Eco Friendly Home Furniture Design Ideas

Heating costs can be a major problem for a variety of people in the winter. With the rising prices of gasoline and other methods of heating, it is important to understand how to maximize the heating efficiency of your home. There are many different methods available that you should consider and implement whenever possible.

* Install Energy Efficient Windows

Energy efficient windows are designed to absorb as much energy and heat as possible while letting out as little as possible. They are a little more expensive than normal windows but can trap heat in your home much more efficiently. Install these throughout your home to lower your heating bill every month.

* Use Green Insulation

Green insulation is designed to be as energy efficient and ecologically safe as possible. Remove the less efficient and wasteful insulation in your home and install this green installation. It will safely trap heat and energy between your walls without being wasteful. The installation costs will be offset by the money you save in your heating bill every month.

* South Facing Exposure

South facing exposure is the best way to absorb a lot of heat and energy into your home. This is because the south is the area that receives the most sun and heat in your home. Try to situate as many windows and rooms to the south as possible. If you can afford it, place solar panels here too. Use these solar panels to create heat in your home in an efficient and safe manner.

* Tree Insulation

Planting trees around your home is another efficient and beautiful way to keep heat in your home. Trees help blocks wind from blowing against your house. Blowing wind can cause your home to cool down and lose heat much more quickly. Trees also create a natural insulation that traps escaping heat and keeps it around your home.

* Change Thermostat Position

Thermostats help regulate the heat in your home but are inefficient in that they will activate based on their temperature, not the temperature of the rest of the home. This is why it is important to locate your thermostat in a position that isn’t too cold or warm. Storing it near a heater will cause it to warm up a lot quicker and turn off much more quickly.

Many of these methods require expensive installation costs. However, these methods are permanent and will keep your home warm for years.

Water is a limited resource that must be conserved as much as possible. There are many different ways that you can lower the water usage in your home. Consider all of these tips before implementing any of them. It may be worth your time and money to implement all of these tips as they may end up saving you hundreds of dollars.

* Check for Drips and Leaks

Leaks in pipes and drips in the faucet can add up to an incredible amount of water waste. Every faucet or pipe that even drips lightly every few seconds can lose up to 20 gallons of water per day. Even larger leaks can cause hundreds of gallons of water of waste. Fix these leaks yourself or call a plumber to make sure your leaks and drips are stopped.

* Never Use Toilet as Wastebasket

Many people throw used tissues, food items or even cigarette butts into the toilet. They then flush these items down the toilet, wasting five to seven gallons of water with each flush. This is not only wasteful but it can actually cause the toilet to clog, wasting even more water. Avoid this silly practice to save a lot of water every day.

* Limit Shower Length

A long, relaxing shower may feel great but gallons of water are going down the drain with each minute you shower. Try to shower for only 10 to 15 minutes at the most. Enforce this rule in your home with your family and house mates. This may be difficult for some people but try to keep them focused on saving water. At the very least, you can do it yourself if they won’t. Also, look into water-saving faucets and shower heads.

* Install Efficient Faucets

Efficient faucets are designed to be as efficient as possible, letting out only the water you truly need. Buying and installing these faucets is a simple way to regulate your water use. Install them on every sink in your home to make sure people that aren’t committed to saving water do so every time they use a sink.

* Rain Water Collection

One underrated way to save water is to start a rain water collection. These collections take the natural water from rain storms and collect it into a large bin. Boil this water for a few moments to eliminate any potential viruses or bacteria and use it for cooking, bathing, drinking and any other reason you may use water.

Building new homes is always going to be a relatively carbon- and energy-heavy endeavor. One of the most important steps in building a new home with an eco-friendly plan in mind, is if you want to have hardwood flooring, and next, what eco-friendly hardwood flooring is the best. These are very important questions to keep in mind as you plan your next home or remodeling event.

One of the absolute best options is reclaimed hardwood flooring. This is reducing, reusing, and recycling at its best. Reclaimed flooring can come from a vast array of sources. Every day, wooden buildings and structures are dismantled across the country. Common reclaimed wood tree species are Oak, White Pine, Hickory, Yellow Pine, and Maple. Reclaimed wood floors often impart a much greater character than new wood floors. This is because reclaimed wood is often aged, or marked with imperfections or marks that give clues to its previous life.

Reclaimed wood, being older and from a different time, can also actually turn out to be very highly sought after and hard to find types of wood like tight grained oak or thick mahogany. However, one should never assume that reclaimed wood is in any way inferior to virgin wood. When reclaimed, companies go over the wood to ensure that it is safe and attractive enough to use as a floor. It then goes through a process that removes previous years of finish and dirt before being refinished, making it perfect for use as a floor.

Green hardwood flooring is an issue that has risen to the forefront of home design. Making sure that the floor you have in your home is environmentally sound is not as hard as it used to be. There are many certified green woods out there. Cork flooring has become very popular as it is an affordable and aesthetically pleasing alternative to hardwoods. However, nothing can beat hardwoods durability and characteristic look.

