Hi, I’m Jim, a lifelong mason and for the past several years a wood fired oven builder. 
This first blog of mine is about some of the things you need to decide before the mason arrives with your oven. 
 
Being an oven owner and having built oven many ovens, I feel that I am qualified to help guide you through the process of choosing which oven might be best for you and where on your property to locate it.
 
If you enter our showroom, (The Arch), these are some of the questions I would ask you:
 
Ovens come in many sizes, from smaller ovens for just one pizza at a time or a couple loaves of bread to larger ovens more suitable for family and friends or entertaining large groups of people.  How do you expect to use your oven? Everyone has different goals with their oven, so this is the first thing to consider. You want to make the right oven selection for your cooking style.
 
Do you want the ease of a wood/gas oven, or do you enjoy the process of building the fire and learning to cook with "live fire"?  I can discuss the options with you.
 
Do you want a stand-alone oven or prefer your oven built into an outdoor kitchen?  Do you want counters, or would you prefer to bring a table or cart up close to the oven? Would you prefer a stainless-steel oven that is portable and can sit on your deck? 
 
Do you want the igloo style, or an oven totally built into a structure or "housed"? Do you want rock, brick, block or stucco as the finish on the base, oven dome, or housing?
 
When people ask how long it takes to complete an oven installation, the answer will be as short as a couple of weeks for a simple oven installation to a month or more for larger more complicated installations.  The Forno Bravo stainless steel Bella series is the exception, as once the oven arrives at your house, you can be cooking on it within a couple of hours. 
 
You are putting your money and inspiration into this project, so it’s always helpful to work with someone who has experience, someone who can work with your architect, builder, or any design professional or help guide you and or your mason through to a successful project. A consultation with a mason is an excellent first step.
 
In the years I have worked with The Arch I have helped sell and install many ovens, both residential and commercial.  We work with high quality, efficient, Forno Bravo ovens both residential and commercial as well as their Bella Outdoor Living stainless models. Sometimes we install from start to finish, sometimes the owner will take on the entire project or use masons that they know, and often we are involved with part of a project.  No matter how you choose to have your oven installed, when you purchase from The Arch, we are ready to help you and answer your questions so that you have a successful installation and are cooking sumptuous wood fired food as soon as possible.  
 
Are you ready to start cooking with a live fire?
Give us a call, we love to talk ovens!!
The Arch showroom: 828 253 5455 offering competitive pricing on all Forno Bravo ovens.
See our gallery on our website at www.thearchnc.com.
email me at [email protected]
Thanks for reading!
Jim Erskine
Professional mason, installer, and finish applicator  

This slide show represents just a few of my projects. There are so many more and we value all of our customers and the time we've spent working with them. Visit our gallery to see more.  

Cork has a history and process many people may not be aware of.
New to The Arch showroom is APC Cork flooring. We are thrilled to add this quality collection of cork flooring to our showroom!

Cork, a medium-sized evergreen oak tree, covers almost 5.4 million acres in seven Mediterranean countries including Portugal, Spain, Algeria, Morocco, Italy, Tunisia and France.  APC Cork works with a fine company in Portugal.  To quote, the APC literature we have obtained:
"The cork forest serves a valuable ecological function by providing soil conservation, water table recharge, and run-off control, while also buffering against climate change and desertification.
"The cork has been harvested for centuries and is one of the finest examples of traditional, sustainable land use that offers a viable livelihood for future generations." 

It is fascinating to learn about this incredible tree that defines sustainability on so many levels. The outer bark of the cork oak tree is harvested utilizing an ancient procedure maintaining the integrity and health of the tree every 9-12 years.  With a skilled twist of an ax, it is separated from the trunk. The cork is carefully extracted from the tree until all usable cork is taken from the oak. The tree is marked with the extraction year's last digit to keep track of the next harvest. Every nine years, a new layer of cork will be ready for extraction. After harvesting the boards they are stacked and exposed to open air, sun and rain for six months. What a lovely nap for your future floor or wine stopper! The cork tree can provide a harvest for some 200 years!

The beauty of the cork floor can rest beneath your feet providing comfort, resilience, and greater durability than you might. It is a natural sound absorber  so it will not sound hollow when you walk on it.  It is also ideal for in-floor heating since it will retain heat longer than traditional flooring. Cork is a great alternative for those suffering from allergies since dust, mold and insects will not be able to take hold.  If you want to be certain you have a safe floor, this is also an excellent selection as it may  keep you from potentially hitting a hard surface such as ceramic tile.  In fact, your legs and all your joints will thank you as  you enjoy the comfort beneath you. 

