Go Green at Home with Eco-Friendly Fabrics for Furniture

Spring is a time of renewal and warmer weather. It’s the time of year where people clean up their home and their yard.  Also, it is a fantastic time to take a look around your home. See what you would like to change and spruce up to get something new going in your dwelling. And updating your furnishings is a savvy place to start. Go green with eco-friendly fabrics for your furniture.

Check Out Your Environment

Look around and see where you could save energy or make changes that are better for the environment. Ideas include replacing your furnace filter, investing in Energy Star appliances as well as light bulbs that use less energy. And maybe you want to change some other things around your home, such as the fabrics that surround your furniture. Also, if you want to make your house more green, use more organic materials in your home. And one way to do it is reupholstering your furniture with natural materials.

Innovative Fabrics and Processes

Innovation in the area of fabrics has brought new materials and processes. You may not realize how quickly the industry has been changing and growing. There are many chemicals and pesticides that manufacturers use when creating fabrics in traditional ways. And this is why it’s a very good idea to look into alternatives.

How Can a Textile Be Eco-Friendly?

A textile is eco-friendly if you can recycle it.

• The textile is recyclable materials.

If the textile comes from recyclable materials, it’s also considered eco-friendly. That’s because it keeps certain materials out of landfills for a longer period.

• The material is biodegradable.

If the textile is easily biodegradable, it’s considered eco-friendly. That’s because it doesn’t take up space in a landfill because the materials break down into natural elements eventually.

• The manufacturing process of the textile is considered green.

If the textile was created using green manufacturing processes and doesn’t create harmful chemical byproducts, then the manufacturing process is considered eco-friendly.

• The textile follows McDonough Braungart Design Chemistry Cradle to Cradle principles.

The cradle-to-cradle design is a biomimetics approach to the design of products and systems. Additionally, tt is a holistic economic, social and industrial framework. The mission is to create systems that are both efficient and essentially waste-free. Also, consider applications in manufacturing, industrial design, buildings, urban environments, social systems, and economics.

• The fabric doesn’t hurt indoor air quality.

The finished product needs to not harm the indoor air quality by giving off a harmful chemical gas.

• The textile’s manufacturer should have the appropriate policies in place.

Plus, the manufacturer should have a company-wide sustainability policy to be considered eco-friendly.

Get to Know Upholstery Textures

Consider some upholstery textiles to check out when re-upholstering your furniture for a fresh, new look.

Organic Hemp

A Seattle-based company called O Ecotextiles focuses on green fabric. And this hemp-based fabric is 100 percent long fiber hemp and is harvested by farmers in Romania.

Abacus

Knoll Textiles manufactures Abacus upholstery. This material looks like virgin wood but is 100 percent recycled polyester. Also, this polyester is from post-consumer soda bottles and post-industrial production scraps.

Climatex

Rohner Textil makes climatex, which is entirely biodegradable. It comes from wool and renewable beech wood. Even its waste material is recyclable.

Ocean Collection Manufactured by Oliveira Textiles

This fabric is made up of hemp and organic cotton.

More Green Materials

Also, here are a few more materials to think about when it comes to reupholstering your furniture.

Wool

Wool is great because it is resistant to mold, dust mites and mildew. Also, it’s naturally flame retardant.

Natural Latex Rubber

Natural latex rubber is an excellent choice because it does not include any harmful chemical or petroleum products. Plus, it comes from para rubber trees. Also, it is resistant to mildew and mold. Also, this material repels allergy agents and dust miles. And companies use natural rubber in place of urethane foam in padding and cushions.

Natural Jute Burlap

This burlap is a study base layer for pillow-back upholstery elements.

Hemp Canvas

This canvas comes from long-staple fibers of the hemp plant. Also, these fibers are extremely durable. Use this canvas as a base layer to separate the bottom padding layer from the separating springs.

Organic Cotton, Twill or Muslin

This material is used as a ticking layer to prevent the wool fibers from working their way through the cover fabric.

Cotton Batting and Coconut Fiber/Hog Hair

And these materials are also commonly used in reupholstering furniture.

Why Go Green?

Reupholstering your furniture spruces up your living space. Also, it makes your house more green overall.

Commit to the Environment in Little Ways

It’s a wonderful way to take pride in your home and your commitment to the environment. And by using green materials, you’re also supporting companies that pride themselves in working with organic and eco-friendly materials. Also, this support helps these companies reach more people and continue to help the environment.

Have fun with your home this spring by using more eco-friendly products in your living spaces. Work with a reupholstering professional to help you find the ideal fabrics, textures, and material to go green in a beautiful way.

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