Living greener can be tricky, with so many steps and choices to make. But did you know that you can make your living room more eco-friendly, too? We don't mean adding random driftwood sculptures and bohemian-styled décor; we mean making your living room more sustainable!
An eco-friendly living room creates a healthier indoor environment, reduces your environmental impact, and saves you money. So, why not go for it? Oh, right, you need directions first — and that's where we come in!
1. Natural & Sustainable Materials
The first step is obvious — using furniture with natural and sustainable materials! Most furniture uses synthetic materials that release VOCs (volatile organic compounds) into the air, which can create an unhealthy home environment. But luckily, there is plenty of other naturally made furniture that you can turn to instead!
- Cork is completely natural, recyclable, and biodegradable. It also provides texture to your design scheme and can be used in soundproofing.
- Seagrass applies to a wide range of water plants that can be used in furniture and is also fully biodegradable.
- Bamboo is exceptionally durable, water resistant, and features anti-bacterial qualities. And you can use it for anything from flooring to incredibly designed furniture!
- Eucalyptus is incredibly sustainable because new growth only takes a few years for the trees to mature. You can even find eucalyptus fabric!
- Teak, especially plantation teak, comes from legal, governmentally regulated plantations instead of forests to produce a sustainable supply.
Other natural materials, including sustainably sourced wood, rattan, and cotton, work great for a wide variety of living room furniture like occasional tables, chairs, and fabrics. For your couch, look for renewable sources like latex foam, organic wool, or other natural fabrics like 100-percent pure linen instead!
2. Eco-Friendly Paint
Another step to making your living room more eco-friendly is the paint you use on your walls. Paint also releases VOCs into the air because most paints use chemicals with a high vapor pressure at room temperatures that are released into the air. But thankfully, several manufacturers make eco-friendly paints that are solvent-free, sustainably sourced, and ethically produced.
So, if you want to repaint your walls, check the paint label before buying!
3. Carpets & Curtains
One place that's easily forgotten when giving your living room an eco-friendly makeover is the carpets and the curtains — yep, these can be greener, too! To do that, you'll need to look for carpets and curtains made from natural fabrics.
Cotton is an excellent material for carpets and curtains, but silk is an excellent alternative if you want more style for your window coverings.
Pro Tip: Don't forget about your flooring! You can use bamboo flooring or other natural materials like parquet to reduce plastic waste!
4. Use Existing Household Objects
You might not think it, but you can bring new life to your home by using objects you already have. You can combine your things into new furniture!
- You can use cardboard to make shelves for your books.
- You can get old jars to create kitschy lampshades or flower vases.
- You can create chairs out of books, so you don't need an extra bookshelf for all your books!
So, if you have a group of items laying around your home that you’ve been meaning to get rid of, take a step back and think what you can do to re-use them!
5. Recyclable Materials
Aside from sustainable materials, another way to make your living room more sustainable is by using furniture made from recycled materials! More and more manufacturers care about reducing their carbon footprint, by aiming for local production and using recycled materials. Some materials they can use include:
- Recycled plastic bottles to make fiber fill in furniture cushions. They also make polyester resin out of these bottles to make performance fabrics!
- Recycled steel to make cushion springs.
- Toxic industrial waste can be converted into ceramic tableware.
- Recycled food containers are used to make street furniture like park benches and the like.
- Recycled aluminum is often used to create chairs, tables, and desks!
Other manufacturers will even create their own foam materials from plant materials like soybean oil to reduce their carbon footprint. As for décor and other stylish touches, you can also find kitschy art and other furniture made from sustainably minded artists!
Pro Tip: If you need to make room for your new furniture, don’t just throw out your old stuff — recycle them instead!
6. Lighting & Energy Savings
You might not think it, but lighting and how you save energy is another way to give your living room an eco-friendly makeover. If you maximize the amount of natural light in your home, you'll cut down on energy consumption while also creating a sense of space and wellness. So, try decorating with mirrors opposite windows or walls to catch the light!
Another way to be more eco-friendly is to switch to LED lighting and solar heating. LEDs cut down on electricity use, so make sure to switch to LED light bulbs or USB-powered LED lamps. And with solar heating, you can save more money annually by upgrading to solar windows.
7. Multi-Use Furniture
Making your living room more sustainable can be tricky, but there’s one option that will make things so much easier: multi-use furniture! By buying furniture with more than one use, you’re limiting the amount of clutter in your home and reducing your own carbon footprint because you won’t be contributing more to manufacturing plants.
So, look for daybeds you can easily use as both a sofa and an extra bed, sleeper chairs and sofas, or anything with built-in shelving! You’d be surprised at the items you can find — and remember, there’s no such thing as too many storage options!
Bonus : Plants, Plants, Plants!
Going greener won't be a success until you add more greens! Indoor plants enhance aesthetics, purify the air, and create a sense of peace. So, don't hesitate to buy some indoor plants or even create an indoor garden (which is on trend, by the way). Some plants to consider include:
- Succulent and cacti since they only require watering once a week and an average of three hours of sunlight.
- Mood-boosting plants like aloe vera, gerbera, jamesonii, and snake plants.
- Flowering plants like hibiscus anthurium, marigold, peace lily, and violets (these don't need a lot of sunlight to thrive!).
You can also decorate with dried and preserved flowers and plants!
Going Green
Now that you know how easy it is to have an eco-friendly living room, it's time to start! And Alton Refrigeration & Home Furnishings is the best place to start! We have a wide variety of living room furniture that'll fit the design and purpose of your home — and we can ship to you quickly! And to make searching for eco-friendly furniture easier, you can filter your searches by material in the filter section.
Have any questions? Give us a call or stop by — our furniture experts are happy to help you go green!