Finally, the selection of styles are many. The Arch invites you in to see our entire APC Cork selection.  Our showroom is located at The Mill at Riverside  at 2000 Riverside Dr Unit 10 Asheville, NC 28804
Please come by our showroom and think about where you might want to add comfort to your home and lifestyle.
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Below are some photos of the harvesting process and a handful  of the many styles.
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​Seafood Recommendations from the Seafood Watch Program at
The Monterey Bay Aquarium
 
​If you enjoy eating fish, this is a great Seafood Watch Program resource provided by the Monterey Aquarium for selecting sustainable fish from healthy ocean waters. Easy to use, you can choose healthier seafood with this  website or install the mobile app which will be handy  if you are standing at the market unsure of what to purchase. I have stood in front of many seafood counters unsure of whether the seafood choice I am considering is sustainable. 

Just enter the name of the fish in the space provided and you will find a list from Best sources at the top, to sources to AVOID at the bottom! There are many to avoid so it is important to choose wisely!

https://www.seafoodwatch.org/seafood-recommendations
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There are RECIPES on the Monterey Aquarium webiste too under Consumers/ Sustainable recipes!
So many great recipes that would be something else grilled in  Forno Bravo wood fired oven, grill, or conventional oven.

Interested in a wood fired oven? Visit www.thearchnc.com and we're happy to assist you.

The Green Built Alliance, formerly known as Western North Carolina Green Building Council, is a great organization and asset to our area and we are fortunate to be members.
I had the opportunity to be interviewed by an intern Kat Jacobsen last month and I wish her well in her career ahead.. 
  Thanks for visiting our blog!
Catherine: Before I got into this business, I was an elementary teacher. I have an interior-design background. I kept integrating all my artistic abilities in whatever I could do in school education. I felt this desire to work more with the architectural components of interior design. Working with flooring, finishing, and interesting products really inspired me and I wanted to work with it. Working within the design community is really enjoyable and I have learned a lot from it.

GBA: What is your specialty?
Catherine: Well we’re a little bit diverse because we offer a number of things from flooring to pizza ovens. We have a wide range. We offer finishes that are healthy such as American Clay Earth Plaster finish, other natural coatings, floor finishes, and other wood finishes. We sell sustainable flooring, sustainable finishes, and we sell our wood-fire pizza ovens.

GBA: How is your work sustainable for the environment?
Catherine: We have no added urea-formaldehyde or VOCs in our products. We also have a lot of certifications for our products such as Green Guard Gold- or FSC-certification. We look for finishes that are healthy and we have a lot of clients who come in that are chemically sensitive. We make sure that we don’t carry anything that would be harmful to our air quality or anyone’s health. Our floor finishes by Vermont Natural Coatings consist of a binder which is a byproduct of cheese called whey and it provides an extremely strong bond. We focus on finishes that are good for the environment and we pay a lot of attention to the products’ background.

Read more

This is an excellent article written  by Tesoro Woods about VOC's in flooring. 
The first paragraph:
Everyone has heard that Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) can be unhealthy and harmful. We’ve all heard how dangerous VOCs can be, especially in the last few years. But what exactly are VOCs and what do they have to do with flooring? Let’s have a real talk about VOCs in flooring, specifically in engineered wood flooring.
Read more...
Visit our showroom to see samples by Tesoro Woods. 2000 Riverside Dr Unit 10 Asheville, NC

When writing about sustainable flooring there are so many considerations that it is a challenge to be brief especially as we would like to hope that the consumer take seriously how their flooring impacts the environment; both social and physical.  Currently we work closely with Kahrs, Tesoro Woods ( formerly Eco Timber), USFloors,  EcoFusion, and Whole Log Lumber.
I thought it  might be helpful to note just a couple of sentences from each of their websites that highlights what they are about. It's very tempting to add more information, but, thus the nature of blogs-remain brief and to the point.
We do, however,  invite you to look at what interests you most and read about their environmental commitments and background. .
Tesoro Woods: from their "about" page:  Tesoro Woods is a certified advocate of sourcing sustainable materials and using eco-friendly, low-VOC finishes and glues to minimize the impact on indoor air quality and health. Living up to our name, Tesoro Woods prizes wood as a treasure, where every product meets the highest environmental and health standards while looking beautiful.

