting contractor that provides full service for all aspects of your painting needs starting with the initial consultation and finishing with a new spotless and healthy home.
"Ecobrush was founded in 2008 in Muskoka, to raise awareness around alternatives to toxic traditional paints. We also aimed to educate people about the harmful effects they have on health and the environment. Founder Kevin Gorski, has been painting, managing and estimating, for 10 years. He has personally tested numerous eco-friendly products for protection, longevity and appearance. Since founding, Ecobrush has worked for hundreds of satisfied customers, painting residential properties, large muskoka cottages, and new builds." – (from website)
Unfortunately, there can be some serious health hazards posed by choosing highly toxic paints. Luckily we recently discovered a new brand that is doing its part to provide an ecologically sound product that is safe for us and the environment. Eco Brush is a local painting contractor that provides full service for all aspects of your painting needs starting with the initial consultation and finishing with a new spotless and healthy home.
"Ecobrush was founded in 2008 in Muskoka, to raise awareness around alternatives to toxic traditional paints. We also aimed to educate people about the harmful effects they have on health and the environment. Founder Kevin Gorski, has been painting, managing and estimating, for 10 years. He has personally tested numerous eco-friendly products for protection, longevity and appearance. Since founding, Ecobrush has worked for hundreds of satisfied customers, painting residential properties, large muskoka cottages, and new builds." – (from website)
To get the lowdown on the toxicity of paint, you need to concern yourself with its ingredient list. A lot of paints contain VOC’s. VOC's are Volatile Organic Compounds, which refer to chemicals that are emitted at room temperature. Some of the chemicals emitted include, arsenic, benzene and formaldehyde, and can lead to a variety of health problems like nausea, dizziness, and eye irritation. They can also range to more serious problems like heart, lung or kidney damage, and in some cases cancer. While "off-gasing" is most noticeable when the paint is drying, it actually continues to emit VOC's throughout the life of the product continuing to damage the air around your home.
Most paints also contain Fungicides and Biocides which prevent mildew growth and serve as preservatives to extend the product life. These toxins can still be detected five years after the product is originally applied, continuously contaminating your air. Paint pigments also hold chemicals which enhance color and emit toxins that add to the potential damages previously mentioned and can add to greenhouse emissions.
EcoBrush takes pride in doing extensive product testing to provide and offer eco-friendly products that will look good and last without the harmful side effects. When booking a consultation through EcoBrush, the painter carefully chooses a product that gives the best result for the job. Whether the assignment is indoor or outdoor, big or small, it is guaranteed to be the safest and most efficient. Some of the products EcoBrush uses are:
"Mythic" brand indoor & outdoor paints. Most popular eco-paint product and is the longest lasting 0% VOC paint available.
"TimberSoy Natural Stains" made from natural plant oils and has the lowest VOC content of any stain product on the market. It is also resistant to peeling and chipping.
"Milk Paint" which is a locally made paint and stain. Milk paint is among the first choice in eco-friendly paints due to the product ingredients. It is made with Milk protein called "casein" and lime and contains many natural minerals.
"TimberSoy Natural Stains" made from natural plant oils and has the lowest VOC content of any stain product on the market. It is also resistant to peeling and chipping.
"Milk Paint" which is a locally made paint and stain. Milk paint is among the first choice in eco-friendly paints due to the product ingredients. It is made with Milk protein called "casein" and lime and contains many natural minerals.
Choosing healthy products can be tough. Ideally you will want to adhere to all three health requirements on VOC's, Fungicides/Biocides, and Pigments. Keep in mind when products are labelled "low-VOC" that they are meeting the minimum legal requirement and can still be very harmful. EcoBrush provides full consultation as well as premium eco-friendly products. You can contact EcoBrush at:
EcoBrush Painting Service
Toronto - 647-849-9182
Muskoka - 705-641-2020
hello@ecobrush.ca
EcoBrush Painting Service
PO Box 96 Bala, ON. P0C 1A0
Toronto - 647-849-9182
Muskoka - 705-641-2020
hello@ecobrush.ca
EcoBrush Painting Service
PO Box 96 Bala, ON. P0C 1A0
Spring Travel- Toronto to Chicago
Planning for a quick getaway this spring? For those of you looking for exploration and relaxation, “The Windy City”, Chicago, Illinois, is your travel destination for Spring. Encouraging travel between Toronto and it's sister city Chicago, the Illinois Office of Tourism encourages you to visit "EnjoyIllinois.com” and see the best of what Chicago has to offer this spring. After reviewing the site, the following are the best events for the spring season.
