PURE / Clean Interiors Reaches Out

There comes a time when we need feedback.

I have been a blogger for years, and it never ceases to amaze me how many people kind of stalk bloggers and offer no comment or reaction to the blog.  Expanding readership is a huge goal, but knowing if your words are affecting others is even more important.

The initiative of PURE / Clean Interiors is not a sexy one.  It is full of cautionary information and downright factual stuff.  Not meant to shock or scare anyone, but educate and help people to make adjustments in how they furnish their interiors.  Dispelling old beliefs that all is well.  Challenging buying patterns of Americans to buy it cheap and replace it often.  Stretching our limits of understanding of how things are made and how things have come to be.

I want feedback from my readers and want to get you in the loop of understanding of my goals.  See if I can serve you better, and help you in more avenues.  Please respond with your comments.
It will help everyone!!

Thank you!!

Recycling : The Ultimate PURE / Clean Interior Response

Okay, so we laugh at our kids when they go to a thrift store to buy a sofa, a bed or even worse clothing.  But they may actually be on to something when it comes to a PURE / Clean response to their environment.

Anything that has been used and is not soiled or contaminated has actually probably off gassed all of its offending chemical properties and may even have been stored outside, which also helps this process!

I have never been an advocate of used furniture, because I have had visions of upholstery loaded with cat dander or worse, but in reasonable situations, it can actually be a good way to insure a clean response to interior pieces.

 Many articles have been written about recycled materials to build something in the interior, but what about actually repurposing pieces that have been used and using them in a different innovative way?

"If you wisely invest in beauty, it will remain with you all the days of your life."
- Frank Lloyd Wright

Architects and Designers have known forever that investing in something that is existing is a great way to create beauty in something that is already here.  More people are staying in their current homes, rather than building new.  We are choosing to remodel, and refurbish instead of moving on to new surroundings.  It is easy to get swayed by glossy approaches to selling us a lifestyle, instead of seeing the beauty in what surrounds us already.  Think of large retailers like Restoration Hardware, and Pottery Barn.  They are selling a lifestyle that can actually exist in our current surroundings with creative energy and a fun spirit.  Most of the whole Industrial Look is repurposed looking.  It is limed, and distressed, and old.  It may not actually be, but a replica created with paint finishes and chains, but it is a concept that is very popular today.  Seeing manufacturers replicate this look is a very interesting trend.  Innovative homeowners have painted, replaced hardware, and repurposed things for a long time.  Think file cabinets made into metal dressers, old industrial lamps made into chandeliers, and distressed finishes added to fine antiques to update their chic.  Many people keep finishes perfect on old pieces only to find that their children have no interest in a fine mahogany piece that needs to be polished and maintained to keep its beauty.  We are less fussy today.  We want to have some fun in our interiors and play a little with color, finish, and hardware.

Our next trip to the thrift store will be less about finding a bargain, and more about finding a shape, or size of a piece that we want to work with and adding embellishments that make it what we need today.  About time that a PURE / Clean Interior was truly about having some fun and expressing that attitude in our everyday world.

Interior Toxins and Child Developent

Why do some people get heart disease, diabetes, asthma, are diagnosed with autism, or develop cancer?  Research has proven that chemical exposures during child development may contribute to health problems that arise later in life.

Many of these toxins are environmental and are obvious.  Prolonged exposure to air pollution in the urban environment is one.  Early exposure in infants or prenatal  in the way of gasoline or other fossil fuels will affect children's cognitive development. Children that have had this exposure have scored 4 points lower on cognitive tests at the age of five.  The Columbia Center for Children's Environmental Health have found this evidence in many tests.  Prenatal exposure also gives these children the added dimension of scoring higher on tests of anxiety, depression and attention problems at the age of five.

Endocrine Disruptors found in fire retardant chemicals applied to every sofa manufactured in the US have been found to cause even more problems.  They mimic hormones and interfere with the function of the body's hormones.  They typically mimic estrogen are found in these fire retardant chemicals used to conform to the California flame retardancy acts of the 70's requiring all upholstery to be able to be exposed to open flame for 12 seconds and not burst into flame.  These chemicals are particularly dangerous as they alter the critical hormonal balances required for proper health and development.

These disruptors also increase aggressive behavior, early onset sexual maturation, changes in mammary gland development, and a decrease in testosterone levels and sperm production.

These disruptors found in flame retardant chemicals are leached into skin at contact.  Especially dangerous to babies and children, they have been found to cause cancerous tumors, and reproductive and neurological development.

Another alarming affect of these chemicals in the early onset of sexual maturity and the link that proves that early puberty can predispose a girl to more risk of breast cancer developing.  The mammary gland ( the milk producing structure of the breast) is uniquely sensitive to the effects of the toxic chemicals.  One chemical that is especially prone to do this is PFOA which is used in stain treatments on furniture.  Teflon, Stainmaster, Scotchguard, and other stain reducers create a sticky application that repels soil and offers chemical exposure that actually sticks to the person.  This chemical is transferred easily air born in the environment to becoming part of the water supply and ingested into children and babies.  Babies are open mouth, inhaling this treatment into their lungs on upholstered furniture, without the benefit of the filter of the nose.

