The Urban Natural Lifestyle...
For the urban natural girl, she wants pureness in her home. Natural fabrics of linens & cottons, and fresh & flirty chairs with an organic sensibility. So, when it comes to true green ~ she wants the facts without sacrificing innovative styling and pure beauty. It's about Balance. And one winning sustainable combination comes from LEE Industries + BiOH.
What's inside this winning combination of NaturalLEE + BiOH: seat cushions made of Preserve® foam core with fiber wraps in a 100% cotton down proof ticking. The Preserve foam replaces 20% of the petroleum-based ingredients with a renewable soy-based BiOH polyol. The fibers are 80% regenerated fibers. Regenerated fibers consist of virgin fibers and waste fibers that are added with a binder fiber. This reduces the amount of waste that would normally go into our nation’s landfills.
Earth-Friendly Efforts Long Before it Became "Status Quo." ~ LEE
The NaturalLEE story: this fashion-forward upholstery manufacturer lovingly combines eco-technology with creative chic styling. Their commitment to sustainably is evident in their use of FSC certified woods and the green-choice to use BiOH cushions as their standard in all LEE products.
"Most importantly, sustainability is more than offering an eco-friendly product. We manufacture long-lasting furniture, made in the USA. The longevity of our furniture prevents it from being discarded into landfills, leaving a smaller environmental footprint on our Earth." ~ the LEE family.
Other feel good news about LEE: As part of their commitment toward a better future, one tree will be donated to American Forests® for every piece of NaturalLEE furniture sold. Now that, is true organic goodness. Make sure to see their amazing + extensive collection of eco-fabulous frames at www.leeindustries.com. {lifestyle photo: lee upholstery at domino magazine.}
BiOH: For the love of ~ Soy LoveThe BiOH Story: this company makes me feel good. Although, everyone wants to get into the green movement, the green road is not as easy as it looks. True innovation + change comes with time and commitment and BiOH is leading the way in changing how manufacturers make upholstered furniture. Consumers need to understand the "shades of green" in terms of sustainability and need to make informed choices in how to purchase home interior goods. Leslie Carothers, social media strategist of BiOH states:
"BiOH soy based foams are a more responsible choice for the consumer on the continuum of choice but not the greenest choice, as foam made with BiOH soy polyols is a combination of soy and petrol. At this time, only 20% max of any cushion or mattress can contain soy because the technology does not exist to make a cushion that meets the manufacturer’s specifications for comfort".
The Technology of it: What are BiOH® Polyols?
"We guess that you’re probably asking that question since “polyol” is not a word that most people use everyday, and we know that the majority of our family and friends still don’t completely understand what we do!" ~ the BiOH family.BiOH polyols are an ingredient for flexible foam in products you use daily: upholstered furniture, mattresses, mattress toppers, pillows, carpet cushion, and automotive seats. Traditional foam and carpet cushion ingredients are made from petroleum-based chemicals. BiOH polyols are made from a renewable resource ~ soybean oil. (See the Soy Love section.) Today BiOH polyols cannot replace all of the petroleum chemicals in these products, but they are leading the industry.
To learn more about BiOH and how to support other sustainable manufacturers in home decor, look to The BiOH Experience: ways to make a positive impact in your world at www.experienceBiOH.com.
Posts
Sue:
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for this lovely post re: my client, BiOH polyols. I want to make clear to everyone reading this a couple of things:
1. This was not a sponsored post-in other words, you did not receive any payment or goods or services in kind for writing this post and so we want to say a double thank you for taking your time to showcase what BiOH and Lee are working to achieve-offering the consumer beautiful, stylish, greenER options for their home that are the same price as other options which are not made to the same sustainable specifications.
2. Just to be super clear: "Preserve" brand foam is made with BiOH soy polyols as an ingredient. "Preserve" is the brand name that Hickory Springs, the original foam supplier to Lee, uses to brand their BiOH soy product offering to THEIR customers-the upholstery and bedding mfgs. like Lee who care about providing consumers with the most sustainably resourced choices without compromising comfort or increasing the price.
In today's environment, it is especially important that consumers realize that it doesn't cost them more to buy a sofa or a mattress with BiOH soy inside it-as you say, all they have to do is to know that it exists and to ask their local retailer for it.
