Archive for the ‘Eco-Friendly Home Decor’ Category
Dec
8
Truly “Green” TreesReal or fake? When it comes to Christmas trees, this is a question that has plagued eco-conscious consumers for some time. And while researchers have come to opposite conclusions regarding the environmental impact of pre-cut versus plastic trees, there is a new option that may provide a clearer solution: a living tree. The benefits are plentiful: live evergreen trees shed needles less frequently, represent less of a fire hazard, and give off a constant, festive piney aroma that dying trees lose over the days.
Oregon’s Original Living Christmas Tree Company has been providing Portlandians with their choice of evergreen — various species, six to seven-and-a-half feet tall — for twenty years. The company will even deliver your selection, with its roots wrapped in burlap, to your door, and then pick it up in a few weeks so it can be replanted by a school, church, private homeowner, or landscaper to live out its next 70-80 years. The Living Christmas Tree Co. in southern California offers a similar service to residents of the Greater Los Angeles Area — but replants the trees in a cooler locale!
Living with a tree is easy. Just make sure to give it one to two pints of water per day, and keep it away from heating vents so it doesn’t dry out — or start to think spring has come early. Avoid decorating with large light bulbs and using flock, too. It’s worth noting that some studies suggest a correlation between music and healthy trees, so don’t be afraid to sing. And you don’t need to live in Portland or L.A. to decorate your home with a lovely live tree for the holidays. You can source, transport, and replant one all by yourself! The Original Living Tree Company suggests calling local plant nurseries to inquire about four or five -foot conifers — due to the weight of the roots, the company recommends purchasing a shorter tree for ease of moving. Trees can be set diagonally in the trunk of a car (with a cable to secure the hood) or in a truck bed. In January, replant in the yard for use in 2012, or call local community organizations and offer to donate it. You could even post an ad to Craigslist and let someone else replant your tree near their home. We are excited to announce our new line of kitchen products. The new items include everything from dining accesories to food preparation products. They come in a variety of colors and sizes. Wooden kitchen items have many benefits to you and your family. They decrease the risk of harmful chemicals entering into the food, since they are made from sustainable wood, such as mango or Acacia wood. All the items are also coated with food-safe lacquer. Contrary to popular belief, wooden dishes are just as easy to maintainas plastic or ceramics. Adding eco- friendly wood dining items will also enabe you to further your environmentally conscious efforts. You can be surethat each product will be unique, thanks to the expert hand made craftsmenship used to create it. Here are just some of the many items we now sell:
These versatile bowls can be used to hold a variety of things such as fruits or salad. They also will look elegant and expensive on the dinner table.
The serving platter has a nice texture and very appealing colors. It is made of the highest quality wood and is hand carved.
This utensil vase is a very original conversation piece. It is carved from mango trees in Thailand, with tree bark accents. To see the full assortment of our new kitchen products, please visit our website. http://www.verdelifestyles.com/Wood-Kitchen-and-Dining-s/314.htm.
Aug
18
Verde Photo Shoot!It’s been a while since we had an update to some of the product photos and we thought it would be fun to get some more action shots of our bamboo rugs and throw pillows in the home. Some will make the cut and some won’t, but we thought we’d give you a little teaser of what’s soon to be added to the main site. Here we have a very artistic shot of our natural tone bamboo rug with a beautiful pink flower on top:
Next you’ll see the perfect place to set your pet’s food and drink bowls. Dinner and easy cleanup!
Maybe not the most convenient place for a guitar, but who cares, it looks cool!
Switching gears a little, we’ve got a lovely rosette throw pillow accenting a girly bed:
Perhaps on a leather couch?
And finally another artistic shot of a small collection of organic throw pillows displayed across the wood floor:
We hope you keep an eye out for updates on these and more images as the month progresses and other shots make the cut! We are happy to announce that we have added six new bamboo rugs to our lineup! The new colors and styles are: Crimson, Coffee, Ebony, Pearl River, Premier, and Key West. Have you ever seen a bright red bamboo rug before?
All of these new bamboo rugs, part of the Villager Collection, are made from Anji mountain bamboo, harvested from the Zhejiang Province in China. They come in vibrant colors and patterns that you won’t see in your typical bamboo rug, like deep crimson and key lime shades. In addition to the traditional, woven thin slats style, you’ll also find less conventional variations in color and width of bamboo slats. Though these new rugs differ aesthetically from the older ones, they are just as easy to clean and maintain, and are just as durable. In other words, everything that you already loved about our bamboo rugs, you will love about these as well! Stop by to check them out!