Living PURE / Clean

I have been told that PURE / Clean design can be boring.  Many designers feel too controlled by the problem at hand and choose to ignore it or choose solutions that ignore it.

I absolutely agree!  Everyone knows that being creative when there is a challenge is much more complicated than being creative when the every option is a good one.

The first time in Interior Design school at Kendall College of Art and Design when we had a real client and a real budget everyone complained.  All of a sudden the twenty thousand dollar sofa that we wanted to use on the project gave way to a maintainable product from a major manufacturer with real specifications of long term wear and long term servicability.   Reality had snuck up on us and it had won!!

I always felt that having real problems to solve was much more interesting than making up scenarios of the perfect family living in the perfect suburban house with the perfect behavior in place to live in anything that I concocted from my own imagination.  All of a sudden, I found my calling.

With this new endeavor of helping solve real problems in an interior environment that has become much less than perfect - I feel challenged to not only solve the problems, but get designers to actually pay attention.

Design 101 - Flashback.
Interior Design is all about who is using the environment.
Interior Design is all about the end user being able to afford the solution.
Interior Design is all about problem solving.
Form Follows Function - Always.

As we specify interiors that contain no VOC's and are breathable and livable, we are reminded of the above concepts.  Our environment is like a living organ.  It creates off gassing of toxic fumes and can affect the person living in it forever.  Our duty as educated, certified, and licensed interior designers is to create beautiful interiors that are also healthy.  We did not take the Hippocratic Oath, but as professionals "we must first do no harm" and follow our physician friends into doing the right thing even when it is not the easier thing.
Watch this blog.  Read it.  Follow it.  We are introducing topics that are helpful and healthy for interiors of today.  We hope to make a difference in the lives of those who live in our interiors.  We hope to help designers to listen and to care enough to change old habits and think about health as well as beauty.  They can live together.

MDF Board is Rated as a Human Carcinogen by the FDA

I have previously talked about this topic and the interest was so huge that I wanted to revisit the topic with some timely information.

MDF board, or composite wood was the miracle material of the 90's.  Anyone that watches HGTV routinely sees it being used to solve many problems on an interior because of its eas in smoothing into shapes, without spintering or needing extensive sanding.

MDF board or composite wood is wood dust, scrap and bonded together with bonding agents that contain formaldehyde to form a very fine particle material that can be cut, shaped and planed into very thin sheets or boards and used in many ways in the interior of a building.  Most commonly it is used for decorative trim that is not enduring impact routinely.  Mouldings, door casings, decorative ceiling details, and decorative trims throughout a house.  It is easily painted without grain or inconsistency and easily sawn. 

The problem is that the bonding agents used to form this miracle material are toxic.  No one ever thinks that Formaldehyde is a healthy thing, but in truth it is a human carcinogen that is much worse in long term exposure than almost any other.  When it is cut, sanded or shaped the dust is absolutley toxic and releases into tiny particulates that are breathed deeply into lungs because of their size. 
California has been puting stickers on houses containing MDF or composite wood since 1988.  The warning:  "This house contains a chemical known to cause cancer, birth defects or other reproductive hazards."   This made the materials comply with the state's anti-toxin laws, but also ensured members did not face costly lawsuits from sick residents. 

Short term exposure casues irritation to the eyes, nose and throat.  Long term effects are cancer, reproductive interruption, heart and lung damage, skin lesions and birth defects.  It has been deemed the asbestos of the nineties by Roy Lockett, deputy general secretary of Bectu. 

The simple fact is that we do not know the long term effects of having these particulates deep in our lungs.  Asbestos was not recognized as a serious health risk until people got really sick.  The FDAs move is a strong one.  MDF now has to be disposed of as hazardous material.  Carbon filter breathing masks have to be used by workers working with it.  But the off gassing of this material with Formaldehyde as part of its chemical structure is the culprit that we do not want in our homes.   

PFCs or Perfluorinated Compounds in our Interior Settings

We all have challenges to keep our interiors as pristine and PURE / Clean as the day it was installed.

Every client asks me how to maintain textiles, area rugs, carpeting, and soft finishes so that their investment is protected.  The universal easy answer has always been to order carpeting with protective finishes like Stainmaster, or Scotchguard.

I have helped clients apply Scotchguard in the liquid state with a brush to so many textiles that I cannot count.  I have ventilated and sprayed Scotchguard aerosal bombs so many times that I have lost count.  Now comes the bad news.

These products have an active ingredient that is much worse than the dirt they are protecting us from.  I mean, dirt is dirt, right?  PFCs on the other hand never tell us what they are doing as we breath them in. 

First appeared in Teflon as an anti stick material for pans.  It was a miracle and everyone wanted their pans to be coated with this amazing stuff that  made our cooking look so cool!!
Then Scotchguard appeared and sofas stayed cleaner.  The same process of anti stick, but this time it was soil and mainly grease.  That troublemaker in an interior that is the hardest to deal with.

It just worked. 

When the carpeting industry got on board and offered Stainmaster that was part of the carpeting and started offering warranties, we all applauded.  Until we started hearing the rest of the story.