Explore the animal world from the inside out at the Museum of Science and Industry’s new Body Worlds Production, Animal Inside Out, premiering on March 14. The new exhibit offers visitors a unique opportunity to discover the biology and physiology of the world’s remarkable creatures, preserved and displayed through the revolutionary Plastination process. For more information, visit msichicago.org.
Dinosaurs Alive! at Brookfield Zoo is back this April, offering fun for all ages. Zoo-goers can watch dinosaurs come to life with remote-controls, touch life-size replicas and see a model of an archeologist’s dig site. For more information, visit brookfieldzoo.org.
Explore the animal world from the inside out at the Museum of Science and Industry’s new Body Worlds Production, Animal Inside Out, premiering on March 14. The new exhibit offers visitors a unique opportunity to discover the biology and physiology of the world’s remarkable creatures, preserved and displayed through the revolutionary Plastination process. For more information, visit msichicago.org.
Dinosaurs Alive! at Brookfield Zoo is back this April, offering fun for all ages. Zoo-goers can watch dinosaurs come to life with remote-controls, touch life-size replicas and see a model of an archeologist’s dig site. For more information, visit brookfieldzoo.org.
Baseball fans can celebrate the start of the season this April with the Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox Home Openers. As an added bonus, the suburban Kane County Cougars will step up to the plate this season as the Class A affiliate for the Chicago Cubs. For more information, visit chicagocubs.com, chicagowhitesox.com and kccougars.com.
The Long Grove Chocolate Fest will take place May 3-5 in picturesque Long Grove. The sweet celebration is filled with chocolate treats, live music, great food and lots of downtown shopping. Festivalgoers can see chocolate demonstrations, workshops and learn about wine pairings. For more information, visit visitlonggrove.com.
Beginning May 4, Six Flags Great America and Hurricane Harbor, in Gurnee, is open for the season. With 14 roller coasters, a free water park, fantastic shows and loads of games, a trip to Six Flags is fun for the entire family. New this year, the nighttime spectacular, igNIGHT, will dazzle and captivate imaginations each evening with impressive light displays, performances and vivid colors. For more information, visit sixflags.com.
The 30th Annual Chicago Blues Festival takes place June 6-9 in beautiful Grant Park, located along the city’s lakefront. Visitors can listen to top blues talent for three days on five stages at the largest free blues festival in the world. This year’s theme is “Rollin’ Up The River,” and will excite all types of music fans. For more information, visit cityofchicago.org.
Great Rivers Country
More than 300 vehicles from 35 dealers will be displayed at the 24th Annual Central Illinois Auto Show from April 5-7, in Peoria. The grand event takes place at the Peoria Civic Center and showcases concept cars, preproduction models and exotic vehicles. It is the second-largest auto show in Illinois. For more information, visit peoriaautoshow.com.
The town of Fulton will celebrate its rich Dutch heritage during Fulton Dutch Days Festival, taking place May 3-4. Windmill tours, dancing, costumes, antique displays, food vendors and artists showcase the town’s unique history, which dates back to 1835 when the first settlers from Holland arrived. In addition to celebrating the community’s proud Dutch heritage, the festival includes a grand parade and a 5K run/walk for all ages. For more information, visit cityoffulton.us.
The Lewis & Clark State Historic Site will commemorate the explorers’ Point of Departure on May 11-12. Re-enactors will portray marching drills and cooking demonstrations, and artisans will demonstrate woodworking and candle making. For more information, visit campdubois.com.
Museum visitors can discover the science behind phenomena at the Ripley’s Believe It Or Not! exhibit at the new Peoria Riverfront Museum, in Peoria. The fascinating exhibit opens on May 17. For more information, visit peoriariverfrontmuseum.org.
Land of Lincoln
Visitors can explore work from local and national artists at Bloomington’s Spring Bloom Arts Festival, taking place on March 30. The event features more than 100 exhibitors from across a variety of disciplines for visitors to discover. From oil paintings and photography to blown glass and pottery, the festival will excite all art lovers. For more information, visit mcac.org.
The 15th Annual Roger Ebert’s Film Festival will take place April 17-21 at the newly renovated Virginia Theatre in downtown Champaign. Roger Ebert hand picks the selection of films to share with moviegoers. The festival is a wonderful opportunity to get up close and personal with cast, crew and writers for screenings and discussions. For more information, visit ebertfest.com.
Communities around Lake Shelbyville join together each year for the Spores N’ More Mushroom Festival. Now in its 10th year, this year’s event takes place April 19-20 and features all things mushrooms, including a mushroom hunt where participants search for the best mushroom to win the Grand Champion prize. After the hunt, visitors can spend the day sampling delicious food items featuring the beloved mushroom, perusing the craft show or taking advantage of an auction. For more information, visit lakeshelbyville.com.
