We live in a culture of immediate gratification.  We are addicted to social media sites that allow us to view events in the lives of others as soon as the happen (and in some cases, before). Many of us prefer fast-food over a home-cooked meal. So it’s only natural for the same attitude to translate to the way we decorate our homes.

We ogle over picture-perfect magazine covers and read dozens of design blogs, and we want our homes to be beautiful, and we want it right now. We watch TV design shows where hosts with big budgets walk into a store and pick whatever they want. So we go out and buy cheap furniture designed to be disposable and inexpensive textiles made of polyester or colored with toxic dyes just so we can “finish” a room. While it may accomplish the task of being “complete,” what happens in a few years when you have to do it all over again because your furniture is falling apart?

Instead, I think a better approach to decorating is to curate our homes over time. And trust me when I tell you that I can say this from experience.

Our Mistakes

When my husband and I first got married, we owned only a few pieces of hand-me-down furniture and a new (but cheap and uncomfortable) bed that family members had given us. A few years later when we could finally afford to buy new furniture, we bought as much as we could for as little money as possible. There was no IKEA in Atlanta at the time, so this involved stores like Walmart, Big Lots, Rooms to Go and no-name mattress and furniture stores in strip malls near where we lived.

While some of the furniture is solidly built and has held up (the dining table from RTG will likely last for years to come), in hindsight I really wish we had been more thoughtful in our approach. We wanted to furnish EVERY room all at once, so we did, with little thought about whether the furniture would be appropriate in the future, or even LAST to see a future.

Of all the things we purchased, we now only own the dining set and a huge sectional (somebody tell me why the heck we bought a RED sofa??!). The rest has been damaged beyond repair, given away or sold. Our home now consists of an eclectic mix of items we’ve collected over the years, much of it from thrift and consignments stores and yard sales. We’ve tripped a couple of times and fallen into the IKEA trap, but it’s definitely no longer the first place we consider when shopping for our home.

Now, when we make a purchase, we do our best to look at it thoughtfully. Here are some tips to help you curate your home and afford quality pieces that will last:

What You Can Do

Do it over time. It can be tempting to buy cheaply-made pieces to furnish your home in one fell swoop. A better approach is to buy pieces one at a time.

Carefully consider how each piece will work in your home. Will it still be useful in a few years? If not, can you repurpose it into something that will be useful? Can it serve more than one purpose? One of my favorite pieces we currently own is the console table in our living room (shown above) that also serves as a dresser for my stepsons when they are with us.

Avoid MDF like the plague. Make your best effort only to buy pieces made of solid wood, or at the very least, wood ply. While MDF is heavy (anyone who’s carried an IKEA dresser up a flight of stairs can attest to that), it’s also more likely to sag, crack and crumble. You can also refinish solid wood pieces several times, but MDF isn’t so forgiving.

Save for big purchases. If your hand-me-down sofa is working for you, at least for the moment, hang on to it. Then find a quality piece you really want, preferably handmade or crafted sustainably, and save up for it. It may take weeks, months, or even years, but the purchase will be much more satisfying when you make it. And if you’ve thought carefully about your choice, you won’t have to worry it will be “out of style” when you can finally afford it.

Be frugal, but not cheap. Just because you’re buying quality pieces, that doesn’t mean you can’t save some money at the same time. Find out if there are any unadvertised sales or discounts available. Maybe you could buy a floor sample with a few small imperfections for a reduced price. Search Craigslist to see if anyone is selling the same piece used, or a similar vintage piece that has already stood the test of time.

Buy less. Instead of buying a sofa, two chairs, two side tables, a coffee table, a console and an entertainment center, consider carefully what you really need and buy only those items. Will all of those items fit if you ever moved into a smaller space? (We’ve had this problem quite a few times) If not, consider buying only the necessities. Remember that quality is infinitely more important that quantity.

Think about where the pieces came from and how they were made. Would you feel as good about that beautiful new sleigh bed if you knew irreplaceable hundred-year-old trees were clear cut to build it? Are those curtains as pretty when you think about the children who made them for little or no pay in a sweatshop thousands of miles away? Would you want to work in a factory where you had to risk your health handling or breathing in the toxic chemicals used to make many low-cost products? Didn’t think so.

What are your thoughts?

Did you make the same mistakes I did when you furnished your first (or second, or third) place? What is your thought process now when you decorate? Can you share any more tips for furnishing your home over time?