It is well known now that tropical hardwoods are to be avoided as they are often harvested illegally or from sensitive places whose removal means the destruction of habitat and displacement of endangered species. Here in the United States, some viable and green alternatives are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council as sustainably managed and harvested.

Traditionally, wallpaper is removed using harsh chemicals that are as toxic to your lungs as they are to the planet. Now, as more people are making the choice to use healthier products and materials, they want to know how to do home repairs and improvements – all without causing harm to the Earth.

The great thing about this method, is that you probably have all the materials you need to remove wallpaper in your cupboards already! You’ll need: a basic spray bottle, either white or apple cider vinegar, some water, and if you have it, and iron with the steam function.

First, you’ll want to make your removal solution. It’s so easy! Just combine 3 parts vinegar and one part water inside the spray bottle and give it a good shake! Complete. Then, you want to spray the section off wallpaper until it is soaked, letting it absorb for a few minutes until its good and saturated.

Now the fun part! You can start peeling the wallpaper from the top in a horizontal strips – working slowly so you don’t leave tears along the way. If the wallpaper is stubborn, you might need to repeat the spraying as you go along, targeting problem areas. For super resistant wallpaper – try holding the iron close to (but not touching!) the wallpaper and giving at a few shots of steam.

This method may take slightly longer, but you’ll have done the right, green thing, and your respiratory system will thank you!

If anyone knows color – its Pantone. Every year, the Pantone Color Institute announces the color for the upcoming year based on trend indicators related everything from fashion to art, music to film and of course, interior office and home design.

Last year, the color was Honeysuckle Rose – a bright and fun pink that managed to show up on the runway and in the homes of millions of people wanting to add a splash of color to their room. This vibrant and engaging reddish orange shade calls to mind deep citrus saturation and summer beach parties.

Executive director of the Pantone Color Institute, Leatrice Eiseman explains the allure of Tangerine Tango.

“Sophisticated but at the same time dramatic and seductive, Tangerine Tango is an orange with a lot of depth to it. Reminiscent of the radiant shadings of a sunset, Tangerine Tango marries the vivaciousness and adrenaline rush of red with the friendliness and warmth of yellow, to form a high-visibility, magnetic hue that emanates heat and energy.”

It’s that time again – New Years Resolution time! Many of the classic promises to yourself (losing weight, saving money, learning a new skill) make everyone’s list, but this year we challenge you to make some green resolutions! Not only will you benefit from some sustainable choices – the planet will too!

1. Start being more mindful of leaving lights on and appliances and chargers plugged in. This is energy waste, and by getting the whole family involved (make it a home challenge, for example – someone leaves a light on? they have to do the dishes that night!) you can make lifelong habits happen. Those appliances and cell phone chargers that aren’t currently charging anything are using a lot of power of the course of the year – so unplug ‘em!

2. Re-do the insulation and duct work in your home. A lot of heat and energy escape from aging homes, and now you can get eco-friendly insulation to replace fiberglass insulation that most homes use.

3. Try to eat more locally! This can be done by sourcing out what food grows within 100 miles of your home. Try and get to 75% of your total groceries locally, and you will improve the economy, the environment and your family’s health and well-being.

4. Consider eating vegetarian one day a week. A new movement called Meatless Mondays suggest using the first day of the week to prepare non-meat meals for your household. If everyone in the US had one meat-free day each week, it would reduce carbon emissions equal to taking 8 million cars off the road.

5. Christmas has just past, but for next year, switch to energy-efficient lights and a real Christmas tree garnered from a sustainable tree grower. Check out our post on having an eco-friendly Holiday season!

6. Commit to not buying bottled water. This cannot be overstated. Plastic water bottles are a huge dirge on our planet, and even though millions of people have stopped buying them, millions continue to do so. Plus, bottled water isn’t better than tap water.

7. Stock up on some good, reusable canvas grocery bags. Make 2012 the year you stop using plastic bags completely. Those plastic grocery bags, even if you use them again, are way too prevalent, and they are choking our planet with their sheer numbers.

8. Make the environment something that is considered and discussed regularly in your home, especially if you have kids. Teach them about the importance of recycling, and the facts about carbon emissions and clean water. Kids should be aware of just how precious and rare having clean water is. Our kids are the next in charge of this planet, and we want to make sure they have incredible respect for the fragile planet we call home.

Yes, I’m afraid it’s that time again. Time to start thinking about packing up all of your wonderful holiday decorations and colorful Christmas tree ornaments. And, if you got a real tree this year, you might be wondering what to do with it! Perhaps you have a larger property, so you can toss it in a chipper or chop it up and use it for mulch or firewood. A standard fir tree can yield more than 13 pounds of firewood.

If you have a pond in the backyard, or if you live on a lakefront, throwing in your tree actually is beneficial as it gives shelter and nutrients to the water creatures. Many towns and communities have drop-off locations near bodies of water for this purpose.

