What Sustainable Furniture Certifications Actually Mean For Creating A Conscientious Home
When someone utters the words, “sustainable furniture” it often triggers a ton of mental labels, like “eco-friendly,” “green” or “environmentally safe.”
And my gosh, that’s because the world we live in is all about going further + faster. Which is why furniture companies are extremely quick to slap fancy names on things for marketing purposes. Leaving behind + never even narrating the dense complexities of not only how the furniture was made, how the materials were harvested, but by whom or from where.
The stories that make sustainable furniture what it should be are often glossed over or entirely left behind. And with it, so too is the value.
The impact.
The significance of sustainable furniture. And the meaning behind sustainability certifications.
But at Elegant Simplicity, we’re committed to changing the way you think about designing + organizing your home.
We’re focused on shifting your perspective away from surface level purchases (i.e. buying for quick and easy - just to simply fill a space) + towards filling your home with what actually matters — to you.
We consider the looming question of “what” you need for your home… l-o-n-g after we’ve thoroughly acknowledged “how” you want to live.
In fact my friend, like anything worth its salt in life, there’s no shortcuts to unpacking the story behind what actually makes sustainable furniture practices or sustainability certifications + labels not only “less bad” for the environment but also “more good” for the people. For the people, who build, ship, and deliver the goods. Not to mention, for the people, who eat, sleep, and sit on them.
So, we’re not only gonna look at what sustainable furniture certifications are meaningful for lessening their environmental impact but...
We’re also interested in sustainability certifications that consider the well-being of people in every aspect of the supply chain. From harvesting or producing the furniture to packing, shipping + of course using the furniture.
In short boo, we’re taking a long, hard + refreshing look at the environmental and human impact that makes sustainable furniture — better.
Better for the world.
Better for the environment.
Better for the people.
And, better for you.
Let’s dive in, shall we?
Defining Sustainability As A Whole + Why It’s Important
Sustainability is the incorporation of materials that support the wellbeing of it’s people + the environment. At home, sustainability is everything from the insulation used in building the homes we design all the way through to the fixtures, finishes + furniture we select.
Here’s more on how we incorporate and use sustainable materials in various stages of our design work with clients.
But the health and wellness of the environment is in direct correlation to the wellbeing of it’s people.
For a moment, think back to when COVID first began, many of us sat for weeks in our homes + maybe for the first time ever were faced with the reality of not knowing what are the chemicals used to manufacture my sofa? What’s being released into the air of my home when I burn those candles?
Suddenly, we became aware + started to question (for a moment) if the environment we lived in was safe.
So…if the environment around us is no longer good for us — meaning we’ve failed to respect our natural resources — then we’re not only contributing to environmental issues but creating our own challenges that jeapordize human health. That’s why sustainable interior design is important.
Sustainability in how we create our homes should be the framework, the baseline, for where everyone begins.
What Is Sustainable Furniture
If you’ve made it this far, then we know you’re here because you want a home that’s certainly beautiful but really –– you also care about the environment.
In an ideal world, you want the purchases you make for your home to positively contribute to the world we live in, not impact it in a negative way.
Environment
Sustainable furniture really includes looking at every aspect of how furniture is made.
From not only the materials that were used but where they came from, how they were harvested to what the manufacturing process included.
To consider the environmental impact a single furniture item has… means you really need to understand the entire lifecycle of how the piece was extracted, manufactured/put together, shipped + then placed in your home.
In other words, what’s the total carbon footprint actually look like?
Sustainable furniture is not only about the creation or production of furniture, it’s about introducing something for people to enjoy for the long haul. How might this piece live up to the rigors of multiple generations + be passed down?
But, it’s also thinking about how it can be disposed of or recycled at the end of its life span.
People
Remember when we said there’s more to sustainable furniture than doing “less bad” for the environment?
Well, that’s because the furniture decisions we make for our homes don’t just impact the environment.
Each purchase we make for our home has a ripple effect on both the environment as well as the health and safety of those who made it, ship it + ultimately those who use it.
So, sustainable furniture is important because it does “more good” for impacts you, your family + your loved ones.
Ethical Practices
Friend, sustainability isn’t just about environmental processes, it's about ethical practices too.
From the labor conditions of the manufacturing process to the materials or chemicals that make their way into our homes, rethinking sustainable furniture under the impact it has on people helps highlight how incredibly important the decisions we make for our homes is — for us + for others.
Sustainability Certifications (for furniture + decor)
The impact that the creation, distribution, and disposal of furniture has on the environment is one deeply faceted aspect of sustainable furniture.
And to be candid boo, for a variety of reasons now you’re well aware that sustainable furniture is better than furniture that is created without sustainable practices.
But the question amidst all the design choices available is — what do we actually look for when it comes to curating sustainable furniture for your home?
Here are a few of the labels we know, like + trust.
Cradle To Cradle (C2C)
What Its Sustainability Certification Is For: home decor, furniture, textiles, building materials, cleaning products, clothing + accessories, personal care items.
Cradle-to-Cradle certified products are a measure of safer and more sustainable products. Each product must meet a rigorous standard in five categories: material health, material reuse, renewable energy, water stewardship and social fairness.
Fair Trade
What Its Sustainability Certification Is For: home decor, textiles, clothing, food/beverages.
Fair trade certified products operate on the simple idea that the products bought and sold every day are connected to the livelihoods of others. They meet rigorous social, environmental, and economic standards around safe working conditions, environmental protection, sustainable livelihoods, and community development.
Green Guard
What Its Sustainability Certification Is For: home decor, furniture, building materials, electronics + cleaning products.
GreenGuard certified products are a commitment to health + wellness by rigorously testing their chemical emissions helping to reduce indoor air pollution and the health risks of chemical exposure.