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I’ve always coveted a modern, stainless steel fireplace. Not that traditional brick and stacked stone fireplaces aren’t beautiful. They’re just not me. So if and when I ever decide to get one, I’m happy to hear from the team over at Alternative Consumer that EcoSmart fireplaces now qualify for federal tax credits for energy efficiency. Any consumer in the U.S. who purchases (or has purchased) an EcoSmart fireplace between 1/1/2009 and 12/31/2010 can receive a tax credit of 30% of the purchase price up to $1500. Sounds like a win/win situation to me! You get a beautiful, energy-efficient, clean-burning fireplace, and you get a decent chunk of your money back. Learn more about the tax credit here.

EcoSmart makes freestanding units, built-in fireplaces and fireplace inserts that are all vent-free. This means a nonexistent or much less costly installation process, even for the built-ins, and none of them require a utility connection for fuel. Rather, they use denatured ethanol, which is an environmentally-friendly, clean-burning, renewable fuel that is derived from natural sources like sugarcane, potatoes, bananas, beetroot and wheat. And because there is no vent or flue through which to lose heat (like a chimney would), the heat stays inside the unit and heats a space much more efficiently.

Why It’s Green:

• Energy efficient
• Uses clean-burning, naturally-derived fuel

Price: $1580-11500

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Spring is a rough season for me. In addition to the annual spring cleaning (which is actually the easy part), I get the unshakable desire to change everything around me. I want to strip the beds and replace the linens with something fresh and lively and slap a new coat of paint on the walls. But because our budget and our living situation don’t warrant any major changes, I have had to be creative about finding ways to refresh our space without spending much money. A simple solution: Find an inexpensive vase, or make one from an empty glass bottle, and add flowers.

For spring, you’ll want to add some lively color or organic themes. You’d be surprised what big a difference it can make just to add splashes of color to a room. My husband and daughter planted some daisies and sunflowers a little more than a week ago, and I am eagerly anticipating the moment when I can bring fresh cut flowers into the house. Here are some picks for some affordable, spring-ready, eco-friendly vases:

1. Samba Bottle Vases from Crate & Barrel: Made from recyced glass bottles, jars and other broken glass and available in four lively colors. Price: $5.95/ea.

2. Espana Round Vase from Amazon: Handmade of 100% post-consumer recycled glass and available in four colors, including chocolate brown and aqua. Price: $19.99/ea. (aff)

3. Recycled Curved Vase from Uncommon Goods: Handmade of recycled newspaper and lined with a recycled plastic water bottle. Price: $28 (aff)

4. Milky Red Decorative Bottle Vase: Made of recycled glass. Price: $17.99 (aff)

5. Roughhewn Sandalwood Vases by Mbanda: Handmade of wood from decades old stumps so no healthy, living trees are harmed. Price: $12.95-19.95

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Lately, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about simple ways to help my readers save money, and I started by thinking about the things we’ve implemented to save energy and other resources.  One of the things we do is very simple. There are 2 light fixtures in the kitchen: a single-bulb fixture and a five-arm chandelier over the dining table.

We rarely, if ever, use the chandelier, because it takes a lot more electricity to power five chandelier bulbs than it takes to power one compact fluorescent lightbulb. So that got me thinking.  Why not just replace the chandelier with a more modern, updated fixture that requires only one bulb, preferably a CFL?

Here are some eco-friendly, single bulb options that would look great in any room:

1. White Wash Bamboo Pendant Lamp

The White Wash Bamboo Pendant Lamp is nothing if not simple. It is reminiscent of a bird cage, but without all the frills and extra features that can make them over the top. It is a subtle, modern fixture that can accomodate a CFL and would work in almost any dining room setting, even if your taste is traditional. It also can be plugged into a wall outlet, so it’s great for renters who can’t do electrical work or for homeowners who don’t want to tackle installation.

• Why It’s Green: Made of bamboo and CFL-compatible.
• Price: $129

2. Birdcage lamp

Speaking of bird cages, if you like that look and don’t have the know-how to turn a thrift store find into your new favorite fixture, this ceiling lamp from Viva Terra should take care of your fix. The details on this fixture are meant to emulate a pagoda. If you like Asian design but don’t want it in your face, this is a subtle way to incorporate Asian styling without overdoing it. This is also a plugin fixture for those of us who are not electrically inclined.

• Why It’s Green: CFL-compatible. I am unsure what wood the birdcage is made of, but if it is like most of Viva Terra’s other products, it is sustainably made.
• Price: $139 (aff)

3. Liba Recycled Light Bulb Designer Pendant

You’re probably looking at the photo above trying to figure out if your eyes are deceiving you. They aren’t. This chandelier is made of recycled light bulbs. The completed pendant looks like a glass sea urchin, but in a really good way. It is available in either clear, frosted, silver capped or colored bulbs. I personally like the look of the frosted bulbs. And in case you’re wondering, it only takes one CFL to light this baby up.

