Helping to Protect Our Planet
Being environmentally friendly is something that should be important to us all. As a manufacturer and retailer, we have the responsibility of offering eco-friendly options and being transparent about how what we do affects the environment.
Eco Friendly Weave
We’re delighted to be able to offer our new ‘Eco Friendly Weave' range of fabrics which are made from 100% recycled and recyclable materials. Available in four neutral tones, our Eco Friendly Weave is a regenerated yarn made from a mixture of regular recycled PET (Polyethylene Terephthalate - a form of polyester) and recycled PET from ocean waste (upcycled marine PET). That means that you can choose a sofa that’s kinder to the environment.
The benefit of using recycled polyester yarns is that production does not require new petroleum, meaning a reduction in the carbon footprint. It also creates 75% less CO2 emissions compared to virgin polyester. This, combined with the fact that existing products are being recycled; removing plastics from the ocean and saving them from landfill; means that our Eco Friendly Weave is much less impactful on the environment than traditional upholstery fabrics.
How can you turn recycled plastic into fabric?
The Eco Friendly Weave used to cover one sofa is approximately the equivalent of 170 PET bottles. That’s a significant amount of plastic that is being recycled! But how can old plastic be turned into the fabric for your new sofa? It takes just five simple steps...
1. PET bottles - Post-consumer PET bottles are collected from the ocean or originate from household recycling.
2. Flakes - The PET bottles are sorted by color and then transformed into flakes.
3. Pellets - Once the flakes are sorted they are melted into small pellets.
4. Yarn - Next in the recycling process, the plastic pellets are spun into yarn.
5. Fabric - Manufacturer Greencare use these recycled yarns to create ecologically friendly fabrics.
What does recycled fabric feel like?
You might think that fabric made from recycled materials would feel synthetic and scratchy, but that’s not the case at all. Our Eco Friendly Weave is soft and tactile and feels great next to the skin. You don’t have to take our word for it though, why not order some free swatches and discover why we think these innovative fabrics are a conscientious choice for your new sofa.
Even better, our Eco Friendly Weave fabrics contain chemical-free ‘Easycare technology’ which means you can easily remove stains by using water and mild soap. This means that combined with the 25-year frame guarantee that we offer on all of our products, your sofa will last longer – another way you can be friendlier to the environment.
Our other environmental commitments
As with any manufacturer, there are always more ways in which we could be kinder to the environment; as part of Sofa Brands International we are due to set out an ‘environmental roadmap’ which will highlight ways in which our group of six furniture companies can do more to be ecologically friendly.
There are already, however, many ways in which we reduce our impact on the environment, including:
Sustainable Timber
At The Lounge Co. We only use timber from FSC Certified forests. We use hardwood birch for the majority of our frames which is grown in responsibly managed woodlands.
Made in Britain
When you buy a sofa from The Lounge Co. it's handcrafted in either Nottinghamshire or Wiltshire. Our quality, UK made sofas are not shipped from the other side of the world.
Carbon Neutral Deliveries
Our delivery partner, Wincanton, has committed that all 2-person deliveries will be carbon neutral from this year. Any residual emissions will be offset by the company going forward.
Sofa Recycling
When you buy a new sofa, you don’t always think about what happens to your old one. That’s why we offer a ‘sofa collection service’ which will, for a fee, take away and recycle your old sofa.
Let’s help to clean up the future
We can all make sensible choices that are a bit more friendly to the environment and will help to protect the planet for future generations. And when you can do it from the comfort of your own sofa, it couldn’t be easier.