The Ultimate List of Sustainable Home Brands in the UK
Changing trends and a culture of disposable living has seen a shift towards cheaper flat packed furniture and décor lasting one year rather than ten. These days many of the mainstream homeware brands are making homeware using toxic chemicals, unsustainable materials or without robust ethical policies.
Feng Shui, the 5000 year old Chinese discipline, is one of the design principles that aim at creating habitable and sustainable spaces in harmony with nature. Knowing that your furniture and its route to being was a happy and sustainable one is important to good home design and it doesn’t have to mean swapping style for a drab, unhappy interior.
As always, the most sustainable option is to make do with what you have and restore your own furniture. A lick of paint and some new handles can go a long way. Platforms like Skillshare offer classes on things like Transforming your Furniture with Chalk Paint or Home Décor projects, or there are community centres all over the UK, like The Good Life Centre, that offer furniture restoration courses.
If you don’t fancy doing it yourself places like London based Restoration Station will do it for you. They employ people in recovery from drink and drug addictions who learn woodwork and upholstery skills to restore old furniture.
Your next best option is to try and buy second hand. Your money won’t contribute to any kind of forest felling or mistreatment of workers. If you can’t buy second hand, reclaimed or recycled homeware is another way to make use of existing resources.
But sometimes shopping for new pieces is inevitable and it can be great for finding something specific you really need for your home. Understanding the materials, the history and whether or not the product has been sourced and traded ethically takes time and energy, which is why I’ve put together a list of my favourite sustainable brands from the UK.
Before I show you my favourite sustainable brands in the UK here is what to look for when shopping for your home. Before you make a purchase check for the following:
Is it 100% FSC certified? Despite being criticised it is still the best certification standard for sustainable forestry.
Brands that use lots of natural materials like wood, glass or stone to make their décor pieces.
A transparent supply chain. Is it clear that they are ethical? Are workers being paid fairly for their work? Do they have safe working conditions?
Brands that incorporate recycled and reclaimed materials into their home offering.
Luckily there are more and more sustainable and ethically-minded brands out there selling gorgeous homeware pieces that are sourced without damaging the environment or negatively impacting their workers.
Read on for the ultimate list of responsible online homeware shops and brands.
Aerende
Best for: Linens, Pottery, Candles
Award winning social enterprise meets online shop that sells gorgeous hand-crafted products made by people facing social difficulties in the UK.
Artfinder
Best for: Art
Certified B corporation selling affordable art created by independent artists all over the world.
Boho Homes
Best for: Accessories, Soft Furnishings, Tableware
Ethical home accessories brand working with artisans and Fairtrade social enterprises to bring handmade products to market.
Buy Me Once
Best for: Kitchenware
The name says it all. Buy Me Once sells durable high quality products built to last.
Church Street Gallery
Best for: Paintings, Wall Art, Ceramics
Independent art gallery in Saffron Walden managed by local artist Debbie Scott. They sell affordable contemporary paintings and British prints.
Collective Stories
Best for: Cushions, Baskets
Founded after a trip to Guatemala where the owners were inspired by the beautiful textiles created using traditional weaving techniques. You’ll find beautiful and responsibly made products all made by hand in small batches.
Cuemars
Best for: Art, Lighting, Plants
‘Buy less, buy better’ is the motto at the heart of this London based store. They stock independent brands that produce responsible contemporary products, sourcing sustainable wares scrutinised throughout their supply chain.
Denby
Best for: Tableware, Kitchenware
The first UK tableware manufacturer to claim zero process waste to landfill. Their products are built to last using locally sourced clay, with their stoneware carrying a 10 year guarantee.
Firera
Best for: Linens, Textiles
Firera is a vegan UK based home decor and lifestyle store offering high-quality, long-lasting and environmentally friendly products for a conscious home.
Green Woods Furniture
Best for: Storage, Beds, Mattresses
Bristol based furniture brand that create ethical and sustainable furniture made to measure.
Forest & Co.
Best for: Textiles, Lighting, Furniture
Devon based homewares store focusing on handmade, Fairtrade utilitarian wares made on a small-scale.
Head & Haft
Best for: Lighting, Stools, Chopping Boards
High quality handmade lighting, furniture and woodwork made my Cornish maker Chris Thorpe.
Konk Furniture
Best for: Furniture
Konk furniture is made for life - it’s solid, hardwearing and ages with character. Sustainability is important to them and they only use timber from approved sustainable forests. They also work in partnership with One Tree Planted, donating a tree for every single order they receive.
Linen & Stripes
Best for: Cushions, Linens
Homeware brand offers stylish and natural linen cushion covers, storage baskets, napkins and bags. Each product is handmade in their home studio in Liverpool.
Liga
Best for: Homeware, Coasters, Linens
Family business passionate about the environment and looking after the planet. LIGA uses only sustainably materials like organic unbleached cotton, recycled papers, vegan wax or bamboo, ethically sourced and made in Cornwall.