Eco Institut
What Its Sustainability Certification Is For: home decor, furniture (including) mattresses, bedding, construction materials, flooring.
Eco-Institut is focused on offgassing which plays a tremendous role in how safe our homes indoor air quality is.
Psst. If you’re interested in “indoor air quality” we’ve got you covered :)
Made Safe
What Its Sustainability Certification Is For: bedding, childcare products, personal care, clothes + accessories.
Made Safe is committed to ensuring products are made with ingredients that are safe for human health. Their process includes only certifying products that give a complete list of ingredients + sub-ingredients to verify against their known-ban list of chemicals.
Forest Stewardship Council
What Its Sustainability Certification Is For: wood products.
This is one of our favorite certifications because its focus in 3-distinct areas: processing, manufacturing + distribution. Ensuring along the way that they not only preserve the environment but also benefit the communities of the forests they manage.
DownPass
What Its Sustainability Certification Is For: products with down (including pillows).
DownPass is focused on animal welfare + ensuring that the origin of any DownPass sustainability certification has a known origin, been audited for humane practices + passed their rigorous standards.
Global Organic Textiles Standard (GOTS)
What Its Sustainability Certification Is For: textiles + fabrics, mattresses, home decor as well as personal care products.
GOTS is focused on organic textiles but they’re not simply slapping their label on just anything. They trace each material, not simply the final product. So, they’re looking at the entire process of the supply chain.
The Eco Label Index
A comprehensive list of sustainability certifications for furniture.
Sustainability As An Interior Designer
As an interior designer, we’re tasked with curating a beautiful + functional home. While using sustainable furniture doesn’t limit or constrain our selection, it’s still a complex issue because we’re constantly looking for transparency + commitment from our Awesome Vendors to do more good, not less bad.
And so we have to ask ourselves:
Are the spaces we’re creating, safe for you?
Are they healthy environments to live in?
Are the things in them made with the core values you desire to be present in your home?
And was the production of the things we’ve furnished your home, safe for everyone along the way.
We wholeheartedly believe there’s meaning in the work we do — far beyond the surface level decision of “does it look good.”
Which is why to us home is about being really conscientious of the impact each purchase has on the environment, on you + on the craftsmen (+ women *wink*) who make them.
Guide For A Sustainable Furniture Purchase
Now that you’re aware of sustainability certifications, it’s important to keep in mind that sustainability doesn’t mean sacrificing luxury.
In fact, the very essence of sustainability is really luxury. Sustainability focuses on respecting the craftsmanship of making something beautiful.
Here’s how we determine sustainable furniture for your home + what you want to consider.
The materials used.
The manufacturing process.
The people.
Understand What It's Made Of.
The Sustainable Furnishings Council says, “80% of the environmental impact of any product comes from the materials used to make it.”
In other words, we really want to know what materials make up the furniture that we’re purchasing for you.
Find The Third-Party Certification.
Beyond the list of sustainability certifications (above), there are a ton of certifications out there aimed at every niche of environmental sustainability practices to ethical + animal welfare consciousness.
In the end, what we want to ensure is that the seal of approval is real + that the sustainability certification holds its weight in the industry.
Purchase Wood Furniture.
Wood is a renewable resource (so long as it’s done right).
If the furniture is not made from reclaimed wood, understanding that the wood was harvested correctly + didn’t contribute to illegal deforestation. This ensures that the furniture we’re purchasing for you is coming from responsibly managed forests which are focused on replenishing what is taken out + supporting the communities around those areas.
Choose Sustainable Textiles To Reduce Toxic Chemicals.
Business Insider says that the textile industry accounts for more toxic waste pollution of water than any other industry.
When we’re considering textiles, we want to first find sustainable fabrics like organic cottons, linens or other natural fibers that we can use to reduce the toxic chemicals used in the manufacturing process.
Consider The Finishes.
Even if it’s wood, VOC’s (volatile organic compounds) are a toxic pollutant that off gases harmful chemicals.
Being mindful that paints + finishes with high VOCs weren’t used on any sustainable furniture ensures it wont off gas harmful chemicals inside your home.
Where’s It Made.
I’m not gonna lie to ya; transportation is a significant factor in sustainable furniture. Something made in Europe may have textiles from South America, wood from Asia, and be manufactured in Europe. Then, lived on + used in a home in the U.S.
When possible, we consider buying furniture made locally. Not only are we drastically reducing the carbon footprint of the furniture we’re purchasing for you but we’re also supporting a local artisan in the U.S.
Circularity + Furniture Disposal
In thinking of sustainability certifications, we’re constantly considering the circularity of the pieces we furnish your home with.
Circularity can simply be described as the lifecycle of each product used on your project.
A Home With Everything You Need + Nothing More™ is curated with intentionality — around you. And we view our role as your interior designer with great responsibility to ensure the items we source + produce for your home don’t end up in the landfill.
But it’s also about reducing waste so it’s not limited to just the furniture or decor. It’s working with companies who embrace sustainability in their packaging + the supplies that they use.
For more on furniture disposal + a culture of waste, give this a read.
On a deeper level, sustainable furniture + really sustainability certifications in general are a bit of a soul searching process to understand what is important to you. It’s why our foundation that we build in our first phase together is so integral to the home we create together.
Sustainable furniture is important because home is about making conscientious choices that whether you consider it or not are impacting both the environment and people.
Sustainable furniture is an investment in yourself, in your home, in the planet + every person who helped that furniture make its way to you.
You should take the time to know exactly what you want + why you want it.
And realize my friend, that decisions around your home should come from a place of purpose, they should have a story and a meaningful reason why.
Don’t forget, if you’re in the preliminary planning stages of your next project, let’s chat.
P.S. If you loved this article then you’re going to really enjoy the 4 Days To A More Beautiful + Functional Home.