Minnesota Home and Garden Show Sports a Twist of Green

Going green is an initiative as unavoidable, undeniable, and unstoppable as the Internet explosion. Some call it bogus, others a phase. I call it a revolution. It seems as though everywhere you look, “going green” is as effervescent as ever. The Minnesota Home and Garden Show, March 4-8, is no exception.

This year, the show marks its diamond anniversary—75 years of unveiling the newest home and garden products, tricks of the trade, and ideas. But the event has a new emphasis: how to make your home and garden ecofriendly.

Various celebrities are featured, including Minnesota Vikings player Chad Greenway, HGTV Design on a Dime star Summer Baltzer, KARE 11 meteorologist Belinda Jensen, and many more.

Innovation Avenue is an attraction displaying unique, modern products for the home and garden. This year, Extreme Makeover: Home Edition host Ty Pennington handpicked the hip, up-to-the-minute products. He’s the producer of the Minnesota Home and Garden Show, and spokesperson for Marketplace Events, as well as carpenter, designer, and writer. His picks undoubtedly will live up to his fame. Visitors can register to win some of the items, ranging from a treadmill-desk to a vast ceramics collection called Teco Art Pottery made exclusively from Earth-friendly materials.

Various seminars taking place throughout the show are planned to educate and inform guests about the myriad tips, ideas, and topics relating to home and garden.

Design on a Dime’s Summer Baltzer will present “Putting the Great in Great Room,” March 4-6, along with her “Ultimate Bedroom Makeover.”

Another HGTV star, Shane Tallant, host of Designed to Sell, is a newcomer to the Minnesota Home and Garden Show. He will speak about increasing the value of a home by spending time making improvements, meanwhile making cost-efficient decisions.

Also new to the show this year is the Green Scene, which showcases new green products from local companies.

Minneapolis-based green designer Joshua Foss will offer his ecofriendly tips for the home all five days of the show. An avid supporter of the green revolution, he is a sustainability consultant who helps implement going green in a cost-efficient way. As a designer, he focuses on understanding green materials, and various strategies of transforming a home into an ecofriendly environment.

As Foss shares, “My personal forte is green design.”

Foss will be giving seminars on Green Design 101: how to make homes green in a cost-efficient way, and why, in the end, doing so saves money.

“Going green is about increasing efficiency,” Foss explains. “Cutting down on resources in turn results in saving money.”

Part of Foss’s efforts as a green consultant is to clear up misconceptions about converting to an ecofriendly society. Going green is wildly popular right now. His discussions cut to the core of important things, and eliminate confusion about the process.

Don’t miss “Top Ten Ways Going Green Can Save You Green,” Foss’s presentation on green amid the economic crisis. Many people believe that although the green movement is beneficial, it is too costly and unobtainable right now, because everyone is cutting back on spending, and more jobs are being lost than people are jumping on the go-green bandwagon.

“A common misconception is that green is a premium [cost],” Foss points out. “But being neck-deep in the field, I’m doing green projects for the same price. There is an incredible amount of utility savings.”

“The Benefits of Building Green,” Foss’s other seminar, which focuses on reasons going green is important, and what you can do to be a part of the movement, is filled with various tips and ideas. Coming from a man dubbed “Organic Josh,” expect the information to be well-researched and implemented.

“I’m really excited about gathering interest in going green,” Foss enthuses. “I want to talk to people about what they can do, and act as a resource.”

Foss will be conducting both seminars all five days of the show.

Check out Foss’s blog at <www.metrohippie.com>, where you can stay updated on green trends and the Twin Cities green revolution goings-on.

Tickets for the Minnesota Home and Garden show are $12 at the door or $9 online for adults. For a schedule of events, other ticket prices, and more information, go to www.homeandgardenshow.com.