If you are having your tree collected by the city – inquire about what exactly happens to the trees when they are removed. Often the trees are just taken to a landfill and dumped with the rest of the unrecycled trash.

There are, especially around larger cities and towns, companies that will come and pick up your tree for a small fee, and will then properly recycled it.

Most homeowners today are well aware of the importance of environmental issues in their home. You may already be recycling and using green cleaning products and reusable shopping bags, but there are ways to take your commitment to the environment one step further. One area that you might not have thought much about is in your choice of home furnishings. Furniture Home Design would like to show you how important it is to think about environmental factors even when choosing furniture like bar stools for your home.

Green Bar Stools: Health and Safety

Most modern furniture today has some issues with off-gassing. Off-gassing occurs when VOCs (volatile organic compounds) from an object are released into the air. This phenomenon is usually the worst when the item is still brand new. Formaldehyde is one VOC that is commonly used in furniture manufacturing, but it has also been linked to skin and eye irritation and breathing issues in some individuals. Choose a bar stool that has been finished with low VOC finishes and adhesives to ensure a safe environment for you and your family. Another way to avoid off-gassing is to select an unfinished bar stool to refinish yourself. This is one fool proof way to make sure your furniture is eco-friendly!

Manufacturing Sustainable Bar Stools

There are a number of ways a bar stool can be manufactured that make it green. First, the materials used to make it can be from recycled or recyclable materials, such as aluminum. Or the materials used can be from a renewable resource, such as bamboo. You can also check to see if a wood bar stool carries the FSC logo. This is a globally recognized symbol that means that the wood used in the product comes from a healthy forest. Finding products that are manufactured in North America also helps to cut down on emissions caused by transportation.

Green furniture is becoming much more in demand, due to consumer knowledge. Making green choices when you select furniture is a great way to do your part for the environment.

Modern design requires a very specific aesthetic. The look must be somewhat stark, yet retain some warmth and hominess, after all – this is where you live! You want your modern home to be inviting, and you want it to have the contemporary look that became so popular in the 1960′s.

Modern Design in the Bedroom

Creating an atmosphere is incredibly important in the bedroom. This is the room that we retreat to at the end of the day, so we need it to have a calming effect, and be warm and approachable. You can achieve a lot of this with the colors you choose when painting the bedroom walls, and when selecting rugs, carpeting, and of course bed linens and window treatments.

When choosing beds contemporary or classic, keep in mind that your bed frame can be the central design element in your bedroom, so choose a frame that is made of hardwood, or brushed steel for example. Monotone bedding can add to the look of your space, and choosing complimentary colors for the pillows and for the window treatments will tie everything together nearly. You don’t need to match everything! This is a common mistake made when people are buying bedding! The colors should be complimentary of course, but get creative – greys and whites with a splash of orange can make a very bold statement.

When painting the walls of your bedroom, remember that this is the room you wake up in, and the room you fall asleep in. Choose something understated for this room, as colors that are too bold can be overwhelming in the bedroom.

If you’ve managed to get onto the property ladder and buy your first house, first of all, well done! Secondly, to alleviate as much stress as possible, it is best to sort out as much as possible prior to moving. Here is a checklist of the obvious, and not so obvious to ensure that moving day is as stress free as possible.

Hiring a Moving Van

If you’re moving further than to the house next door, you’ve probably opted for a moving van. To avoid higher fees or traffic, try and book a day in the middle of the week to move.

Changing Address and Subscription Details

What could be better than the familiar sound of your favorite newspaper dropping through the door on the first Sunday morning in your new house? And of course, you may want your bills to be delivered to the right address, too. There are several online services that can organize changes of address.

Doctors, Dentists and Other Health Care Professionals

As well as registering with the nearest doctors and dentist, ensure you keep the blood donation and organ donation information up to date, and your opticians, if you have contact lenses delivered to your house.

Home Insurance

It is important to sort out home insurance as soon as possible, to cover your house from flood damage, burglary and a number of other circumstances that could lead to expensive damage being done. You can also opt to pay a voluntary excess, an affordable sum of money towards any future claims, which will lower your overall rate.

Cable, Phone and Internet

Let your cable tv company, the phone company (if you still have a landline) and the internet provide have several weeks of notice that you are changing addresses. Nothing is worse than moving into a new place and not having your tv or internet hooked up for days because you are waiting for an available service time.

Meet the Neighbors

Be pro-active and introduce yourself to your neighbors, or if you’re moving to a little town where everyone knows everyone, why not say ‘hi’ to the whole street? Be kind to those on your way up, because you may need to borrow a cup of sugar on your way down.

Familiarize Yourself with the Area

To avoid needing a a carton of eggs and having no idea where to go, it’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with the local amenities before your move. Thanks to living in the 21st century, this is all possible through the invention of Google Street View. Have a virtual wander around your area!