"The Distinctive Life" presented by the Distinctive Collection

INTERIOR DESIGN

GREEN INTERIORS Implementing sustainable practices in the way you decorate your home can impact your carbon footprint and keep excess pollution out of our air, water and landfills. Plus, turning toward “green” design can improve your overall health and well-being. The primary focus on eco-friendly design at home strives to improve indoor air quality and reduce the impact that major purchase can have on the environment. And by starting at home, environmentally-friendly interior design sets a positive precedent, expanding out to the larger world. Consider the following areas of your home when you start your eco-friendly interior re-design to improve the air quality inside your home and your piece of the Earth outside it. Solid wood furniture, like walnut, teak, oak or maple, will last longer and be more durable, ensuring that it will last longer in your home. Additionally, look for sustainable hardwoods that rely on traditional building and joinery methods, think tongue-and-groove-joints, rather than glues. The chemicals in adhesives can off gas VOCs, or volatile organic compounds, into the air, which affects the air quality in your home. Traditional Home recommends looking for antiques. “These pieces are the ultimate in being ‘green’” because they were created from old growth forests without modern glues or chemicals for staining. Additionally, antiques can be an eye-catching addition to any room, even the most contemporary, and make that home feel unique. LONG-LASTING FURNITURE

AVOID CHEMICALS IN UPHOLSTERY AND TEXTILES Like the glues and stains on modern furniture, fabrics can also off-gas potentially harmful irritants into the air. Consider organic materials when recovering furniture or selecting curtains. The flame retardants in many upholstery fabrics include formaldehyde, polyurethane, doxin and brominated flame retardants. These unnecessary additives can be harsh on sensitive eyes and lungs. Select organic cottons, wools or silks that are labeled organic to avoid the chemicals and side effects. Consider organic, also, when you shop for a rug for your home. Synthetic rugs are often made of nylon, acetate or polyester, which are all words for plastics. If your rug ends up in a landfill, and wall-to-wall carpeting often does after it has run its course, then those materials don’t biodegrade, creating more waste. Wall paints are another carrier of VOCs. When you smell paint after it has been applied, you are experiencing the off gassing of the paint’s chemicals. But even when that fresh-paint smell disappears, off gassing may still occur. Look for paint labels that read “low odor” or “low VOC.” Natural, water-based paints will help to eliminate the chemicals that affect your interior environment, and you can still select any color you’d like to paint your walls. WATER-BASED PAINT IS BEST

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