Eco-Friendly Decorating Options

In this day and age of wondrous technology, there really is no excuse for us not to be using the environmentally friendly versions of the everyday objects we encounter. So why do we often not extend this common sense to our decorating exploits? When you do decorate your home it is often the priority topic in the household, as you want it done quickly, efficiently and with great quality. None of these prerequisites stop us from using environmentally friendly products, so today I am going to run through some of these options with you.

First off we shall start with eco-friendly paints, given painting is one of the leading decoration processes. Before 2010 you shouldn’t have been shocked if you were to find your conventional paint contained heavy metals, formaldehyde, or other volatile organic compounds, all of which have negative impacts on health. The World Health Organisation even said that professional decorators were 40% more likely to contract lung cancer.

To rectify this the EU stated that these ‘ingredients’ needed to be reduced or removed from paints. The issue with this is the paint companies are now having to include other chemicals in the paint, or use a much longer manufacturing process, both of which have detrimental effects on the environment. Just because conventional paints now include less chemical nastiness than previously, does not mean that they are now eco-friendly. Instead use a paint that is natural, organic or certified eco-friendly; one MD of a natural paint company ate his paint in front of an audience to prove its harmlessness.

Try to use eco-friendly glues and bonders as well, as the nature of the issues with these products reflects the paint problem quite similarly. Speaking of glue, you should also use environmentally friendly wallpaper, which should be sourced from sustainable produce, printed with environmentally considerate ink, and made without the use of damaging chemicals. All of these products are not hard to find, and do not cost as much as people often think they will.
The trickiest part of environmentally friendly decorating is sourcing furniture. There are essentially three options for this aspect of your home redecoration; buy responsibly sourced furniture; buy second hand furniture; build your own furniture from responsibly sourced materials. Each one of these has its own merits and disadvantages, however they are certain to reduce the impact you are having on the environment. Responsibly sourced furniture isn’t going to be of detriment to the planet’s natural resources but can often be quite expensive. 

Buying second hand furniture means you have no further impact on the environment, as there is no extra manufacturing or resources used, it is also normally cheaper, however you are not guaranteed the same quality as buying new furniture. Building your own furniture from responsibly sourced materials is again not going to be of detriment to the planet’s natural resources, however it can take time, money, skill and patience to produce the quality of furniture that you are looking for.



Author Bio:
Ben writes for Speedy Services, a specialist tool hire company in the UK. Hopefully this article can inspire you to turn green and start helping the environment.