Mad Housers Cred

Let them live in Mods! Novel huts for the homeless plan touted by daringRepublican council member

Mad Housers builds a variety of prefabricated units, depending on costs and theavailability of salvaged materials.
Photo by © sulee2/The Mad Housers/Flickr
Huts typically have a six-by-eight footprint with a 10-foot ceiling height.
Photo by © tracykwoodard/The Mad Housers/Flickr
Mad Housers was the brainchild of two graduate architecture students at GeorgiaTech, who founded the organization in 1987.
Photos by © by La Luce/The Mad Housers/Flickr
Only several months into his first term in office, Dr. Jack Christie is alreadyturning heads in city council.
Dr. Jack Christie/Facebook
All units have locking doors and safe wood-burning stoves. Easy-to-concealsmaller units with less standing room are also available.
Photo by © e4entropy/The Mad Housers/Flickr

Noted Houston chiropractor and right-leaning city council member Jack Christie recently proposed a rather far out solution for the city's homeless population — micro-housing.

As the Houston Chronicle's Chris Moran first reported, the councilman described for his colleagues the work of Mad Housers, an Atlanta non-profit that has been building individual housing modules for the homeless since the late 1980s.

"When it comes down to it, everyone needs a place to sleep," Tracy Woodard of Mad Housers said. "We aim to address issues of privacy and security that help to stabilize people and get them out of poverty."

Picture a six-by-eight-foot wooden hut with a safe wood-burning stove, sleeping loft, and lockable doors. Fully insulated and waterproof, each 10-foot-tall structure offers protection from the elements as well as the sense of security. A small "low rider" version, measuring only four feet high, is also available for those wanted to stay out of sight.

"When it comes down to it, everyone needs a place to sleep," Tracy Woodard, Mad Housers' client outreach coordinator, told CultureMap in a phone interview. "We aim to address issues of privacy and security that help to stabilize people and get them out of poverty."

Accepting recommendations from organizations like the United Way of Metropolitan Atlanta, Mad Housers builds about 15 huts a year for clients the organization feels can benefit from a temporary housing solution.

"When we approach a new homeless client, a locking door is always one of our biggest pitches," Woodard said. "Just the psychological impact of that minor thing is such a huge step in the right direction."

"What we do is take the pressure of survival off of them," Mad Housers board member Evan Ehrenhalt told the Out There Atlanta podcast. "We let them find their own salvation however they will."

Christie told city council he intends to explore whether Houston can replicate the Atlanta model, saying that he hoped to use volunteers from Habitat for Humanity or large area corporations to keep costs low.

There's a catch, though

Since the organization was started in 1987 by two Georgia Tech architecture students, Mad Housers works as clandestine operation, eschewing any form of local permitting. Much of the group's success, in fact, lies in its lack of concern for the law and the manner in which it places its values before building codes and municipal red tape.

Much of the Mad Housers' success, in fact, lies in its lack of concern for the law and the manner in which it places its values before building codes.

As Atlanta faced an influx of refugees in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Mad Housers then-president Nick Hess described the organization as a group of "first responders" for the region's homeless, working directly with those in need to find resettlement solutions where larger governmental programs faltered.

In the past decade, Tracy Woodard explained, the organization has focused on maintaining positive relations with landholders willing to offer space for Mad Houser structures. This type of interpersonal interaction and community involvement, she felt, helped secure the long-term success of each client.

Of course, the question is whether a type of city-sanctioned Mad Housers program would be able to achieve that same degree of street-level support.

Councilman Christie did not return numerous calls for additional comment. Representatives from the United Way of Greater Houston said the organization had nothing to say on the idea at this time.

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the feel of cotton

Designer-loved Houston company makes custom bed sheets affordable

Photo by Michael Hunter

The Diamond Pique Collection boasts clean lines and a luxurious, sophisticated texture.

Cool, crisp, freshly-pressed white cotton sheets have secured themselves into the zeitgeist — it’s how the sensation of luxury actually feels, especially when retiring from Houston’s summer heat. Now, three local ladies with deep designer roots have joined forces to bring their attainable luxury bedding line, Look Linen Co., to market. Available online and through exclusive pop-ups, Look Linen Co. offers personalized products with personalized service.

Sylvia Longoria Dorsey and daughter Elizabeth Dorsey Fertitta joined forces with longtime friend and designer Lizzie Kappler to create a linen line that filled a gaping hole in the bedding market: local, affordable, personalizable bedding with reasonable lead times. Look Linen Co. has quickly become a designer darling due to their classic styles and stately embroidery — luckily, it’s available to everyone.

“It’s so complicated when you’re going through custom channels,” Kappler tells CultureMap. “Lead times are long and really expensive. We really wanted to bring luxury linens to the market that feel very custom and that are accessible and feel personal, but also attainable to our customer.”

With a generous 12 luxe embroidery color options, customization is key. “We spent a long time curating the color selections just based on what sold best from both of our [design] backgrounds,” says Kappler.

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All Look Linen Co. products are made of 100 percent long staple cotton, imported from Europe. Monogramming is done locally and completely in-house, which allows for their quick, two week (or less) turnaround time. Three classic styles — Banded, Scalloped, and Diamond Pique — are available, as well as a new floral addition, the Lucky Collection. The soft, delicate clover pattern found in Lucky is perfect for clients who prefer to mix-and-match their linens — especially pillows.

One of the several things setting Look Linen Co. apart from other boutique lines is their Dorm Shop. Fertitta notes that dorm room and sorority house bedding has become a booming market.

“These girls love to decorate their dorms,” she says. To cater to that market, Look Linen Co. offers extra-long twin bedding and a specialized, oversized pillow affectionately called “The Biggie” that can double as a headboard in a pinch. All customizable, of course.

The runaway hit product from Look Linen Co is the wildly popular, hourglass-shaped pillow called “The Boobie Pillow.” Designed to assist ladies of a certain age keep delicate décolletage skin from creasing, it also found another life as a post-surgery neck and shoulder pillow, amazing travel pillow, and so much more.

“We started hearing people were using them at MD Anderson: ‘I couldn’t make it through without this pillow,’ or ‘my husband used it after open heart surgery,’ etc. It has really taken on a life of its own,” says Fertitta. “It’s no longer what we intended it to be, but it’s so great, and a best seller. It makes a great gift, it’s almost like a lovey!”

For anyone curious which collection and embroidery color has been most popular, the answer is the Scallop Collection in Baby Blue, a classic choice. “Everyone loves a scallop,” says Kaplan — we tend to agree.

Photo by Michael Hunter

The Diamond Pique Collection boasts clean lines and a luxurious, sophisticated texture.

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