It looks like everyone is jumping on the environmentally friendly, sustainable living band wagon. Call me cynical, but when have the big manufactures cared about anything but profit? I now see that a large national "sales ends soon" company are offering a range of //www.littlefurnitureshop.co.uk/sofas which are made from sustainable wood (its actually quite difficult to buy wood which isn't from a sustainable source). They don't actually say what type of wood they are using, so sustainable it may be, long lasting doesn't mean the same thing. Their springs are made from recycled steel. They are still only zig zag springs which don't last and are one of the cheapest ways of putting springs in a sofa. Fabrics are made from recycled bottles. The fabric is still plastic, and whatever fabric you use, a huge amount of energy and chemicals is used to produce these fabrics. I love the idea of recycled fabric and using plastic is better than it going into landfill.

I'm all for saving the planet as much as we can, but I do believe you have to delve further into this matter. Where is your furniture made, UK or quite often the Far East. Lets face it, its much cheaper to have //www.littlefurnitureshop.co.uk/sofas mass produced in countries which don't have the same employment standards as we do in the UK. These are then shipped in containers from the other side of the world. Not very environmentally friendly. I often wonder how much these workers are paid to make this type of furniture. 

Wool is a better fabric to use in my opinion. Its a natural product and will compost without harm. Many wools are made in the UK, but the wool does come from the other side of the world due to the UK not having the correct sheep to produce enough wool needed for the demand. Not as green as we would like, but it is all compromise. If you are wanting to have a more sustainable lifestyle then small things do help. Not replacing furniture every five years because you want a change. When buying replacement, do you want new or restored? If you want new, buy new which will still be around in 30 years not 10 years. Each and everyone of us have to make these decisions if we want this planet to survive, but if we all try and make small changes, these can make a difference.

Shop locally, buy quality and as Vivienne Westwood once said, "Buy less, choose well, make it last" Handmade //www.littlefurnitureshop.co.uk/sofas

 

1960s style sofa Romo Black Textured weave