SUSTAINABILITY: FOR YOUR HOME AND THE ENVIRONMENT

No doubt you've heard the terms "sustainable wood" or "reclaimed wood", either in regards to furniture or building materials. If you haven't, don't worry, you will more and more frequently in the years to come. Sustainability is a trend that isn't likely to die out.

With this in mind, we thought it wouldn't hurt to give the term, and its relation to the decorating of your home, a space on the blog this week.


What is "sustainable wood"?

A sustainable wood is one that is harvested through a sustainable forestry operation, such as a plantation, where a particular type of tree or plant is grown and cultivated for the purpose of harvesting the wood for use in furniture and building materials. Types of wood that you will often see referred to as "sustainable" are eucalyptus, rubberwood, bamboo, and teak (although, it must be Plantation Teak, meaning teak that is harvested from a plantation and not old-growth trees).

Image: Pottery Barn

For example, in the August 2011 Pottery Barn catalogue, the Cheswick Occasional Tables shown on pages 38 and 39 are described as being constructed from "sustainable rubberwood." (The coffee table to the right is a very reasonable $299, in case anyone wondered.)

Another term you may see in furniture catalogues and on labels is "FSC-certified". For example, many outdoor furniture pieces may be described as being constructed of "FSC-certified eucalyptus." FSC-certification is another type of sustainability. The "FSC-certified" label indicates that the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) has certified that the eucalyptus used to construct the furniture originated from a sustainable forestry operation.

One thing to note, although it may not say sustainable or FSC-certified on the label, furniture constructed of pine is often considered to be among the sustainable wood products. This is because pine is a very soft wood (meaning it can be nicked and dented easily), and pine trees grow quickly and are can be replaced more quickly than say an oak tree, which produces slow-growing, hard wood. Also, regrowth projects are often put into place on land where pine is harvested.

What is "reclaimed wood"?

When thinking about reclaimed wood, think recycled. Wood that is labeled as "reclaimed" can come from any number of sources. Often, reclaimed wood used to be part of floorboards, wall panels, doors, an old chifforobe. For example, the NapaStyle catalogues greatly consist of furniture constructed of reclaimed wood from old wine barrels, old buildings, or old market crates.

What should you look for when shopping for furniture or building materials?

When shopping for either, look for terms like "sustainable," "sustainably-produced," and "FSC-certified" when used to describe the wood's source. Avoid the following wood types when purchasing new building materials, unless you know they came from sustainable forestry operations or were reclaimed from another source:

• African Mahogany
• Big Leaf Mahogany
• Caribbean Pine
• Ipe
• Merbau
• Okourne
• Ramin
• Rosewood
• Spanish Cedar
• Teak (old-growth)

These woods are beautiful to look at, but their harvesting is often not from a sustainable forestry operation, and the harvest process is often a contributing factor to deforestation in wildlife-rich regions.

If you want furniture made out of one of these woods, like a mahogany dining set, we recommend you find either reclaimed mahogany to construct one, or furniture already made of the wood you like from an antique store or flea market. Going either route will enable you to add beauty, history, and charm to your space.

The buyer beware: what should you watch out for?

Some furniture pieces found in catalogues will say that the texture "mimics" reclaimed wood. This is not authentic reclaimed wood. An example of this is the Benchwright collection from Pottery Barn. While a beautiful collection in its own right, many of the past and current pieces look like they are constructed of reclaimed wood, but are in fact new wood made to look like reclaimed wood during the finishing process.

Also, just because a piece is made of reclaimed or sustainable wood, do not expect it to be less expensive. More often, a product made of reclaimed wood especially is more expensive than a similar product made of new wood. The same can be true of products made of a sustainable wood, although this sometimes depends on the type of wood the product is constructed with.
If you'd like to read up on sustainability more, here are some good information sources:

Forest Stewardship Council (FSC)
National Resources Defense Council (NRDC)
Sustainable forest management