How to Choose Sustainable Bedroom Furniture

Tips on Buying Sustainable Bedroom Furniture

Finding beautifully designed, high-quality furniture that has been manufactured in an environmentally friendly way can be quite difficult. How can you find bedroom furniture that is sleek and stylish, sustainable, eco-friendly, and affordable? The following 4 tips can help make your search for eco-friendly furniture easier.

Bedroom Furniture from Recycled Materials

A good place to start is by looking for furniture crafted in recycled materials. Whether it uses recycled textiles for the upholstery or reclaimed wood now used to make a new dresser, furniture crafted in recycled materials offer a vintage look and are incredibly durable options. These pieces may not have the most eco-friendly origin story, but with this new breath of life they are helping to minimize future damage to our environment. We can all do our part by choosing to recycle household products so that our old furniture and textiles do not end up in a landfill. Always consider donating used furniture to a local thrift store or placing an add online.

Bedroom Furniture from Renewable Resources

Something else that is important to consider is whether or not the furniture is made of an easily renewable resource. Bamboo, for instance, is an excellent material for home furniture. Bamboo is one of Earth’s fastest growing plants- a grass that reaches maturity in 5 years or less. Additionally, is it incredibly durable and is 20-100% harder than Red Oak. Furniture crafted in Bamboo is as durable as it is sustainable and environmentally friendly.

Bedroom Furniture made by Eco-Friendly Manufacturers

Another aspect to contemplate is the manufacturing and building of your furniture: ensuring that the materials used are safe for you and your family. Most compressed and veneer woods in furniture are made with chemicals such as formaldehydes and low-quality glues, binders and harsh chemicals that off-gas toxic fumes into the bedroom environment. Eco-friendly furniture does not contain such toxic materials. The result is a product that is healthier for the environment you live and breathe in.

To help with the identification of some eco-friendly and non-toxic furniture pieces, various organizations grant specific certifications to products that are made of eco-friendly raw materials, from fairly-traded sources, and that are considered to have low environmental impact. When purchasing bedroom furniture, look for certified wood and certified wood products through the E-1 Emission Standard, International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO) and the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). These organizations promote conservation, sustainable management, as well as use and trade of tropical forest resources. Materials and products endorsed by these organizations ensure that the base wood materials used in manufacturing are harvested from forests in a sustainable and renewable manner. 

By choosing eco-friendly, sustainable bedroom furniture, you are making a pledge to sustainability and environmental conservation. You are purchasing products made of sustainably harvested materials, products that are assembled in a less ecologically harmful manner, and products that do not off gas dangerous chemicals and gasses. You are purchasing a healthier and more harmonious home for you and your family.

Jovanna, Haiku Designs Staff