Simply by asking for BiOH soy in our furniture cushions and bedding all of us, working together, can save millions and millions of barrels of oil every year that otherwise would have gone into the production of 100% foam based upholstery cushions or bedding materials.
Again, thank you for being so generous towards my client, BiOH, by telling the full story and writing this blog post with no outside compensation or reward from BiOH. We both truly appreciate it and hope consumers will indeed visit www.experienceBiOH.com to share their comments and learn more about how they can take small steps that, when taken together, create major benefits in conserving our natural oil resources.
This is so cool! - Love the story!
ReplyDeleteGreat story. I love hearing about new products. You have a very good-lookin' blog here. First stop, but it won't be my last! Thanks for the info.
ReplyDeleteThanks for shedding some light on BiOH. Very Informative post.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, really enjoyed reading about these products and the difference we all can make by choosing more environmentally responsible furniture. Would love to see more on this!
ReplyDeleteInteresting reading, thank you !
ReplyDeleteThe pics and style piqued my interest - then I as I read on I learned something new that is as close to the soul as style. Choices! The choice a manufacturer makes when choosing materials. It is so wonderful to see a line where they are not taking the path of least resistance. Bravo!!!
ReplyDeleteThank you for the post - every time I visit I find another treasure like this!
G ~
great article! I love the lines of the furniture too.
ReplyDeleteI love Lee's furniture as well. Check out their Eco-lux cushions too. Last time I heard, it was an upgrade. Since you like Lee, also check out Cisco's furniture.
ReplyDeleteAnna www.green-talk.com
We love using Natural Lee as well. This is one of our recent installations where we used their loveseat and side chair. Darling!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.facebook.com/pages/Darnestown-MD/Billet-Collins-Studio/57746035933#/album.php?aid=92472&id=57746035933
WOW. I must say I am disappointed to see that the practices of an agribusiness giant like Cargill, who owns BioH, "makes you feel good." I question the level of "green" that you are speaking on. From Wiki: Greenwash is a term used to describe the practice of companies disingenuously spinning their products and policies as environmentally friendly, such as by presenting cost cuts as reductions in use of resources.
ReplyDeleteCargill is a big proponent for genetically modified foods and products, not to mention the environmental considerations wrapped up in the pesticides and fertilizers used in industrial agriculture
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/03/24/AR2007032401357.html
Soy has NOT been accepted by the environmental community as the solution for our oil dependence and it has its own serious set of problems.
World Wildlife Fund: (see fact sheet on soy)
http://www.panda.org/about_our_earth/about_forests/problems/forest_conversion_agriculture/soy_deforestation_social/
As the Marketing Manager for BiOH polyols, I would like to respond briefly to the comment above regarding greenwashing, soy and GMOs.
ReplyDeletere: Greenwashing- As the marketing manager for BiOH polyols, we make all efforts to be transparent and factual in our communications. When you visit our blog www.experiencebioh.com, you see that we are trying to educate about foams made with BiOH polyols and address misconceptions around the amount of soy content in foams, etc. We have conducted life cycle assessments on the BiOH polyols supply chain to provide data that using our products results in a smaller environmental footprint than traditional petroleum materials they replace in regards to energy use and carbon footprint - http://bit.ly/13SdWC. As more companies adopt foams with BiOH polyols, the postitive impact can be significant!
re: GMOs- You are correct that Cargill sells GMO grains and does see biotechnology as a tool that may help raise living standards around the world. However, Cargill also believes in choice and that consumer demand will drive the market. We do offer conventionally bred crops and specialty grains in select markets where customers choose those. For more info on Cargill's views see
http://bit.ly/DHyBP
re: Soy- We believe in responsible soy sourcing. Since 2006, Cargill and others have banned the purchasing of soy grown from lands that have been recently deforested in the rain forest. Beyond responsible sourcing, we are also investing with our partner The Nature Conservancy to educate farmers in the region about the Forest Code and responsible farming practices. You can find resources on our soy programs at this link: http://bit.ly/5uRWx
Since you have posted anonymously, I have no way to provide you additional informatin. However, if you would like to contact me directly for more info, please e-mail bioh@cargill.com. I hope this helps!