seductive or sustainable. how to decorate a home sustainably.

 creating a home that suits your individual style means that we should aim to purchase items we love and that stand the test of time. it’s seductive to just buy the latest, cheap trends, but why not embrace a more sustainable solution instead? here are some of my favourite tips on how you can furnish your home sustainably, which allows you to save money and also save planetary resources.

1. embrace the local secondhand economy

finding unique pieces from vintage or antique stores gives your home individuality and a sense of dimension. a home can look flat or a bit like a stock catalogue if we only furnish it with new pieces. to make a home feel like a home, add a few vintage or antique pieces from your local weekend markets, thrift stores or antique stores. these pieces have history and character and will allow you to give a unique stylish edge to your home.

2. add some history to your home

the easiest way to furnish your home is to buy furniture items from your local community. i scour facebook marketplace and gumtree to find secondhand items in my local area. to collect large furniture pieces, you can hire a van or truck for the day or consider outsourcing it to airtasker. to make sure your home doesn’t look like a jumble of secondhand pieces, make a pinterest board with your favourite style inspiration, and create a colour palette for your home. this ensures you stick to only purchasing pieces that align with your aesthetic.

3. shop from outlet stores

shop from furniture and appliance outlet stores. do an internet search of what is available to you in your local area. many furniture outlet stores have pieces that were originally floor or display stock, they are usually sold at drastically reduced rates because they have some slight wear. i recommend choosing high-quality pieces and brands and seeing if these items can be bought from an outlet store, that way you are preventing items from going to landfill and saving some money too. appliances can be bought much the same way. i bought all my appliances from a seconds outlet that has one to three-year warranties. many of the appliances are working perfectly, however, have minor aesthetic flaws such as nicks or dings.

4. purchase from local artisans

when decorating your home, consider supporting local businesses and artisans. these might mean commissioning art pieces for your home, or for a more budget-friendly option, consider buying prints or small pieces of artwork from them. you can also consider purchasing art pieces secondhand and getting them reframed to suit your home. there a myriad of ways to support local artists and it doesn’t have to be expensive. purchasing a small piece of ceramic or saving for a larger art piece is much better than rushing out and buying a cheaper item that you aren’t satisfied with.

decorating and furnishing your home is a fun way to express your creativity and individual style. make sure you plan ahead, measure twice, and buy once. enjoy the process of shopping sustainably for your home.

anita vandyke is a qualified rocket scientist and medical doctor (bachelor of engineering – aeronautical space and doctor of medicine) and, most importantly, mother to vivian. she was born in guangzhou, china, raised in australia, and currently splits her time between sydney and san francisco. her first book, a zero waste life: in thirty days, won gold at the nautilus book awards in 2019 and has been translated to seven languages. anita writes about motherhood, zero waste living and minimalism on instagram, at @rocket_science, or at anitavandyke.com.