These products all contain the active ingredient PFCs.  They are a family of fluorine - containing chemicals with unique properties to make materials stain - and stick - reisistant.  Some of the PFCs are resistent to breaking down and are appearing everywhere in our environment.  They appear in contamination of our food sources, and our water supplies.  PFSs and PFOA are breakdown products of PFCs.  They are also in household dust, consumer products and food packaging. 
They are in personal care products like shampoo, dental floss and denture cleaners.  (think anti stick and you are pretty much there)

The PFC and is dirivitives are likely human carcinogens.  They cause liver, pancreatic, testicular and mammary gland tumors in the laboratory.  They produce liver and kidney damage, and reproductive problems.  They are also persistent and have a very long life in our bodies and our environment.
Exposure before birth has been linked to low birth weight.   Nasty chemicals that are being phased out, but since they are effective there is a huge push back in our industry to do it. 

Avoid stain resistant products that are part of the furniture industry.  Do not apply stain protectors and do not buy products where it comes applied already.  Never insure the cleanliness of a product by applying unsafe chemicals.  Do your research and maybe accept cleaning textiles and carpeting more with clean processes rather than applying chemicals that do not let dirt or grime stick to them.  Think washing with clear water or mild soap as opposed to dry cleaning with chemicals that are more caustic for people. 

Become a steward of reading labels and checking to see what effect these chemicals actually have on people.  They are always labeled.  Be the radical that you get tired of hearing from.  Be the watchdog for your family and your home.  You will breath easily because of it. 

Upholstered Pieces Can be Extremely Toxic

Upholstery adds drama and softness to interiors.
We all enjoy a great sofa whether we are cuddling watching a movie or in a casual meeting at the office.
Interior Designers use upholstery to create soft structure in interiors while at the same time bringing drama
in, in the form of textiles, shape, and wood or metal trim details.  Upholstery is the single most important element in an interior that has comfort in mind.  It is also the most typically toxic element in those interiors.

Foam is usually the worst offending part of the upholstered piece.  Foam can break down, with particulates becoming air born and ingested into lungs.  This is especially true with children who tend to lay on upholstered pieces face down breathing in more air than adults and typically do so open mouth, skipping the filters of the nose.  These particulates can be of inexpensive foam that is not encapsulated in any way with a textile liner cover, or down wrap. These offending foam components are usually from inexpensive imports, which are very common today.  Oftentimes foam components are imported due to the cost savings and used by US manufacturers.

Another toxin source in upholstery is fire retardants that are applied topically. The California Fire Retardant Standard established in the 1970's is the driving force behind the use of these retardants. The California code established the ability for a small open flame to sit on upholstered pieces for 12 seconds without burning.  Since most textiles cannot withstand this test, Fire Retardants are routinely used to be able to affix the California TB 117  label to upholstered pieces sold in the US.    Before 2005 these retardants were extremely toxic.  They were Tris, a known human carcinogen, and PentaBDE another toxic chemical.   PentaBDE has been phased out in use in the US.  Tris has been proven through sampling to be more prevalent today than before 2005.  Today 97% of all upholstered pieces are treated with newer fire retardants and Tris.  Scientists are having a difficult time keeping up with the industry in testing these new chemicals.  Not much is known currently about their effects on the human body short or long term.

The US consumer has very little resources to find out what their upholstery pieces are treated with to be able to pass the California TB 117 test for labeling.

Another element of upholstered pieces is MDF or composite wood parts that are typically internal and may not even be known by the owner.  MDF or composite wood parts off gas forever.  They are made of wood dust and bonding agents that are know human carcinogens.  MDF and composite wood is prevalent in the US manufacturing of furniture as it is easily shaped into smooth rounded shapes with very few splinters or splitting problems. It also can be made very thin and still be very strong.   MDF and composite wood was thought to be the miracle cure for the furniture industry since the 1990s.

Plywood in furniture manufacturing is another toxic danger.  Plywood is made of glue and wood chips or inexpensive wood layers made into a sandwich or series of plies.  These plies are held together with inexpensive toxic glue or bonding agents.  Plywood is never a safe internal element in furniture.  The glues and bonding agents off gas forever.  They cannot be encapsulated with paint or finishes.

The underlying dangers of furniture parts are activated with use or wear.  When an upholstered piece is sat on or lied on the stresses put on internal parts and that is when the majority of air born particulates take flight. The off gassing of the other toxins can happen even if the upholstered piece is never used.

The best advice to the designer and end user buying upholstered pieces is to ask questions of the manufacturer.  Only hardwood frames and higher end encapsulated foam with down or textile wrap should be considered.  Better yet the use of cotton or wood or soy cushions should be used.   No inexpensive plastic or metal internal parts to be used.  The use of organic textiles (cotton, wool or linen) must be used.   Ideally the piece should be covered in non bleached muslin and then slip covered in organic textiles so that the piece can routinely be washed with use.  This keeps dust from settling within the weave of the textile and breathed in by the user.

If you have questions about what to specify or purchase for your home, feel free to contact us at PURE / Clean and we will help you.