Aster, Sage, Rosemary, and... Pillows

ASTER+SAGE

Aster+Sage makes cute home accessories from left-over fabrics (mill ends) and/or material made from recycled pop bottles. It's an easy way to add a splash of eco-friendly color to your decor without buying a whole new set of furniture. So come, lay your weary head to rest, and sleep peacefully on a soft pillow made from your old Pepsi bottles.

www.asterandsage.com

How Green Is My Carpet?

VERDE HOME RUGS

It is so f-ing hard to find eco-friendly rugs that aren't made of plastic, (which is great for some things, but doesn't work as well as a living room rug where you can crash out and watch TV.)

To be eco-friendly, a carpet needs to be made using natural, biodegradable, recycled or recycleable, organic or renewable materials, and should use only low-impact dyes. This last part seems to be the biggest challenge. Low-impact dyed rugs are so hard to find that I usually just settle for Rug-Mark certified child-labor-free rugs. But Verde Home has a line of ethically made, eco-friednly rugs, made using low-impact dyes. They have a handy system of icons letting you know all the eco and ethical attributes of each rug, but read the descriptions to see if they are made using low-impact dyes.

www.verdehomeinc.com

Overstock.com, No Really

OVERSTOCK.COM

I swear 2 Gawd, go to Overstock.com and type in eco-friendly, and you never know what you might find. So far I've found way-cheap organic bedding and natural latex pillows, recycled-rubber shoes, and hand-made recycled lanterns. Recently I found these couches and chairs made from certified sustainable wood and soy-based cushioning, all for a reasonable price.

You might think this giant product clearing house is the devil, but making eco-friendly products affordable (especially sustainable furniture, which can be prohibitively expensive) and readily available is actually doing the world a service, so take advantage of some good deals on some forest-friendly furniture.

www.overstock.com

Peek-A-Bam-Boo!

BAMBOO

This Eames-ish room divider is made from eco-friendly, pesticide-free bamboo and rolls up for when you and your roommate make the peace and are able to stand looking at each other again. Pretty rad, no? You could get, like, ten of them and make a maze. If you wanted a maze, that is. Otherwise, ten eco-friendly pesticide-free bamboo roll away screens might seem a bit excessive.

www.gaiam.com

A Brief, Inaccurate History of Bath Mats

ECO BY DESIGN

Bath mats. Everybody needs them, not everybody has them. They are great for when you get out of the bath. In fact, that is precisely what they were invented for, by the ancient Mayans. The first bath mats were made out of rocks and dirt. Over the years, bath mats have evolved to be flatter and more absorbent, finally culminating in these amazing, organic cotton bath mats (also called "bathroom rugs") from Eco By Design, made without chemical processing or dyes.

Makes me want to take a bath.

go designer:
www.ecobydesign.com

How Mache Is That Doggie In The Window?

STRAY DOG DESIGNS

OMG, TPMTISFC! (Oh My God, This Paper Mache Table Is Soooo Fucking Cute!) Artist Jane Gray has designed a series of amazing side tables (and table tables,) handmade in Haiti out of recycled materials. I think I'm in love! I want to toss out all my non-recycled, non-paper mache furniture and start all over again... With her bright and brilliant designs, I could create my very own, eco-friendly, low-VOC, psychedelic wonderland!

adopt a stray:
www.straydogdesigns.com

Pure-ly For Pleasure

PURE

Ami Mckay makes these awesome furnitures using biodegradable natural latex, organic batting, FSC-certified wood, non-toxic adhesives, hemp, bamboo, natural wool, jute fibers... ice cream, happy thoughts, and unicorn hair. The designs are lovely-- classic with a modern touch (or if hip isn't your thing, you can get the same pieces without the playful embroidery.) I could go either way... the pieces are so nicely designed they really work no matter what you put on them.

purify yourself:
www.purebyamimckay.com