Exploring Green Interiors - Furnishing Your Green Home

Exploring Green Interiors - Furnishing Your Green Home—Sustainable Furniture

We have worked together to create a sustainable base for your home through past articles on building products and space planning. Now for the fun part—furnishing and decorating! What characteristics do you hunt for in your search for greener home furnishings?

1) Keep an eye out for items with the Sustainable Furnishing Council’s seal of approval. SFC is a non-profit organization working with manufacturers, designers, and retailers to promote sustainable practices through education/awareness and assistance in adopting green practices. FSC sets high standards that ensure forestry is practiced in an environmentally responsible, socially beneficial, and economically viable way.
Furniture that doesn’t meet sustainability goals include those with finishes that off-gas, wood sourced from unmanaged forests, pieces manufactured or sold by companies with carbon emissions due to manufacturing processes and transportation, pieces created as part of a waste stream polluting process, and those using non-recycled content. Select manufacturers who use Best Manufacturing Processes, whether they’re buying green power, reusing energy produced in the manufacturing process, reducing waste material, keeping toxic water runoff out of the ecosystem, or making other eco-friendly choices.

2) Look for products and manufacturers that use low- or no-VOC finishes (water-based stains, milk paint, etc.), renewable resources, reclaimed lumber, and certified wood from carefully managed forests or fast growing wood species or grasses. Many companies are working to incorporate recycled content as well. When looking at recycled content, products with post-consumer waste is the better alternative since, in theory, this product is headed for a waste facility. Also keep an eye out for reduced use of formaldehyde, glues and sealants, natural fabrics, and minimal packaging.

3) Another option is to have furniture built by local craftsmen. You can work closely with these artisans to create exactly what you’re looking for (size, shape, function, and color) and use locally-grown or reclaimed wood and environmentally-friendly finishes, of course!
Custom furniture is often more affordable than you’d think, and it’s a great way to acquire pieces you’ll keep for a lifetime.
Working with a local furniture maker saves on energy, too—just think of the energy saved by not purchasing a table that was manufactured on the other side of the world and transported here by ship, rail, and truck.

4) Last but not least, when creating green interiors, purchase pieces that you love and that have lasting value. The longer you keep and use an item, the greener it becomes. It is kept out of the landfill, you are not interrupting the environment with new production, and you save money and time. Buy what you love with longevity and quality in mind.

Editor’s Note: Beth Haley Design, an urban interior design firm, assists clients with all phases of renovation, remodeling, new construction, and décor. Haley has won awards from the Tennessee Chapter ASID (American Society of Interior Designers). She is a member of ASID, HGTV Designers Portfolio, Home Builders Association Remodelers Council, National Kitchen and Bath Association (NKBA), and the USGBC. E-mail your questions to her at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or visit http://www.bethhaleydesign.com.