Eco-Home Shopping Made Simple

In 2020, "make a house a home," is simply Step 1—the real goal is to "make your home a holistic haven." The past few months have taught us just how important it is to curate a space you feel your most well self in, from the bed you sleep on to the air you breathe (which can be five times more polluted than outside air!). Trouble is, sustainable shopping can be confusing unless you know exactly what to look for. So, we're making your eco-friendly sourcing simple; it all comes down to three letters: MPL.

Production: Aim for as many of your belongings as possible to have a positive or neutral environmental and social impact. In addition to organic certifications, which unite ecology and social responsibility, other certifications to look for are fair trade and carbon neutral. These take into account rigorous social, environmental, and economic standards (i.e., just wages and safe working conditions). Brands like Avocado Green Mattress are Climate Neutral Certified, which means they've calculated their entire footprint, from their farms in India all the way into your home, reducing where they can and offsetting where they can't.

Life Cycle: Ultimately, you want furniture and decorative accents that are built to last. Consider whether what you're buying is reusable, recyclable, or biodegradable. Materials like wood, glass, and ceramic tick the boxes and look good doing it. For larger items (like mattresses), look for 20-plus-year warranties that the company stands by. Avocado Mattresses, for example, have a 25-year warranty and are made with biodegradable and recyclable materials.