The purpose this clean and simple design style served at the time of its onset remains the purpose it serves today: Its sleek design fits perfectly in smaller spaces and it blends in with any other décor. I don't know if there's another time period with such an amount of creative, beautiful, and highly-functional design in home furnishings. In just the last 50 years, mid-century design as reemerged as the new cool thing at least five times, and I expect it will be the cool new thing five more times in the next 50 to come.

How many times have you bought something simply because “it was a great price”? And what’s more, when you looked at the item, weren’t you certain it had to be just as good as any other at more than triple the cost? But when you started using that great bargain at a third of the cost of that other brand, it turned out that it was just a great price but really lacked in the area of performance.

Spring is the perfect time for a backyard dinner gathering. After all, the sun is warm, the birds are calling overhead, and there are new tulips and daffodils everywhere you look—all of it brought to you by the Earth.

Therefore, it’s only right that you do your part to give back. And you can certainly do a lot when you choose to go green with your outdoor dining. There are plenty of ways to get the environmental stamp of approval on your soiree. Read on to find out some of the best.

When It Comes to Decorating Your Apartment, Go Green… But Stay Chic

Over the past few years, the apartment-hunting experts at ABODO have noticed two overriding trends: People of all ages are moving back to city centers to rent, and they’re looking to live in environmentally-conscious buildings. Living in the city shortens commutes and lessens carbon emissions. And advances in eco-friendly construction are making a marked difference in energy consumption. According to the U.S. Green Building Council, LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design)-certified buildings—which are built from sustainable materials to save energy and water, and to limit harmful gas emissions—are expected to save up to $1.2 billion in energy costs between 2012 and 2018.