A foolproof way to shop ethically and sustainably for your home

This blog allows me to share the journey I am taking to transform my home into an ethical and sustainable style-sanctuary that looks great and feels even better thanks to its low harm credentials.

I have a long way to go given my former home decor shopping habits (think shopping for fun, or because I was bored, with no consideration of what items were made of or who made them). I am also deeply aware that simply replacing the less -than-virtuous items I have with ‘eco-friendly’ alternatives is the least sustainable move I can make!

So, I am limiting my shopping to replacing items when needed. [Editor’s note: ‘when needed’ is still a work in progress for me. How I define ‘need’ when it comes to homewares is probably a tad away from the dictionary definition….]

In thinking about my approach to investing in new pieces for my home, I came up with a nifty little rule that I intend to apply to ensure that everything I buy hits the ethical and sustainable mark. I hope it helps you as much as I know it’s going to help me.

I call it the ‘two smile’ rule. And it goes a little like this:

Smile #1

Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful - William Morris

When buying a new item for my home, it has to make me smile. Now I don’t mean this too literally, but I do mean that it has to be beautiful (in a timeless way, that I can see myself loving for years to come) or practical (so something I will use on a regular and sustained basis).

That’s the first smile.

Pretty easy, right?

Smile #2

But, that’s not enough. Anything I put in my home must also provide another smile.

Smile #2 is just as, if not more, important, than smile #1.

The item must also have made someone else smile too.

I want to know that the item put a big, beaming smile on the face of the artisan, the ceramicist, the painter, the weaver, the printer, the seamstress, the social entrepreneur, the charity/op-shop worker, or the small business owner that has put their heart and soul into ensuring their company makes a positive difference to the world.

Smile #2 is a bit harder for many items to deliver.

You don’t see too many smiles in mass production factories churning our cheap goods at low prices. Where factory workers are paid less than a living wage and work long hours just to survive. Or where workers face sexual or other harassment on a daily basis.

I don’t want smile #2 to be the smile of shareholders or fat-cat CEOs presiding over behemoth companies that put profit over people and make tokenistic efforts to reduce their environmental impact.

This might mean that I am more limited in terms of where I shop, but that’s ok.

There’s enough ethical and sustainable design out there these days, in a wide range of styles and price-points, to suit everyone.

As I use the two smile rule to build up my own database of where to shop and what to buy, I’m going to be sharing it all here.

Having a beautiful home does not have to mean compromising on your values, but it does need to be easier to make ethical and sustainable home decor choices. Let me do the hard work so you don’t have to!