Shops that cater to the eco-friendly home

Shopping for "green" home décor can be a little haphazard for the uninitiated. Many home stores now carry some items, like sustainable bamboo cutting boards or magazine bins made from recycled material. But finding green furniture is another matter.

So instead of carrying bits and pieces, a few local stores are addressing consumer interest by going all green.

And the design-minded don't have to sacrifice looks for the eco-friendly tag. Stores such as Ballard's Greener Lifestyles and the new One Earth One Design on Greenwood Avenue North cater to shoppers who want green and good design.

These stores carry sofas with natural latex cushions, tables made from Forest Stewardship Council-certified wood and salvaged materials. Glues are water-based, and textiles are organic.

"You don't have to look at labels and wonder," said Paul Campbell, co-owner of One Earth One Design. "They can feel comfortable everything here is safe and already researched."

People who live in the Pacific Northwest have a more sustainable approach to their lifestyle, including their home, food and even medicine, said co-owner Sandy Campbell.

"We have a consumer who is more aware of holistic living and sustainability," she said.

Shopping tips

• Look for wood certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), which advocates responsible forestry management.

• Pick products that include essential oils and have plant-based or water-based finishes.

• Choose domestic hardwoods over veneers unless they are FSC-certified.

Resources


www.fscus.org, and www.thegreenguide.com (Click on Tips and Tools for consumer product reports), www.greenseal.org and www.epa.gov/iaq

These stores embrace a modern aesthetic, warmed up with plenty of natural materials, of course.

People sensitive to chemicals were among the first to advocate furniture made with natural materials, without volatile organic compounds or formaldehyde-based glues, which contribute to poor indoor air quality. Awareness and concern about the environment has expanded that base, said Thor Peterson, Residential Green Building Specialist with Seattle Department of Planning and Development.

"People are only now making the connection if you build a green home, you should maintain it and decorate it in a green manner as well," Peterson said. "It's just this expanding recognition of the intertwined nature of the environment we build around us and how it affects us."

Though people tend to start buying green products when they have children, buying green also appeals to a younger generation, said Mindy Pennybacker, editor of The Green Guide, a consumer newsletter.

"A lot more singles who may not even have babies are getting into green design just because it's functional, it gives back," she said. "It's holistic. It doesn't stand alone. It's part of the ecosystem."

Here are some stores that focus on eco-friendly home décor:

One Earth One Design
14300 Greenwood Ave. N.
Suite A, Seattle
Hours: 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Saturday
206-418-8120
www.OneEarthOneDesign.com

This new site feels like a store of the future, where sustainability is matter-of-fact, where community matters and where even the store's interior was designed with environmental principles in mind.

Owners Sandy and Paul Campbell tracked down eco-friendly manufacturers for organic mattresses, furniture that includes recycled materials and sustainable flooring. Everything sold at the 3,000-square-foot store, which opened in November, is nontoxic and eco-friendly.

But Sandy Campbell's goals are still larger than that.

"The whole concept of sustainability, what goes along with that is community, working with your neighbors, community around you, friends and family gathering," she said. "I wanted to create a community within the store."

She designed the store's layout like a home's, with living room, dining area, kitchen and bedroom display spaces.

As part of its community emphasis, the store will sponsor cooking classes focusing on raw, vegan and seasonal eating; show documentaries; and hold seminars on healthy living.

Campbell worked in sustainable interior design before she opened One Earth One Design. She continues to offer design services at the store.

The spacious showroom is glossy yet still natural, boasting cement and cork floors warmed by pistachio walls. The items for sale are often elegant and sophisticated. A sleek end table made of curving, recycled sheet metal would be comfortable in any minimalist showroom. Glass dinnerware (dinner plate, $34) in colors like pearl and citron is made from post-industrial, preconsumer recycled glass. A John Wells bench made of reclaimed Western red cedar ($1,100) is burnished to a soft glow.

Eco-minded shoppers must be willing to pay for the privilege. An organic sofa made with a sustainable hardwood frame, jute/burlap cord webbing supports and latex cushions costs $3,692-$5,036, while a queen bamboo bed with reclaimed wood slats and walnut side rails costs $2,485. A stool made with woven recycled seatbelts is $350.

Greener Lifestyles
5317 Ballard Ave., N.W.,
Seattle
Hours: 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Monday-Saturday, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sunday
206-545-4405
www.greenerlifestyles.com

When this store opened 3 ½ years ago, shoppers were puzzled by explanations about what made furniture green, said owner Aimee Robinson.

Now, people come into the Ballard store armed with detailed questions about the furniture, which Greener Lifestyles manufactures.

"They're starting to see the connection with respiratory disease and being aware of the impact on their houses," Robinson said. "It's a good shift."

For a smaller store (1,070 square feet), Greener Lifestyles packs in a multitude of options, including furnishings, flooring, paint and mattresses.

Shoppers can peruse several sofa styles, which start at $3,500 and include a sectional and a narrow, armless choice that would fit well in a condo.

A comfortable padded ottoman comes in cheerful colors like orange and red and costs $175 (a storage version is about $250). Coffee tables boast salvaged wood and metal, and soon Robinson will carry dining tables and chairs made from recycled or salvaged material.

Bedding choices include the organic Anna Sova line ($160 for a queen set) and silk-filled comforters ($279 for a spring/fall-weight queen size). And the remodeling set will like zero volatile-organic-compound paint from Yolo Colorhouse; cork flooring; and Marmoleum, a natural linoleum flooring.

Goods for the Planet
525 Dexter Ave. N., Seattle
Hours: 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Monday-Friday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Sunday
206-652-2327
www.goodsfortheplanet.com

This new 3,000-square-foot store, which opened last weekend, is more mercantile store than home décor, but you will find plenty of choices for the home and garden.

Co-owners Chris Raver and Suzanne O'Shea felt Seattle was lacking a shop that offered the full range of eco-friendly goods.

"For people like me, this store is going to be helpful," Raver said. "People are really searching for ways they can do better. It's hard to find the things like the biodegradable sandwich bags, and we'll have that for them."

You can stock your kitchen with recycled aluminum foil ($5.75), buy a Pooch Planet pet bed made with recycled fiber ($40.65) or dry off with bamboo and organic towels (towel, $49).

Furniture is limited to recycled outdoor pieces (lawn chair, $299), but you can decorate the indoors with recycled chopstick coasters ($18) and lamps (triangular, $38).

Simple recycled-glass vases and tableware are available, or you can choose a funky candleholder made from recycled bicycle parts ($36). There also are handy choices like a solar cell 4-band radio ($29.99).

Nicole Tsong: 206-464-2150 or ntsong@seattletimes.com