• Why It’s Green: Made of recycled light bulbs and CFL-compatible.
• Price: $199

If you normally use the chandelier in your dining room, this simple shift will save you some money every month. Yes, you’re out the cost of a new fixture, but if you can find a used pendant or an Energy Star model on sale, that cost can be minimal. And if you’re updating anyway (which the brass-finish chandelier in the kitchen desperately needs), think of the energy savings as an added bonus. This strategy also works in other rooms. For example, the ceiling fan in the living room has an attached three-bulb fixture — which we also rarely use.

Do you have any other tips for making your home beautiful and energy-efficient at the same time? Leave your ideas in the comments below!

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As the green culture grows and becomes more desirable, more retailers and manufacturers are adding eco-friendly products to their offerings. However, there are a few companies that stand out from the crowd — some because they started with a green foundation, and others because they offer sustainable products with the same zest and prominence as their more traditional offerings. Here are my picks for the top 10 online retailers for eco-friendly home decor:

1. VIVATERRA — There is no beating VivaTerra when it comes to green products. From furniture and bedding to sculptures, tableware and trinkets, you could furnish much of your house by shopping on their website. Their commitment to sustainability is in everything they do, from planting trees and building wind generators to printing their catalog on recycled paper. And then, of course, are their products. Nearly everything is made of recycled, sustainable, organic, reclaimed, Fair Trade or renewable resources. PHOTO: Helix Stool | $159-289 | Carved from sustainable blond mango wood (aff)

2. GAIAM — Although their offerings extend beyond home decor to clothing, yoga products and more, their selection of housewares is large enough to make it one of my favorite resources. There is a reason Gaiam is one of ten businesses nominated for Co-Op America’s Green Business of the Year. Gaiam sells everything from organic bedding to solar powered lighting. Though many of the products are more practical than they are stylish, there is enough style to satisfy a savvy decorator. PHOTO: Deluxe Organic Flannel Bedding | $44-100 | Made of 100% organic cotton and finished without harsh chemical softeners or chlorine (aff)

3. VIVAVI — There is no way I could create a list about eco-friendly home decorating without mentioning this green giant. Founded by the “Lazy Environmentalist” himself, Josh Dorfman, Vivavi is the epitome of eco-luxury. You will regularly find products in the 4- and 5-figure range, but they are all made sustainably and built to last a lifetime — or a few lifetimes, really. If you’ve got fairly deep pockets, you can furnish your entire home without leaving the site. PHOTO: Tetrad Bamboo Shelf | $3460 | Made of bamboo with an herbal oil finish and low-VOC adhesives (aff)

4. 2MODERN.com — I loved this site long before I really understood what “green” meant, because it truly lives up to its name. Their product offerings are perfect for the modern home and for anyone who loves contemporary style. But what’s even better is their tremendous selection of eco-friendly products, which is quite nearly as large as the number of non-green products. And what you may have lacked in style at Gaiam will easily be made up at 2Modern. This site was a tusted resource for my Green Rooms in a Box series. PHOTO: Hive Wine Rack by Boom | $35 | Made of suistainably-harvested wood with water-based lacquers

5. Design Public — This is another site that I fell in love with for its modern aesthetic long before I found its collection of sustainable products. From furniture to kids’ products and more, you’ll find that green is much more than just a color here. It’s a very stylish, very attainable way of life. Sure, some of the products are pricey, but you know what they say: you get what you pay for. And in this case, what you’re paying for is a cleaner, greener future — not to mention a safer home. PHOTO: Suzanne Wallpaper by Graham & Brown | $75 | 50% of this wallpaper is sourced from recycled material or from FSC-certified sources (aff)

6. Design Within Reach — Though the green products can be a bit harder to find because of the product descriptions. The search feature makes things a little easier, though not by much. Once you do find the green products however, they are worth the wait. The key word in “Design Within Reach” is “design.” Everything I have ever found at the site has been stunning and unique, though definitely on the pricey end. PHOTO: Nine-0 Stacking Barstool by Emeco | $425 | Made of 80% recycled aluminum, has an estimated lifespan of 150 years and contributes to LEED credit

7. Uncommon Goods — This name is as much a brand as it is a description. Uncommon Goods is an online store that features all manner of unique and functional products, many of which are eco-friendly. You’ll find art and mirrors made from recycled license plates and billboards, and organic cotton towels and pillows. It’s a great place to browse, even if you’re not buying. It has given me crafty ideas of recycling projects on more than one occassion, though I have yet to complete any of them. PHOTO: Recycled Wine Barrel Side Cabinet | $850 | Handmade from a recycled wine barrel

