A Beginner's Guide to Decorating Sustainably
Making more sustainable choices to make your life greener is a lofty goal and it won’t happen overnight. If you’re thinking about how to make your lifestyle more sustainable, looking at how your home is decorated can be a great place to start. If you’re not sure where to start with making your home décor better for the planet, this quick guide will give you all the tips you need to begin your sustainable decorating journey!
Take it One Step at a Time
One of the most overwhelming things about making a big lifestyle change like becoming more environmentally conscious is that it can feel like you’re never going fast enough. When you’re trying to make a more sustainable environment in your home, the first thing to remember is that change doesn’t happen overnight.
It can be tempting to change everything at once, but not only will it cause a serious dent in your wallet, but it will also be exhausting. Sustainability comes from minor changes over time, not throwing everything away and replacing it all at once. One of the core principles of sustainability is using high quality materials that have a low impact in the environment and last a long time, so you don’t have to constantly replace them. Instead of regularly redecorating an entire room, it can be more sustainable to invest in a few higher quality, timeless pieces that don’t rely on the current trends to be stylish.
Focus on What You Can Control
Unless you’re sourcing and making all of your home décor yourself (which if you are, color us impressed!) there will always be somethings that you can’t control. There is no way to be the perfect sustainable shopper, so don’t feel bad about working with what’s available to you. You may be limited by your budget, your taste, the amount of space you have to work with, etc. That doesn’t mean you can’t make a few small changes that help the environment. If you’re working with a limited budget, try shopping second hand. If you have a small space, try cutting down on the number of décor items, but make the ones you have high-quality.
Learn What to Look For
One of the toughest things about shopping sustainably is knowing how to spot “green-washing” campaigns. This is when a company uses advertising gimmicks and buzzwords to appear more sustainable than they really are. While these campaigns can be convincing, there are some strategies you can use to see through them. First, look at the materials they use to make their products. Fabrics like hemp and mud-cloth have a lower carbon-footprint than something like polyester. Second, look at how transparent the company is being about its manufacturing processes and material sourcing. Companies that capitalize on green washing will often hide where and how their products are made.
At Urban Re-Leaf Home, all of our textiles are hand-selected for their beauty, sustainability, and uniqueness. We believe in making eco-friendly home décor accessible to everyone, whether you’re a sustainability pro, or just beginning your journey into eco-conscious design.