Kahrs: Kährs ecological approach is of long standing. It earned the company an ISO 14001 environmental management certification – as the first wood flooring company – more than a decade ago.

EcoFusion: EcoFusion is an aptly named and dynamic line of flooring. EcoFusion flooring products blend renewable and recyclable products from the earth and “fuse” them into innovative flooring solutions for the home. We take products such as renewable bamboo and recycled hardwood scraps from furniture factories and turn them into beautiful flooring fashion.
USFloors: USFloors, based in Dalton, GA, is a manufacturer of Unique and Sustainable floors. USFloors is a leading producer of sustainable, eco-friendly floors including cork, bamboo, and FSC®-Certified hardwood, and LVT floors. .
Whole Log Lumber: Since 1984 we’ve created refined rustic reclaimed wood interiors to support the visions of architects, builders, designers & homeowners.

The Arch is committed to making sure we work with flooring companies that have no added urea formaldehyde or other harmful toxins,  ensuring that the air you breathe is healthy. Give us a call  at 828 253 5455 or come by our showroom and we will be happy to offer recommendations on a beautiful,  quality floor.

Bella Outdoor Living by Forno Bravo has introduced a new standard color- a very sleek BLACK. It's classic and works beautifully with surrounding natural elements as well as urban elements. Whether it be natural stone, rich wood tones, concrete, forest views, or city lights this powder coated stainless wood fired oven is built to last for year., This oven has everything going for it. 

Learn more under The Arch "Shop/About Bella" link.  

...and if you like the original gorgeous RED color, you have the best of both worlds to choose from.
Available in four sizes, from 32" to 40",  this oven is the perfect portable oven selection for your deck, patio, yard, or wherever great food and friends want to enjoy some of the most delicious wood kissed foods you can imagine.
Call Cathy or Jim at The Arch to help you with your oven selection and great pricing too.
Or,  order on our website at www.thearchnc.com  The Arch 828 253 5455 Asheville, NC.

If you haven’t tried this remarkable flour you’ll be surprised by it’s soft light crust and extraordinary taste! Caputo 00 Flour Bags are 2.2lbs. Since 1924 ” We have produced the best flours for three generations, made from wheat and wheat alone and a passionate and generous interpretation of Neapolitan culinary tradition”.  Caputo is the Mill of Naples- Ideal flour for making authentic italian pizza dough, pasta, focaccia, breads and more.

It’s best to call ahead at 828 253 5455  to find out what we might have in stock and to pre-order as necessary.   A good discussion about why all  flours are not equal for pizza, gluten levels in flour, the 00 rating for the grind of the wheat can be found in this blog entry by Saveur magazine.

They use only the “heart” of the wheat in the Caputo flours which is a family owned and operated mill dating back to 1924.

Combine this superb flour with a Forno Bravo wood-fired oven and you have a pizza that can’t be duplicated in other ovens. Once the heat is absorbed into the mass a Forno Bravo oven provides reflected heat, convection and conductive heat to bake the perfect pizza in just 90 seconds!  All three- the crust, cheese and the sauce is cooking at the same time. The live fire arcing over the interior dome browns the top of the pizza with a rich brown color and imparts a deep flavor. The Convection heat combined with the moisture in the oven helps steam and puff up the cornicione (the outer rim or crust) of the pizza, and with the intense floor heat direct heat extracts moisture from the dough of the pizza resulting in a unique crisp crust. This is hard to achieve in a conventional oven.  That said,  these flour choices will improve your pizza crust in any oven!

Wood-fired ovens combine all the best conditions! For a more detailed explanation of Forno Bravo’s oven operation and cooking benefits click here.
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Come by The ARCH for your Caputo 00 flour today!

Natural cork is available in planks, narrow strip, or glue down tiles!

Cork comes in different sizes and shapes. We have 1'x3' planks, narrow planks 5.5"x 48", and glue down12" x 12" cork tiles if you want to add an interesting design of your own. 
 
This fun design for an Asheville gin distillery, soon to open, was installed this past summer by Tom Maher with Maher Brothers Flooring.  Tom is an accomplished flooring installer, specializing in custom designs and he utilizes environmentally friendly products. The Arch highly recommends Tom! Call us for his contact information.