The 7th Annual Illinois Route 66 Red Carpet Corridor Festival will run May 4-5 along the Mother Road. Thirteen communities unite for the two-day festival, filled with unique events such as antique and craft shows, art exhibits, car and motorcycle shows, live entertainment and sidewalk sales. For more information, visit il66redcarpetcorridor.org.
More than twenty wineries will feature their signature flavors at the Art of Illinois Wine Garden and Springfield Old Capitol Art Fair, taking place in downtown Springfield May 18-19. Visitors can sample a variety of wine and food while browsing through unique art. Jewelry, sculptures, photography, glassware, pottery, watercolors and more complete the show. For more information, visit downtownspringfield.org and socaf.org.
Trails to Adventure
Beginning in April, visitors can soar above the lush Shawnee National Forest on the brand new Shawnee Bluffs Canopy Tour. The combination of ziplines, aerial bridges and tree platforms stretch across 83 acres of breathtaking views. For more information, visit shawneezip.com.
Visitors can enjoy the beautiful wetland habitat at the Cache River Nature Fest, taking place on May 11. Visitors can take in the incredible scenery of the Trails to Adventure region with guided field trips of Cache River Wetlands, canoe tours and live bird demonstrations. For more information, visit cacherivernaturefest.org.
The Makanda Spring Fest will take place May 4-5, featuring art and live entertainment. Local artists will display their finest works for viewing and purchase. In addition, bluegrass, jazz and blues bands will provide hours of entertainment for visitors. For more information, visit villageofmakanda.com.
The Carbondale Downtown Art & Wine Fair will take place on May 18 in Carbondale’s Town Square. Visitors can sip local wine from vineyards along the Shawnee Wine Trail, listen to live music and peruse collections from various art vendors. For more information, visit cctb.org.
The website also features discounts, savings, and package deals on everything from hotels to desserts. If you choose to customize your own vacation Porter Airlines may be the best option for the most savings. Enjoy your spring!
The third instalment of the Iron Man trilogy opened Friday and raked in 15.6 million at the box office. Fans flocked to the theatre to see Robert Downey Jr. in his manly robust form, one last time,
The movie opens with a flashback of Tony Stark ringing in the year 2k at a science conference. The scene captures Stark in true vintage form - drunk and womanizing. On route to a ladies hotel room, he meets crippled and rambling Aldridge Killian (Guy Pearce). Stark ridicules him with the witty one-liners that have come to form his persona. Killian is insistent on talking to Tony about a new science he is perfecting. Tony humors Killian with interest and tells him to meet him on the roof in an hour. The scene closes on a lonely Killian on the roof, ringing in the New Year by himself and a rivalry is born.
Present day, Tony Stark sits tinkering in his home lab with his many Iron Man weapons and complex toys. He is riddled with anxiety and panic attacks as a result of the damage done in New York City (Joss Whedon's Avengers). Stark is trying to manage his stress and still wants to be a fearless, iron headed hero, despite the dangers it involves. In a battle with himself, he tries to settle down with now girlfriend Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow), but Stark is not ready to put all the suits away. As timeliness would have it, a new threat emerges in the form of international terrorist. Famous to the Marvel universe, the terrorist is Iron Man's arch enemy, The Mandarin (Ben Kingsley).
The Mandarin, armed with a new weapon "Extremis", threatens the United States with random attacks until Tony gets involved. Stark boldly sends an instigating message to the Mandarin, telling him he is not afraid of him and providing his address. The Mandarin responds and executes a full out attack on his home. The weight of past threats, new terrors, and personal anxiety, cause Tony Stark to falter and he finds himself thrown far from home and the people he loves. He then battles to figure out the nature of the attacks and how to get back home, where he can re-unite with the newly named Iron Patriot (Don Cheadle) and restore order.
Iron Man 3 was directed by Shane Black, who became a house hold name with movies like Lethal Weapon and more notably Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, which also starred Robert Downey Jr. Iron Man 3 seems like a natural progression for the director and applies the same buddy cop – Lethal Weapon equation, to the iron suit characters played by Downey Jr. and Cheadle. Filmed in 3D, the special effects in the action sequences seemed over the top at times, coming off as more commercial then artistic. This could be because of the many iron men flying through the air, or that the film was over 2 hours in length and they wanted to ensure they never lost us for a minute.
Iron man 3 was as fun and imaginative as the first two instalments, if not more so, and a perfect follow up from last summer's blockbuster "The Avengers". It is funny and action packed, I would recommend it to everyone.
