We finally installed our double oven this weekend and I love it! We are on a super tight budget but also want to be as green and sustainable as we can--the solution? Reclaimed and second-hand items. We got this double wall oven for just $30 off of
KSL (our local online classifieds) The cheapest wall oven cabinet at IKEA was in the $400 range and would still have been loaded with formaldehyde and VOCs and plastics (though IKEA is better than most US companies. (See
the IKEA way) We purchased this armoire, again off of KSL, for $200 and my husband altered the interior to fit the oven and built the shelves to the side for all of my baking pans. We were told it was solid wood. Turns out it does have some particleboard in it but the beauty of getting used furniture is that it has had a chance to off gas in someone elses home! The piece next to the armoire is an antique, made at the turn of the century before Americans became chemical happy and before plastics. It is made completely of wood and metal and it has such character! With antiques, however, you do need to be on the lookout for lead paint. If you can't afford the new green products, reclaimed is the way to go. In fact, in many ways, reclaimed is even more sustainable because it does not require the manufacture of anything new and reduces the load on our landfills. More to come on our mosaic tile floor made from cheap tile remnants, open shelving as a way to reduce materials as well as off-gassing, and using natural materials (like lots of baskets!).
We finally installed our double oven this weekend and I love it! We are on a super tight budget but also want to be as green and sustainable as we can--the solution? Reclaimed and second-hand items. We got this double wall oven for just $30 off of KSL (our local online classifieds) The cheapest wall oven cabinet at IKEA was in the $400 range and would still have been loaded with formaldehyde and VOCs and plastics (though IKEA is better than most US companies. (See the IKEA way) We purchased this armoire, again off of KSL, for $200 and my husband altered the interior to fit the oven and built the shelves to the side for all of my baking pans. We were told it was solid wood. Turns out it does have some particleboard in it but the beauty of getting used furniture is that it has had a chance to off gas in someone elses home! The piece next to the armoire is an antique, made at the turn of the century before Americans became chemical happy and before plastics. It is made completely of wood and metal and it has such character! With antiques, however, you do need to be on the lookout for lead paint. If you can't afford the new green products, reclaimed is the way to go. In fact, in many ways, reclaimed is even more sustainable because it does not require the manufacture of anything new and reduces the load on our landfills. More to come on our mosaic tile floor made from cheap tile remnants, open shelving as a way to reduce materials as well as off-gassing, and using natural materials (like lots of baskets!).