Lilian Daph
Best for: Ceramics, Glassware
Created by the owners of sustainable homeware brand Weaver Green this shop based in the north of England stocks almost 300 products made form recycled materials.
Made By Hand
Best for: Accessories, Ceramics, Prints
Imagine if you found yourself on an online version of your local village craft fair. Based in Devon, this small team promote high quality British Contemporary Craft by bringing together a community of around 130 selected makers from around the UK.
Maik
Best for: Textiles, Kitchenware
MAiK Lifestyle offers a range of responsibly sourced, ethically produced fun and colourful homewares. Founded by owner Cat after discovering the damage off-shore mass production can do while working on a streetwear brand.
Myakka
Best for: Furniture, Accessories
Beautifully handcrafted and sustainably sourced furniture that is 100% Fairtrade (and has been since 1999).
Nina & Co
Best for: Ceramics
Nina+Co is an interior design and product design studio with a focus on sustainability and projects with a sense of community.
Nkuku
Best for: Ceramics, Lighting, Accessories
Ethical and eco-friendly homeware brand that works with independent businesses and social co-operatives to create wonderful handcrafter lifestyle products. Based in Devon they focus on operating as sustainably as possible.
One Nine Eight Five
Best for: Interior textiles
This sustainable British homeware brand is committed to ethical design, specialising in printed and interior textiles. They are focused on creating sustainable collections with a no waste philosophy. For example their throws are made with recycled cotton salvaged from garment making factories.
Petra Palumbo
Best for: Hand painted carafes, Decorations, Ceramics
Based in the Scottish Highlands, Paloma Palumbo are a sustainable homeware company that design long-lasting, high-quality products with an environmental conscience.
Philips & Cheers
Best for: Lighting, Cushions, Soft Furnishings
Cheshire based Liz Philips created this brand after working in the heritage industry in Britain’s most beautiful old houses. Her passion for British fabrics resulted in a collection of furnishings and furniture made using rare vintage fabrics.
Qasa & Qasa
Best for: Kitchenware, Linens
Contemporary products for your home inspired by and mindfully sourced from artisans and community groups in East Africa using traditional craftmanship and modern design.
Relish Lifestyle
Best for: Furniture, Accessories
Devon based store selling old, new, restored and recycled furniture and quirky homeware pieces out of their converted shipping container.
Rise & Fall
Best for: Bedding
Bedding made in a factory run entirely on wind power and recycles 99% of its water. You’ll find plastic-free packaging, low impact dyes and chemicals and a workforce with access to free education. The bed sheets are pretty good too.
Sofa For Life
Best for: Sofas
The first sustainable, circular economy sofa designed in a way that ensures close to zero waste.
Scaramanga
Best for: Chests, Tables, Chairs
Scaramanga is a lifestyle brand specialising in vintage and antique furniture. Some of their furniture even ends up in Hollywood films such as The Hobbit or Maleficent!
Sustainable Furniture
Best for: Wood Furniture, Garden Furniture
This Cornish family run business started in 2007 when owner Margaret Larsen decided to combine her years of experience in the furniture industry with her love of sustainability. Her vision was to exclusively sell ethically and sustainably sourced furniture.
The Future Kept
Best for: Ceramics, Textiles, Accessories
A husband and wife team are behind this conscious homeware brand based in the south coast of England. You’ll find a collection of responsibly and ethically sourced products made by independent designed and artisans that don’t fuel the throw away nature of the modern world.
The Shop Floor Project
Best for: Paintings, Prints, Ceramics
Award winning online gallery created my mother and daughter artists Denise Allan and Samantha Allan with the aim to curate a selection of extraordinary pieces from around the UK and further afield.
Traidcraft
Best for: Homeware, Accessories, Candles
Founded in 1979, Traidcraft are the original Fairtrade pioneers in the UK.
Venner
Best for: Home accesories
Small independent shop based in London specialising in sustainable ceramics, jewellery, prints and skincare.
Wearth
Best for: Reusable Kitchenware, Homeware
Wearth partners with over 250 eco conscious brands in the UK to make it easier for the consumer to access ethical and sustainable products. You can even shop by values depending on what you’re looking for (e.g. plastic-free, made in UK or vegan)
Weaver Green
Best for: Blankets, Rugs, Cushions, Footstools
Gorgeous textile pieces made from recycled plastic bottles.
White & Green
Best for: Bedding
100% Organic and Fairtrade cotton bedding. Family company who work directly with organic cotton farmers in their Fairtrade factory in India.
YesterdayToday
Best for: Textiles, Lighting, Ceramics, Artwork
We all know that shopping second hand is one of the more sustainable ways to shop and this is what the founder Bella holds at the heart of her business. Bella adapts vintage textiles into contemporary pieces made to last.
&Keep
Best for: Reusable Kitchenware, Textiles
Dorset based homeware store stocking eco-friendly, reusable and sustainable items to help you go plastic free and look after the planet.
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