So you’re trying to live a little more green. You use compact fluorescent light bulbs, you compost in the backyard and you bought a hybrid to cut back on gas usage.
You can step up your eco efforts even further by outfitting your home with green décor. From fair trade to handmade, or recycled to sustainable, opportunities abound for homeowners to buy earth-friendly items and be stylish at the same time.
Bamboo: One of the most sustainable plants in the world, bamboo shows up in homes as a lightweight and attractive dishware or in luxurious bath and kitchen towels. Check out the Red footed bamboo fruit bowl available at Generation Green (6375 Sawmill Rd., Dublin, 614-761-2222,
www.generationgreenstore.com), or the Deborah Ann bamboo towel set at Down the Garden Path (2066 Arlington Ave., Upper Arlington, 614-487-0081,
www.downthegardenpath.net).
Recycled paper housewares: Recycled newspaper and magazine pages can be rolled and utilized in any number of items, from decorative bowls to candy dishes. Try a square recycled paper hot mat at Global Gallery (three locations: 682 N. High St., 148 Easton Town Center, coffee shop at 3535 N. High Street in Clintonville,
www.globalgalleryonline.org), a recycled paper magazine holder and serving tray at Down the Garden Path, or recycled paper bowls at Generation Green.
Recycled glass stemware: Old soda, beer and wine bottles can be repurposed with stunning results, becoming elegant wine glasses or quirky tumblers. How about a set of wine glasses or a set of Red Stripe glasses, available at Generation Green?
Sustainable baskets: Kaisa grass baskets from Bangladesh are made from an extremely sustainable (easy to grow and replenish) material, and they’re also fairly traded, meaning producers are paid a fair living wage for their work. Try the assorted kaisa grass baskets at Global Gallery.
Other sustainable accents: Sea Stones, a company from New Hampshire, makes wine stoppers, cabinet knobs and coat or towel hooks from natural stone and wood. The stones are collected from rivers and beaches (the company adds a new rock to the water for every stone it harvests) and plants 10 times the number of trees it uses for its back plates, which anchor the hooks to the wall. Sea Stones wine stoppers and assorted knobs are available at Generation Green and Down the Garden Path.
Kate Lohnes is assistant editor of Luxury Living.