8. Etsy.com — If you don’t know what etsy is, you must not have been reading this site for very long. Thousands of artisans use etsy to peddle their wares to customers who can appreciate the time that goes into making products by hand. This is inherently more eco-friendly and resource efficient than mass-produced items that tend to waste resources and energy. Etsy also has its fair share of recycled, upcycled, sustainable and organic products. In fact, you can find many of them at EcoEtsy.com. PHOTO: Forest Horse Original Eco Art by Tanis Alexis | $46 | Made with water-based pigments, inks, rice glue and recycled paper pasted onto reclaimed/salvaged maple wood

9. GreenCulture — This is the parent company of a variety of eco-stores, from Eco-Furniture.com to Eco-Lights.com and EcoHousewares.com, all of which you can reach from the GreenCulture home page. Based on the names of the sites under its umbrella, you can tell what is sold at each. GreenCulture tells you the sustainable qualities of each product on its decription page. Some of it isn’t as sustainable as I would like, and the search feature isn’t very useful. But if you’re willing to take the time to look, you can find some great items. PHOTO: Soho Dark Cherry Armoire | $1347.50 | Made of sustainably harvested hardwoods

10. Craigslist — I know what you’re thinking…Craigslist isn’t a store. But it is one of the best resources for finding used, local furniture. One of the greenest shopping decisions you can ever make is to buy furniture that is in its second life. And because Craigslist has sections for every state and pretty much every major city in the U.S., as well as some smaller towns, if you’re willing to look, you can really find some used gems. PHOTO: Ikea Malm Bed & Queen Mattress | $175 | Used

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Today, Green Your Decor has a guest post from a woman who I consider to be one of my eco-design heroes (or heroines), Kelly LaPlante.  She is a leading eco-designer who has been demonstrating for nearly 10 years that “green” can be the rule, rather than the exception.  Her showroom in Venice Beach, CA features vintage, antique and sustainable-new furnishings including LaPlante’s line of soy candles and her new studio collection, jak. She is currently appearing as an expert on TV shows including Discovery Home Channel’s “Greenovate” and Sundance Channel’s “Big Ideas for a Small Planet.” LaPlante’s first book, écologique, was released on July 1st to amazing reviews, and a giveaway of the book is included below, so keep reading!

1. If you haven’t already, sign up for Green Your Decor email newsletter, sign up for the Green Your Decor newsletter by Monday, August 18, 2008. You must verify your email subscription to be eligible. After you sign up, FeedBurner will send you a verification email. Please do not ignore it — your entry will be invalid if you do not verify. All current subscribers are eligible to win.
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3. Leave a comment about what you’re doing, or would like to do, in your home, to incorporate sustainable style.  Comments like “I’d love to win this,” “Great giveaway” or “Pick me! Pick me!” will be deleted. Please stick to the topic.
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A few weeks ago, I offered a simple, eco-chic decorating tip: Use Vintage Furniture. As it turns out, there are lots of other home decor products that have stood the test of time and can be restored and/or repurposed to fit right in with our modern lifestyles.  And this Sixties Style Restored Phone from Uncommon Goods is a perfect example. I’ll start with the disclaimer that it is sold out, but I wanted to feature it simply for inspiration.

It is a relic straight from the days when Kennedy was president — in other words, well before my time. It is an actual Siemens telephone model from the 1960s that has been restored by hand. Essentially, the shell of the phone is all original, but the microphone and other internal parts take advantage of more sophisticated modern technology. And the chic baby blue color makes it a great fit for a bedroom decorated in vintage Hollywood glam style, a whimsical teen room or an eclectic office.

My mother actually still owns one of these old-school rotary style phones. This makes it very tempting to find someone to restore it. I don’t know about you, but if I can make my phone an integral part of my decor instead of blending into the background, I’d like to jump at the chance.  If you’re willing to do the legwork to find one of these relics at a local antique shop or yard sale, here’s your chance to do the same.

Why It’s Green:

• Restoring vintage objects reduces the demand for and the need to manufacture new products

Price: Whatever it costs you to find your own phone to restore.

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As the concept of “going green” gets bigger and bigger, there will be lots of skeptics who will argue that individual changes won’t make a difference, and that this is all just a fad that will pass in time. Well, I found a great tool to help all of us determine the impact of all the changes we have made in our homes. 

