Home has become the center of our life in 2020 and will probably continue to be a place where to spend most of our time in the next months. We had time, not only to enjoy this mandatory staycation but to come up with ideas for making our homes look better, cozier, more functional. For those who are still looking forward to upgrading their living space, SURREAL GENERATION has made a list of online shops offering both sustainable and stylish items. Here we go.
Scandinavian design lovers will adore Bolia. This brand from Denmark offers a vast selection of home goods from cutlery to sofas.
Everything you find at Bolia was designed by both young and mature designers from different countries, united by their love for Scandinavian style: minimalistic, calm, nature-inspired, elegant. One can easily combine the same interior pieces by different designers or easily incorporate them into almost any living space – that’s important if we talk about buying a new sofa or any other big piece of furniture.
Another key-principle of Bolia is creating things that, as they claim, will last for generations. You won’t have any rational reasons to get rid of this furniture. In case you get bored with it, play with decorations and lighting (take a look at this section of the website, it is my favorite one).
Eskayel is a New York-based textile design studio. Eskayel offers unique prints, which can be stamped on wall-paper or fabric to add some color accent in an interior or to give a sense of rupture in different areas in a living space.
It ended up in this list thanks to its eco-friendly regional production methods and sustainably sourced materials. For instance, their use of only water-based pigment ink and exclusively Libeco Lagae 100% Belgian linen, manufactured under some of the strictest agricultural standards. Moreover, the studio donates a percentage of its total sales to environmental organizations. Eskayel has numerous collections of various prints: from abstract to figurative, from calm to pretty intense and contrasting. For those who might get lost in this variety, there is the option to order a sample.
Besides, Eskayel makes stylish rugs with different waving techniques.
The Citizenry finds artisans all around the planet, blends contemporary designs with traditional techniques, and sells the result directly to you, without any middleman.
For today The Citizenry works with artisans from 13 countries of different continents. You can learn about all of them on the website. Mostly these are small and middle-sized family businesses, some of them handing down their artistry for generations. Since each item is handcrafted (and numbered), goods are produced in a limited quantity. There is a chance that an article goes back in stock more than once, but better not to think too long if something catches your eye.
On the website, you’ll mostly find home textiles like towels, rugs, bed linen, etc., as well as small furniture pieces and useful accessories for the kitchen and bathroom.
Itemerie is a perfect place if you are looking for little things for your home, and want your choice to be sustainable. This shop offers artisan-made products, which are friendly to the environment.
To help you navigate on the website, Itemerie uses badges to indicate items characteristics: made in the USA, vegan, plant-based, no waste, etc. The range of goods is pretty narrow (which I prefer to overloaded shops), but includes even some unexpected positions, such as Reusable Beeswax Wraps, or No Waste Starter Kits designed to help you to reduce the usage of plastic. I got attracted by the set of mouth-blown champagne glasses and candles.
By the way, Itemeries’ packages are fully recyclable and every free delivery order contributes to planting trees. As a bonus, there’s also a blog with practical tips that will help you to make easy steps towards a sustainable lifestyle.
Vintage
Good old vintage! From the Victorian era to Ettore Sottsass, Japanese or American, wooden or plastic – vintage is always a sustainable choice and often a good investment. You can find vintage furniture and interior objects in auctions, off-line markets, and antiquity shops, or on-line. For example, at 1stdibs or Casa Shop.
Before bidding or buying a vintage piece, I’d recommend you to study the subject a bit to be able to distinguish valuable items and understand the price.
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