7 Sustainable & Eco-Friendly Tables to Gather Around
Whether the family is sitting down for dinner in the kitchen or you and your roommates are binge-watching Netflix in the living room, the sustainable tables from these brands will be your new gathering places for enjoying meals, drinks, and conversations together.
The sustainable furniture brands featured in this guide have tables for any of your living and dining places: side tables, coffee tables, bar tables, kitchen tables, and even desks!
But first, you might be wondering: what is a sustainable table anyway?
What to Look for in a Sustainable Table
The word “sustainable” is used frequently and in so many different contexts that it can be difficult to pinpoint what exactly sustainable means.
That said, here are some key elements to consider when looking for your next coffee table, dining table, or desk.
Materials
When it comes to eco-friendly tables, wood is the most common material used because it’s a natural, renewable, and durable material that works with nearly any room or interior design style.
Note: If you find a brand that uses engineered wood or pressed wood, make sure to look on their website or ask about what adhesives are used. These products are often made from wood pieces that are bond together with glue that contains formaldehyde, which the EPA classifies as a “probable human carcinogen”.
Here’s what to look for to ensure sustainably-sourced wood:
Reclaimed Wood. Using existing resources reduces waste and the need to cut down additional trees. Plus, reclaimed wood — especialcan add authentic character to your table!
Using existing resources reduces waste and the need to cut down additional trees. Plus, reclaimed wood — especialcan add authentic character to your table! FSC-certified. The Forest Stewardship Council’s certification is the most widely used verification for responsible forestry practices. Just like any other large certification, the FSC seal is not perfect but can be an additional seal of approval to look for.
The Forest Stewardship Council’s certification is the most widely used verification for responsible forestry practices. Just like any other large certification, the FSC seal is not perfect but can be an additional seal of approval to look for. Traceability. Look to see if the brand can tell you where the wood was sourced from. Usually, smaller furniture brands will be able to have more transparency and traceability of their supply chain!
Look to see if the brand can tell you where the wood was sourced from. Usually, smaller furniture brands will be able to have more transparency and traceability of their supply chain! Local sourcing. Locally-sourced wood (from native or climate-appropriate trees) is preferable because sourcing locally reduces emissions from transportation.
Zero-VOC or Low-VOC Finishes
Similar to paints, finishes can contain Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). Not only do VOCs create environmental hazards like air pollution and smog but they also pollute your indoor air too.
According to the EPA, health impacts of VOCs include:
Eye, nose, and throat irritations
Headaches and nausea
Damage to the liver, kidney, and central nervous system
Some VOCs are also known or suspected carcinogens
All too often we think of environmental sustainability as something separate from ourselves — something “out there in nature”.
But as with so many aspects of sustainability, what’s healthy for the environment is also often healthy for us as well — humans are, in fact, part of the environment. That’s why this sustainable table guide only includes non-toxic tables, too.
Check out this article for more on non-toxic finishes.
Other Sustainability Initiatives
Some other initiatives to look for from sustainable table brands include:
Use of renewable energy to power their operations or the purchase of renewable energy credits to offset fossil fuel energy use.
to power their operations or the purchase of renewable energy credits to offset fossil fuel energy use. Take-back and/or repair programs to extend the life of their tables.
to extend the life of their tables. Quality manufacturing that ensures durable products built to last.
that ensures durable products built to last. Trustworthy tree planting projects, especially if the company uses wood for their products.
What Furniture Brands Have Sustainable Tables?
Just as with fashion, looking secondhand first is a great way to find eco-friendly furniture at a more affordable price. Check out your local flea markets, secondhand stores, and keep an eye out for estate sales.
For online secondhand options, check out Facebook Marketplace, eBay, Chairish, AptDeco, or Apartment Therapy Bazaar.
If you’re looking for a new eco-friendly table made from responsibly-sourced or reclaimed materials, take a look at the brands below!
This guide includes affiliate links and partners, but as always all brands are vetted rigorously for sustainability and are brands we love.
Maiden Home is a woman-founded furniture brand that produces all of their furniture made-to-order in North Carolina, which is, as the brand explains, “home to the world’s premier furniture craftsmen”.
And all of their wood furniture — like their dining tables, coffee tables, benches, and ottomans — is made from responsibly sourced hardwood that meets the standards of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative.
This is heritage furniture build to last generations — and as a direct to consumer brand, Maiden Home can create luxury quality furniture at a fraction of typical luxury furniture prices.
Conscious Qualities: Made to Order, Locally Made, Woman-Founded, Solid Wood
Price Range: $$$
Check Out Maiden Home
Medley uses only FSC-certified walnut or maple hardwood for their eco-friendly solid wood dining tables and accent tables. Each table is finished with an all-natural furniture polish that consists of just beeswax, carnauba wax, and olive oil. And every table, just like the rest of Medley’s furnishings, is made in their own workshop in Los Angeles.
Conscious Qualities: FSC-Certified Wood, Transparent Local Production, Non-Toxic Finishes, Plants Trees
Price Range: $$$
Check Out Medley
Non-toxic furniture brand Savvy Rest has a sleek set of sustainable tables and benches made in Central Virginia from solid wood. Each table is made with responsibly-sourced maple — a durable yet lightweight hardwood — and is available unfinished or in a variety of zero-VOC finishes: linseed oil, walnut, cedar, or mahogany.
Conscious Qualities: Zero-VOC Finishes, Local Production, Sustainably-Sourced Wood
Price Range: $$
*Use code CONSCIOUSSTYLE20 for 20% off all products on Savvy Rest!*
Check Out Savvy Rest
Originally founded as a reforestation project, Masaya & Co. is a mission-driven sustainable furniture company planting 100 trees (yes, you read that number right!) in Nicaragua for every product sold. The company partners with local Nicaraguan designers and craftspeople to produce their sustainably-made furniture. The hardwoods are dried on-site in solar kilns and finished with water-based low-VOC finishes.
Conscious Qualities: Traceable Sourcing, Reforestation Projects, Small Batch
Price Range: $$$
Check Out Masaya & Co.
Online green home retailer VivaTerra has a few sustainably-made tables like this exclusive Vintage Fir Collins table made from reclaimed California Fir and finished with non-toxic stains and this café table made from refashioned oak wine barrels. My favorite though has to be the Provence Farm Table made from reclaimed wood from the 19th century — how cool is that?!
Conscious Qualities: Reclaimed Wood, Domestic Production
Price Range: $$$
Check Out VivaTerra
With versatile designs and easy assembly, Simbly is the high-quality and sustainable alternative to IKEA we’ve been waiting for! Simbly uses 100% FSC-certified wood for all of their furniture and only non-toxic adhesives and finishes free of formaldehyde. Plus, the brand uses packaging with recycled content, manufactures locally in the U.S., and offsets any remaining emissions they were unable to reduce.
Conscious Qualities: FSC-Certified Wood, Local Production, Offsets Carbon Emissions
Price Range: $$
Check Out Simbly
Forget rustic or vintage-inspired and go for the real thing! Etsy has an incredible selection of both vintage tables and reclaimed wood tables from small-batch makers around the world. There are also some shops on Etsy that offer custom-made sustainable tables at reasonable prices so you can get the unique specifications you need for your space without spending a fortune.
Conscious Qualities: Reclaimed Wood, Secondhand Options, Small Batch
Price Range: $ – $$$
Check Out Etsy Reclaimed
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