Great Gatsby
While taking the summer to relax and study, bond salesman Nick Carraway (Tobey Maguire) becomes immersed and de-virginized in a culture that sweeps over him like the summer heat of Long Island. After a rendezvous with his cousin Daisy (Carey Mulligan) and her husband Tom Buchannan (Joel Edgerton), Carraway becomes fixated on his mysterious new neighbor whose reputation precedes him. Known for his lavish parties and his questionable past, Jay Gatsby (Leo DiCaprio) befriends Nick. Despite his motives, Gatsby's charm wins over Carraway and they devise a plan to swoon Daisy into Gatsby's arms and away from Tom whose love and faithfulness is always in question.
Soon the lavish parties and fun turn to more longing and imperfection for Gatsby and all involved. Daisy is forced to tell Buchanan about her first real love and drama ensues.
Director Baz Lurhman, known previously for Moulin Rouge and Australia, takes F. Scott Fitzgerald's most famous work and does it absolute justice. The party scenes at Gatsby's house are so dazzling and colourful you would make believe Fitzgerald wrote it in crayons. Beyond the great 3D effects, they also play upon the theme of weather that is present in the book. The summer seems sweltering, the rain drenching, a depressed Nick Carraway re tells the story in the frosty winter, and when the book is ending in the autumn, the scenes are dying with the nature.
The actors really brought the characters of the book to life. For me they all carried a very important balance. Gatsby is charming and mysterious. Daisy is flirtatious and meek. Tom is wealthy and flawed. You feel like you’re along for the journey with Nick Carraway; however you are constantly reminded by the director that he is telling us the story. When I first heard the soundtrack was produced by Jay-Z, I thought it may be a poor choice; however the music surprisingly seemed at home in the roaring twenties.
The fever the movie exudes makes it a perfect flick to start off your summer.
This June is HHT awareness month. In support of the cause, Village Living caught up with Nadia Bove, one of HHT Toronto’s founding members, to get a little more insight into what will be happening during June.
VL: For those of us who do not already know, what exactly is HHT?
NB: HHT stands for Hereditary Hemorrhage Telangiectasia. It is a hereditary disorder that is passed down through generations. HHT is characterized by two types of abnormal blood vessels, those that are small (telangiectasia’s) or large (arteriovenous, AVM’s). Telangiectasia’s most commonly occur in the skin of the face, hands and nose, which is why nosebleeds is a common symptom, but can also occur in the digestive tract. Some with HHT can have AVM’s in one or more organs like the lungs and brain. If detected, it can be treated.
VL: What made you get involved with HHT Toronto?
NB: I became involved because of my family. I have been diagnosed with HHT, which was passed down from my mother. Now my daughter has HHT and that was another main reason I got involved. The more awareness is spread and knowledge is gained, the closer we are to eliminating the fear that surrounds the disease, then it will be easier for people to get diagnosed and prevent any unnecessary risks. My goal is to empower others to take matters into their own hands.
VL: How would you describe the goals of HHT Toronto’s organization?
NB: Our primary goal is Awareness! Like I mentioned, by spreading knowledge we in turn empower people to eliminate the risks involved. June is HHT awareness month and by shedding light on the dangers involved with going undiagnosed, it will help people to be more aware. Education is key to knowing what HHT is, the distinction between the two categories, the symptoms and the risks involved.
VL: What are some of the results you have seen since beginning HHT Toronto?
NB: We are a young organization being founded just over a year and a half ago which makes it too early still to accurately measure. With that said, we have been working to create a system of evaluation. We have our patient registry which has about 70 patients signed up. That doesn’t sound like much, but HHT is very rare given that 1 in 5000 Canadians are affected. That number accounts for about .01% of the population. Building our registry is also one of our goals for basic and clinical research. We are lucky enough to have the HHT Clinic at St. Michael’s Hospital and the genetics team at the SickKids Hospital, who work together providing care under our director Dr. Faughnan. Faughnan specializes in HHT in Toronto, to make it internationally recognized.
VL: What are some ways that others can get involved?
NB: Primarily by spreading the knowledge and keeping people informed. We urge people to mention it to their general practitioners. It is so rare, that it can often be over looked, even in the medical community.
June is HHT awareness month and we will be reaching out to the community and the media to help spread awareness. Donations are always key for funding research. We are having a fundraiser on June 26th at Desoto’s on St. Clair West. There will be good music and food, and great way to show support.
To celebrate HHT Awareness Month, Toronto’s CN Tower will be glowing blue and red on June 27th. Awareness and knowledge of HHT is the major key in supporting the cause. To learn more about HHT and how you can get involved check out: www.HHTcanada.com and www.HHTtoronto.com