Eco-friendly products — 14 sustainable must-haves for a planet-friendly home
Sustainable living is easy with these eco-friendly products. For anywhere from your kitchen to your bedroom, here's how to ethically decorate your home
If you are hoping to change your habits and become more eco-conscious in 2022, then we suggest starting at home. Here, you can make a sustainable start by investing in some eco-friendly products to minimize your single-use plastic waste — and to prevent unnecessary items from going to the garbage site.
We're all for upcycling and thrifting at Livingetc, but unfortunately this isn't always possible. So, with this in mind we've been doing some extensive research to find the top eco-friendly products online, for you to peruse — and hopefully buy — to ensure that your home is as planet-friendly as it can be. We're not talking eco-friendly cleaning products (though it's a great place to start if you're not already there), but think more about eco-friendly towels, sustainable dinnerware and glassware, plus home decor including recyclable rugs and even bamboo-filled comforters. In short: there's plenty of eco alternatives out there so that you needn't buy anything plastic or chemical-filled again.
With sustainable living at an all time high, now's the time to invest in some eco-friendly home buys for a planet-friendly year. Go beyond just products and take a deeper dive into sustainable architecture if you are searching for more ways to creating an energy-saving home that's fit for the future.
The best eco-friendly products that you need for your home in 2022
Livingetc knows design.
1. Buy these eco-friendly towels for your bathroom
These gorgeous towels are made from a breathable, lightweight 100% organic bamboo lyocell fabric, and not only that, but the bamboo used is sourced from FSC-certified forests offer impressive moisture retention, whilst managing to stay dry after several uses, and let's be honest: they look super luxurious. Choose from 3 sizes of towels including a sheet, plus a face washer is available to buy, too. There are 5 sumptuous colors to take your pick from, including a lovely Rose and a subtle Sage color. The cherry on top? Made Trade and Ettitude are both women-owned businesses, plus Ettitude is a member of 1% for the Planet.
2. Switch to an eco friendly pillow
Should your pillow need replacing soon, then this one from Boll & Branch is the ultimate eco-conscious pick. It feels like down, it works like down but it's not down — it's an allergy-safe alternative, that's wrapped in an organic cotton cover for your comfort. Not only will the environment thank you for this purchase, but your neck will, too. You can choose your pillow firmness from soft to medium and firm, and there's even the option to add a pillow protector for $35, to keep your new pillow in the best condition, night after night.
3. These eco plates are a kitchen necessity
Finding eco-friendly dinnerware can be hard, but thanks to Instagram-sensation Our Place, there are plenty of sustainable options on the market. For instance, their Main Plates are made totally from recycled and virgin porcelain ceramic. They're even microwave and dishwasher safe, too, plus they stack for ease of storing. Each plate is hand-painted with a matte base and a glossy top finish. The best part? They're scratch and chip-resistant to prevent you from needing to replace them every year or so. Oh, and they come in three colorways and as a dinnerware set of 4 or 6 plates. Bowls and side plates are available, too.
4. These recycled glasses are fab for eco entertaining
Should your glassware need replacing, or if you need to buy even more to keep up with your entertaining habits, then these are an awesome eco-conscious buy. Choose from two options — aqua glass mouth-blown from recycled glass, or amber glass made from recycled beer bottles. They are all handcrafted in Bogotá, Colombia, and they are all dishwasher-safe for convenience. Magda Made is a female-owned business and 4 glasses come included in one set.
5. Invest in an eco-friendly mattress for a sustainable sleep
Rated one of our best mattresses to buy this year, the Avocado brand is synonymous with being eco-friendly. In fact, this is the most affordable certified organic mattress made in America. With this mattress comes a 100-night sleep trial and a 10-year warranty, and best of all: it's MADE SAFE® Certified. What makes it so eco-friendly? Two things: the process in which it's made, and the materials that are used to make the mattress. From 100% GOTS certified organic wool to 100% GOLS certified Dunlop latex, this mattress is even constructed with coils that are made from recyclable steel. In terms of the process, Avocado has its own supply of springs, ethical wool, and sustainable latex, meaning that your mattress goes from farm to bedroom, cutting out the middle man. This is how their prices are also so reasonable. Available in all sizes from a Twin to a California King, this mattress is made for anyone who prefers their mattress to be at a medium on the firmness scale.
6. Switch to biodegradeable cotton swabs in your bathroom
A smaller eco-switch that can make all of the difference, buying bamboo cotton swabs is a positive step towards a sustainable bathroom. Regular cotton swabs are made from plastic and they're not recyclable, in fact, they often end up in the ocean, harming aquatic life. These ones, however, are plastic-free and 100% biodegradable, and they arrive in FSC-certified packaging. A total of 500 swabs comes included in one pack.
