Question from L Budin
Hi Debra,
I would like a list of furniture manufacturers who make furniture that is free of carcinagens and toxic odors. I am asthmatic and have gone thru two different sets of bedroom furniture that I now have to discard. Help!
Debra’s Answer
I don’t have a list of manufacturers, but you probably have some nontoxic wood furniture right in your own community.
Look in the yellow pages for “unfinished wood furniture.”
I have purchased most of my furniture at unfinished wood furniture stores. Most of the pieces still don’t have any finish on them—just bare wood. But you can finish them yourself with any nontoxic finish.
Everything I didn’t buy at an unfinished wood furniture store I bought used at auctions or salvage stores. My desk where I write every day is an old oak library table from Stanford University that was taken apart and was sitting in pieces at a salvage yard. All the edges were frayed but it was a beautiful table. My husband sawed the edges off and put an edging of purpleheart wood and a nontoxic finish. It’s the most gorgeous desk in the world. $50 for the desk and I don’t remember how much the purpleheart wood was, maybe another $50. So $100 and lots of love. I should take a picture…
I find Ash Wood works fine for me. I got unfinished bed frame and night tables through White Lotus in New Jersey. I used Acrilacq to put a finish on them. Did it myself and although it is nontoxic, it did have a smell, and was not the easiest thing for me to do (mcs), but I did it. Never could have done that with a traditional sealer. Talk to people at White Lotus.