Your eco-friendly home decorating guide

Stella guest posts today about green ideas for furnishing the home. If you’re looking to update rooms while also being good to the planet, then this eco-friendly home decorating guide is for you!

We, as human beings, are constantly trying to leave our footprint on this planet. Whether these marks are technological advancements that we are constantly trying to make, the medical research that leads to prevention and curing of many ailments and diseases, or other ways by which we try to express ourselves, one thing’s inevitable: we are making a huge impact on our planet.

Unfortunately, not all of these impacts are good. Some are even rather devastating, like the carbon footprint we leave here more and more. That’s why it’s so urgent to come up with a good all-around plan that’s going to lower the impact of the so-called ’global weirding’. One way to do this is by further developing eco-friendly ideas for furnishing our homes.

Make sustainably-sourced materials your #1 option

If you’re serious about helping our planet, we’d recommend you to get in touch with the community of people who are passionate about eco-friendly decor. You should always make sure that the materials you use for furnishing your home come from sustainably-sourced materials. There are many people across the globe who make their daily jobs saving the planet and ensuring that every bit of our home ornaments come from these materials.

One of the best materials in this regard is obviously wood. But you also have to pay attention to which wood exactly (what type) you’re using for your furniture, for instance.

The reason why you want to be careful here is simple: By choosing the wrong type of wood you can actually contribute to the deforestation epidemic. That’s why you want to ensure that all the wood you’re using is FSC certified, which means that it comes from sustainable sources.

Eco-friendly home decorating: Make pre-used furniture the focus

Paying attention to the type of wood you’re using for furnishing your home is great, but an even better eco-friendly home decorating effort revolves around secondhand furniture. Even though this might not be your “cup of tea,” remember that vintage-looking furniture is something that a lot of people intentionally use as their go-to decor options.

If you don’t feel like hitting the flea markets in search for a perfect old-school cabinet, you can always visit your local thrift store, or find suitable pieces that match the rest of your surroundings online.

Ensure your old(er) household appliances are impeccable

There are a few very simple reasons why you’d want all of your home appliances working properly. For starters, if they’re not in tip-top shape, they’re usually prone to consuming more energy. This means not only that you’ll have to pay more money for your electricity bill, but you’ll also hugely contribute to further endangering our planet.

But an eco-friendly solution to this problem doesn’t include just buying brand-new items, that’s for sure. One way you can deal with this type of situation is by deciding to buy spare parts online and dealing with any issues you might be having with your home appliances by yourself.

That way you’re actually accomplishing two great things at once: You’re not buying new things to replace the old, and you’re making a conscious effort to reduce electricity consumption.

Choose only non-toxic materials

This one is essential for your eco-friendly home decorating plan: Use only materials that are proven to be non-toxic. This means that you should be careful about the type of paint you use for painting your walls, for example. This also means that these materials should be free of VOCs (volatile organic compounds).

But it’s not just that the items like paint can emit the high levels of VOCs. Even the house items like a plain, regular carpet can contain higher levels of these compounds, thus contributing to the accumulation of allergens.

Add plants and use environmentally-safe insulation

Last but not least for eco-friendly home decorating, purify your residence with houseplants. The live greenery can increase oxygen levels to refresh the air.

At the same time, you might also want to try some “green” insulation ideas. While we’re on the subject of plants, in some instances you can also use them to insulate your house as well. That way you’re saving money on your electricity bill while using sustainable materials at the same time.

The bottom line on eco-friendly home decorating

With our planet being in great danger from the carbon footprint we make on it every second, it’s paramount that we act quickly and stop the epidemic from spreading further. We have to realize that it’s urgent to act immediately – otherwise, there might be nothing left to save in the near future.

That’s why we simply have to develop better ways to deal with these issues as soon as possible. One step towards accomplishing this goal of saving our planet also lies in the way we furnish our homes. And for this reason, in this article, we’ve presented you with some ideas on how to furnish our homes in an eco-friendly way.

About today’s writer

Stella Ryne is an art historian, traveller, conscious consumer and a proud mother. When she is not trying to improve the things around her (and herself, for that matter), she likes to lose herself in a good book. Stay in touch with Stella via Twitter and Facebook.