7. Replace your old couch with an eco-friendly sofa
Sofa shopping? If yours is in need of an update, and you are searching for a brand with an ethical ethos, then you might want to browse Sabai Design. Specifically: The Essential Sectional sofa. With an FSC-certified wooden frame, this sofa is made using recycled and upcycled fibers and this fabric is stain-resistant, too. Their sofas are padded for comfort with CertiPUR-US certified high resiliency foam. They're made to order with a lead time of around 5 weeks, and you can select a fabric from recycled velvet to upcycled polyester. The leg color choice is also yours. Aptly named the sectional sofa for a reason, its chaise can be positioned on either side to adapt to any living area. This sofa is designed to reduce furniture waste, therefore you can replace or upgrade parts when needed with Sabai's Repair Don't Replace program. Buy once and thank us forever. Oh, and all packaging is plastic-free.
You can browse more of the best couches in our guide, should you be interested in more designs.
8. Invest in organic bedding for the planet and for your sleep
Woven in Turkey, these organic cotton sheets are pure luxury. Loomed from textured, fully traceable cotton, we think they are worth every cent. Available in four luxury colors to suit your bedroom decor, they are textured and made from 4 layers, although they are nice and breathable so great for the summertime. Machine wash it on cold and tumble dry on low and select from a standard or king set. The Citizenry are proud to preserve artisan craft by paying wages that average 2 times the fair trade requirement.
9. Buy this recyclable, eco-friendly rug for cozy yet conscious update
Switch up your interiors with help from a new rug — and add a slice of cozy to your bedroom, living room or even the nursery. This rug in particular caught our eye as it's made from reycycled anf upcycled threads, that otherwise would've ended up in a garbage site. With a unique design, this rug is embedded with a zig zag pattern and it's perfectly fit to add softness to hard floors, whether that be in an entryway or your home office. The best part? When this rug gets to the end of its life, Goldune can dispose of, recycle or upcycle this item for you as part of their circularity program.
10. Speed up drying time with help from these wool dryer balls
A nifty trick to save on energy and speed up drying time, these wool balls are made from 100% pure New Zealand wool, meaning that they are organic, chemical-free, fragrance-free, and hypoallergenic. Each ball is reusable for up to 1,000 (and perhaps even more) loads, so you needn't replace them every few months. These wool dryer balls are needle felted by hand in Nepal, by women of underprivileged communities — in ethical working conditions that offer fair wages and environmental care.
11. Drape a recycled cashmere throw over your sofa
Created from recycled cashmere, this soft throw is the perfect eco addition to your sofa or bed, and it's unbelieveably warm. Adorned with friged edges and available in your choice of off-white or beige, it might be dry clean only but rest assured it'll make a luxurious statement in your home. It's 130cm by 180cm in size and one thing's definitely for sure: it will last for years of use, whether for decoration or wrapping yourself in come wintertime.
12. What about a hydroplanter for apartment growing?
Check out this smart planter system that's great for apartment living since it allows you to grow herbs from your windowsill. Crafted from bamboo and brilliant for flowers, herbs and even fruit and veg to thrive inside, this planter has built-in irrigation tubes for watering your crops, not to mention it'll look the part in your kitchen, too. Who says you can't enjoy homegrown food if you don't have a backyard? Not us. An app will help you care for your herbs or flowers, whilst it comes with a Wi-Fi plug for easy controling.
13. Bin the plastic and buy this cotton shower curtain
Wave goodbye to your plastic shower curtain that's forever going moldy and looks cheap, and hello to this waffle curtain from Boll & Branch. It looks luxurious and feels it, thanks to the fact it's made from organic cotton, and it comes in two color options. It's oversized and extra long to fit all bath tubs, and it's lightweight to make it fast drying.
14. A bamboo comforter that's PETA-approved
This PETA-approved comforter is a great down alternative since it's filled with bamboo fibers and wrapped in a 100% plant-based CleanBamboo™ fabric shell. It's also hypoallergenic and chemical-free with two weights available based on the season outside, from summer to winter. Why bamboo? This fabric saves water in the process of creation, as it requires 500x less water plus it requires 52% less CO2 emissions. The best part? You'll get a 30-night free trial just in case it's not the one for you (we're sure it will be).
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Annie is Livingetc's Deputy Ecommerce Editor, and with a penchant for shopping and four years of ecommerce experience in her cart, she's more than equipped to advise when it comes to exactly the home decor you need to buy for your home. With a particular love of home fragrance, she always ensures her interiors emanate a luxurious scent to match her bijou residence. Annie and her team work to provide you with the best in-class content, whether you are searching for fluffy towels for your bathroom, clever drawer organizers for your kitchen or even a new dinnerware set for when guests come to dine. Whatever the season — or the latest trend — Annie and her team work to cover events for Livingetc, whether that be holidays or sale events, spanning Mother's Day to Black Friday.
Annie's knowledge has been sprawled across several homes websites, including Real Homes, Ideal Home, Homes & Gardens and Gardeningetc. She has also injected her ecommerce skills into the titles of Woman & Home and Country & Townhouse.
Annie lives in South East London in a sizeable two-bed apartment with her husband-to-be and her Pug called Doug. Annie's space, though surprisingly substantial, lacks storage space meaning that she's always on the lookout for things to buy to maximize space at home. She's currently redecorating this space whilst on a budget, and loves discovering a dupe or DIYing something to look triple its price tag. Next on her list of things to do at home are DIY crittal-style doors leading from her living room to her hallway.
You can follow Annie's home Instagram account at @athome.withannie.
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