Check out these amazing homes made from reclaimed materials! Truly beautiful and unique. What to you think? One Man’s Trash is Another Man’s Treasure: From the New York Times
Dec
12
Green Christmas…Rent-A-TreeIf you celebrate Christmas, the Christmas tree is usually a big deal. Which is more eco-friendly–plastic or real trees? What to do with the real tree once the holiday is over? The Living Christmas company in California, near L.A., is renting out live, potted trees that customers can decorate and keep in their homes for the holidays, and then return to the company once their celebrations are over. The company then stores them and cares for the trees for the rest of the year, and the tree is again available for rent the next Christmas. They also deliver and pick up the tree for you!
This is all well and good, but what if you don’t live somewhere where this service is provided? You can always consider buying a Christmas tree and caring for it all year round, or making your own creation with trimmings and branches. Have you ever wondered what it takes to create a piece of hand-carved wooden furniture? We thought we’d give you a detailed behind-the-scenes look at the process. As you probably know by now, most of our wood furniture is hand-carved and from Thailand. When using monkey pod wood, usually only the branches are harvested, but occasionally a whole tree is cut. Usually this isn’t done because monkey pod wood grows very fast, so it makes more sense to just cut the branches, but sometimes bigger pieces of wood are needed. The wood is then cut into chunks that are roughly the size of the product they’ll be used to make. In true sustainable form, scraps are used either for smaller carvings or to heat local homes during the cooler months. The product is then carved roughly out of a chunk of wood, done while it’s still wet (Monkey Pod wood has a very high moisture content when it’s cut). This means that as the wood dries, it will shrink and crack significantly. Carving is usually an occupation that is passed down generations, which means that those who do it are highly skilled and have lots of experience. The carvers work according to the “feel” of the wood, so each finished piece, like each tree, is unique. The tools that they use are usually handmade and each carver has his own set.
After carving, the furniture is placed in a solar oven for a few months to dry out. Each piece is tested to make sure it’s structurally sound before it’s moved on to the next stage, which is sanding. The furniture is then finished with natural wood oils and then inspected for any cracks or flaws. Several coats of oil are applied by hand, which takes time.
The holidays are right around the corner, and we all know that the biggest shopping event of the season is happening in just a few days! So, to get in the spirit, we’re offering a coupon code for 30% off your order when you shop between Black Friday and Cyber Monday at Verde Lifestyles. All you have to do is enter “30offorder” at checkout! This season, wood furniture, bamboo rugs, and organic pillows are the perfect eco-friendly gifts for those on your “nice” list. Green products are still hot, but they’re great for those in your life who aren’t necessarily environmentally-conscious, too. Take a look around the website to see what we have to offer! The Verde Lifestyles coupon code for the holiday season is here! Use pumpkinpie at checkout to receive 20% off of your order! This is a great deal, especially with the gift-giving season right around the corner. Green decor is a great gift not only for those in your life who are environmentally-conscious, but also for anyone moving into new digs–students, newlyweds, someone who just landed their first job. Here a few ideas to get you started on your shopping spree:
Nothing says luxury like a sleek teak wood bath bar. It can be used in a multitude of ways–use it to enjoy your hot bath with a book, a soothing cup of tea, or just to keep toiletries and towels close at hand.
Add space and light to a small apartment, or just a small room, with a large mirror in a beautiful sustainable wood frame. Mirrors are great for opening up cramped or dark spaces, and their frames can add detail and color to a bare wall.
Our natural, versatile bamboo rugs are a must-have for any green interior, and are indispensable as far as eco-friendly flooring goes.
Oct
17
Welcome To The Blue House
Located on Steiger island, one of seven man-made islands located in the Amsterdam IJburg lakes, this beautiful, fascinating home boasts a deep blue facade and some pretty cool eco-friendly features. This building, a product of the visions of architect Peter Weijnen of Faro Architecten in the Netherlands, captures rainwater to use in its toilets and washing machine, large windows open up to the South to let in light and warmth, and the ventilation system is based upon old Arabian cooling towers!
The interior also features recycled materials, like the beams made from old wood bollards taken from nearby IJ Lake, and copper taken from an old church roof reused to make the suspended kitchen/living area ceiling. Faro Architecten has other, equally impressive sustainable projects you can see on their website (here’s the English version). |
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