Go Green with These Home Brands
We often think about eco-friendly living in terms of swapping out our CFL light bulbs for LEDs, recycling our milk jugs, and bringing reusable bags to the grocery store. But when it comes to how we decorate our homes, it can be a little more challenging to draw the line between what’s good for the planet and what’s not.
Here is a list of home retailers that are making a difference with their environmentally friendly products and practices.
Bloomist
This home-goods company works with small-batch creators from around the world to produce environmentally responsible pieces for the home. Bloomist offers earth-friendly faux botanicals, garden accessories, natural textiles, furniture, and decor, and it will match your gift when you donate to Conservation International, which works to protect biodiversity in land and marine ecosystems.
Boll & Branch
This textile producer, which is headquartered in New Jersey and became the first Fair Trade Certified manufacturer of linens, uses only 100 percent organic, pesticide-free cotton for its bedding, towels, and other products. Boll & Branch ships its goods around the world by boat, which is estimated to have saved 21,252 metric tons of carbon emissions. The company’s packaging is made from 100 percent recycled paper.
The Citizenry
This fair trade retailer, headquartered in Dallas, Texas, works with artisans worldwide to create its luxury collection of sustainably produced home accessories and furniture that is made from local materials and is ethically resourced. Its furnishings are available online and at its first brick-and-mortar store in New York City. Every item this luxury brand sells is handcrafted, hand-numbered, and sold only in limited quantities to ensure quality.
Coyuchi
This California-based home textiles and apparel company uses 100 percent organic cotton to create its fabrics and ensures that its products are produced under safe and humane conditions. Coyuchi actively works to prevent textile waste from ending up in landfills through its 2nd Home Take Back program, in which consumers are given a prepaid shipping label to return used Coyuchi goods; consumers get a 15 percent discount on a subsequent order. These returned items are cleaned, repaired, and sold in Coyuchi’s 2nd Home Renewed line. Products that are severely damaged are upcycled or recycled.
Eskayel
This New York-based textile design studio utilizes eco-friendly resources, such as water-based pigment and sustainably sourced materials, to create rugs, wall coverings, fabrics, furnishings, and more. Everything Eskayel produces is made to order to eliminate waste and to enhance the quality of the company’s product offerings. The brand donates a percentage of its total sales to environmental organizations, such as Greenpeace International, Mission Blue, and Vital Actions.
Etsy
Not every product sold by online retailer Etsy is eco-friendly or sustainable, but many items are. Etsy is a global marketplace for handmade furniture, home decor, gifts, and clothing made by independent crafters. In addition to new pieces, you can also buy vintage and gently used pieces on the website. You can find almost anything you could want for your home on Etsy, such as furniture, clocks, storage items, art, decorative pillows, rugs, and even firepits.
Ten Thousand Villages
Bringing the global community a little bit closer together, Ten Thousand Villages partners with artisans from around the world and supports their business endeavors by providing the means and an outlet to sell their work. This fair trade pioneer prioritizes fair wages, safe working conditions, and the use of recycled materials. You can find homemade home accessories, crafts, gifts, and clothing in Ten Thousand Villages stores and on its website.
Uncommon Goods
Based in Brooklyn, New York, Uncommon Goods is an online retailer selling handmade merchandise from around the world. The company features products made from reclaimed and recycled materials and doesn’t include animal products like leather, feathers, and fur. It offers a large selection of home decor, including pottery, lighting, bedding, and furniture for your home.
Vermont Woods Studios
With a mission for preserving the rain forests of the world, artisan furniture maker Vermont Woods Studios uses wood sourced exclusively from well-managed North American forests. As part of its commitment to sustainability, the company has also planted thousands of trees in the Amazon and other forests.
VivaTerra
Combining global design and modern sustainability, VivaTerra works with talented craftspeople from around the world to offer beautifully designed and eco-friendly home goods and clothing. This Virginia-based company encourages its partners to give back to the environment and their communities in its daily business practices.
West Elm
More than 60 percent of the furniture sold by West Elm supports the retailer’s initiatives for sustainability. West Elm collaborates with small, American-based businesses and independent artisans from around the world. It supports fair trade and healthy working conditions for workers and strives to expand its use of materials with a low environmental impact. The brand also has FSC-certified furniture pieces made from wood sourced from responsibly managed forests.