The How Green is Your Home calculator from Low Impact Living takes into account a variety of factors, including the size and type of your home (single family, apartment, etc.), the size of the lot your home is on, the number of people in your household, the age of your appliances and how often you use them and more.  

It doesn’t go as far as asking whether you have Energy Star appliances or have used eco-friendly materials in the building and furnishing of your home, so it’s not foolproof or completely accurate. But it does give us an idea how all the little things we may not think of impact our environmental footprints.

It also makes suggestions for reducing your impact, like installing low-flow showerheads and compact flourescent light bulbs. Some of these suggestions are more extensive than others, but they are very comprehensive. You also have the option of saving your score and list so that you can check off the suggestions as they are completed.

Complete energy dependence is what I believe every home, including my own, should strive towards. This calculator is just one tool to help us get there.

© 2008-2011 Green Your Decor. Do not republish any items from this feed without permission.

I have to thank MarthaStewart.com for this one and for the photo shown above. This is a simple DIY project that can give your old shirts new life. It is also a reminder that we don’t have to buy green to go green. The ultimate idea is to reduce consumption, either directly, by reusing your own items, or indirectly, bu buying products from manufacturers who reduce consumption on their end.

Now, onto the project:

Many of us have old cotton button-down shirts that we don’t like anymore, that have gotten too small, are outdated or that we want to get rid of for one reason or another. Instead of tossing them in the trash or giving them away, bring them back to life at the dinner table or the sink. Turn them into cloth napkins or dishcloths and reduce your need for paper napkins or disposable dishcloths. Cotton T-shirts also work well as dish cloths or cleaning cloths.

• Step 1: Wash the shirts well and cut the fabric into uniformly sized pieces, about 12 inches square.
• Step 2: Leave the edges frayed for an organic look or sew or iron in a hem for a cleaner look
• Step 3: If you really like that clean look, give them a quick iron and voila! Brand new napkins!

Cost: Zero, zip, zilch, nada (especially if you wash the shirts by hand instead of in the washing machine)

If you have a shirt that you particularly love, you will get to enjoy the nostalgia of using it at the dinner table. Have fun with this one, and feel free to submit pics of your handmade napkins in the comments. I will post some of the best photos in the coming weeks.

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Up until now, I have been searching the Web for stylish, eco-friendly decor items that I think are beautiful functional and good for the Earth. What I want to know, however, is what would you like to see on Green Your Decor?

I try to be as diverse as possible in the function of the products shown, but your ideas would be helpful. Maybe there is an eco-friendly product you are looking for that you haven’t been able to find. It might be wallpaper, curtains, tile, rugs, bedding, wall art…or something I haven’t thought of yet. I may be able to tap some of my resources to help you.

So today’s question is: What would you like to see on Green Your Decor?

Put your request in the comments on this post, and I will try to accomodate as many of them as I can over the next few days.

Happy decorating!

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If you have always dreamed of having a home that produces energy instead of consuming it, with eco-friendly features at every turn, you will be happy to know that many companies are creating new products to help you do so every day. But if the multitude of choices has left you feeling a bit overwhelmed, Green Remodeling: Changing the World One Room at a Time by David R. Johnston and Kim Master is here to help.

It is not a how-to manual, but it will serve as an in-depth guide on building construction. The book will clue you in on the items and areas of your home that suck up energy, like old refrigerators and products like vinyl siding whose manufacturing releases dioxins. It also provides a bunch of healthy alternatives. One chapter also breaks down remodeling from room to room, including checklists for every nook and cranny.

Price: $19.77

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One great way to ensure that your home decorating is green and environmentally friendly is very simple: use vintage furniture. This tip was inspired in part by the Low Impact Living blog.

Keep in mind that “vintage” doesn’t have to mean it came from the 1950′s era. It can be as simple as shopping yard sales or asking your mother for your favorite chair from her living room when she’s ready to get rid of it.

There are numerous groups and organizations on and off the web that are dedicated to recycling and reusing, or at the very least provide a place where people can exchange items instead of sending them to the landfill. For example:

• Freecycle: This network allows people to recycle their unwanted items by giving them away as freebies. Their mission is to be a “Network to promote waste reduction and help save landscape from being taken over by landfills.”
• CraigsList: Need a couch? A mirror? Post your request on CraigsList and see what happens. Better yet, search the yard sale and other listings to see if your desired treasure is already available.

Offline, you can always patronize your local Salvation Army and Goodwill stores, and many other local consignment and vintage furniture stores. Maybe the piece you find will be made of non-recyclable material. But wouldn’t you prefer to have it end up in your living room than in the landfill?

Something to think about…

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