How to Create an Eco Friendly Dining Room
I’d wanted a dining room for years.
When I was renting accommodation through my university and early job years, they were such tiny places that of course there was no space for a dining room.
Then when my husband and I bought our first small house, I decided it would have a dining room – even though there really wasn’t space for it.
The area we used also doubled as a guest bedroom, a study, and a training room for the computer training classes I gave.
So we very rarely “dined” in the dining room.
But many years later when we bought a slightly larger house, there was actually space for a separate, “proper” eco friendly dining room – how marvellous!
It was such fun – coming up with lovely, simple settings for dinners. I loved it!
So I have a soft spot for dining rooms. And luckily, it’s quite easy to make your dining room green and eco friendly.
First, there’s the room itself, and the main furniture.
After that, it’s your table décor, and what you eat.
So, let’s look first at the room itself.
Related: Eco friendly wall coverings eco friendly flooring eco friendly curtains
Already Set Up Your Dining Room?
If you already have your dining room set up, then the most eco friendly thing you can do is to keep it that way. You don’t want to use up even more precious resources buying new stuff.
Instead, you can add accents and small items to change the look and feel (and save money).
If you’re decorating a dining room from scratch, here’s what you need to know.
Creating an Eco Friendly Dining Room
The big things are the flooring, the wall coverings, and the window treatments. As you will see from those links, there are loads of choices!
Once those are done, it’s time to look at eco friendly dining room furniture.
Eco Friendly Dining Room Table
Here are the most eco friendly choices for a dining room table.
Bamboo
Bamboo is an all-natural, renewable resource – bamboo is actually a fast-growing grass. It releases more oxygen into the air than most trees, helping to reduce the greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change.
Generally, well-made bamboo pieces will not warp or chip over time – indeed, some say bamboo is more durable than oak!
Wood
Wooden dining tables are extremely popular, and wood can be eco friendly – or not.
Tables made from wood that is local to your area, grown and harvested sustainably, and manufactured locally are also very green. Check with your supplier for details on how it was made.
Glass
The production of glass is not eco friendly as furnaces have to be heated to fiendishly high temperatures, using a lot of energy.
However, glass can be recycled an infinite number of times, so a recycled glass table can be eco friendly.
Design Tip: glass tables are especially good for small spaces as they “appear” to take up less space, so the area doesn’t feel as crowded. (Just be careful with sharp glass edges – people may not see them).
Manufactured / Laminated Wood
Manufactured wood such as MDF is made of wood fibres, often left-over or waste products from other manufacturing, which is great.
It’s a flexible and cheap product which makes it very popular.
The big problem with MDF and laminated wood lies in how they’re made – they’re mostly bound together with formaldehyde. Formaldehyde is a toxic carcinogen which off-gases for many years. Yes, you can paint or seal them, which keeps the nasties inside, but recycling is difficult, so most of it ends up in landfill, where its chemicals leach out over time, possibly affecting groundwater.
In addition, MDF is not very durable, and once it’s damaged it’s often thrown away. It’s rarely recycled.
Metal
Metal tables are not very green – they are made mostly from non-renewable resources and often have plastic products and / or coatings. Some can be recycled.
Marble and Granite
These materials are often touted as being green and eco friendly because they are natural. Yes, they are not man-made, that is true, but unfortunately they are a non-renewable resource.
There are now several types of recycled products which look similar and are greener for inspiration, – check out these eco friendly kitchen surfaces.
Eco Friendly Dining Room Chairs
There’s a huge range of dining room chairs at every price point, material and design.
The best eco friendly dining room chairs are the ones that:
- use reclaimed or recycled materials (the photo on the right is reclaimed teak)
- contain organic fibers and materials
- utilize sustainable manufacturing practices
- use non-toxic glues and low-VOC lacquers
- will last a long time.
For example, you can buy eco friendly dining room chairs made from recycled seatbelts.
Chat to your supplier and find out how the dining room chairs you like, were made.
What are your favourite pieces in an eco friendly dining room? Let me know in the comments below.
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[…] every trend forecast in years ahead, there are a few approaches when it comes to interiors and eco-friendly materials. Most design gurus agree sticking with pieces made from natural items like rattan or salvaged […]