The Truth About Window Treatments
Conventional shades, blinds and draperies can be a powerful source of allergies, headaches, and mysterious ailments. You can tell by the smell when you unpack them. While you're defending yourself against the sun’s glare or creating a sense of privacy, you're exposed to serious and harmful chemicals, from toxic fabrics to treatments and fungicides. The sunlight coming through your windows heats up the toxins in the materials. Then harmful chemicals and VOCs (volatile organic compounds) come pouring in, intensified by the sun's rays. Is there an alternative? Absolutely. EARTHSHADE We have a decades-long relationship with this company. They have pioneered green, sustainable, and eco-friendly window fashions, treatments, and coverings for over 22 years. They are considered the safest and most sustainable shades and blinds in the world.
Swanson's company creates a complete line of lifecycle-assessed, fair trade, low-emitting, and in many cases, chemical free, shades and window coverings. And they also make the world's only compostable products for light management. Here's why we recommend Earthshade so often. Hundreds of people have come to us out of sheer desperation. They have purchased whole house-loads of window coverings from big brands (that we won't name here). They've installed window systems, blinds, shades, and draperies only to find they can't live with them. Sometimes it's headaches, sometimes brain fog, and sometimes severe migraines. We've spent years uncovering the toxic chemicals our customers have been unable to live with, including many products that have a Greenguard certification. Unfortunately, for individuals with multiple chemical sensitivity (MCS), the certification standards aren’t stringent enough. Today, hundreds of the most highly chemically sensitive people in the country are living in peace and health with our Earthshade products. Earthshade has uncompromising criteria for all their products. They must meet high standards of:
The founder of Earthshade really deserves some accolades. He is doing what no one else can. As compared to anyone else on the market, Earthshade's owner, CW Swanson, has gone to great lengths to find resources, including working with fabric companies to create innovative fabrics that will meet his exacting requirements. Here's why he is committed to making a difference in the air you breathe: "It was a class in fourth grade that started it all. At the end of the 1970s oil embargo, I had a teacher, Mrs. Salvatore, who offered a 'Save Our Sources (SOS)' elective class where the concept of responsible consumption hit me square in the heart. This was the very beginning of what would become the popular and increasingly necessary "living green lifestyle."" "In high school I started reading work by a doctor who was a researcher and author of dozens of books. This exposed me to the hard science of living naturally. At the time, there were several hundred papers on Vitamin C benefits. Today I follow over ten thousand! I then earned a degree in interior design because I was interested in the skills I would gain in the coursework. Subjects like psychology and sociology of design are not part of other related career paths. "All of this came together when I was helping a friend who had purchased a custom closet and window fashions company. I started out retooling his delivery and installation procedures, for better efficiency, as well as selling and installing conventional shading systems. As we grew the company, I took advantage of opportunities to tour and understand the then consolidating worldwide window fashions industry. "One day I was servicing a vinyl shade that was ten years old but still had the odor of brand-new shades as I unpacked them for installation. It occurred to me that these odors couldn't be good for people so I began researching what later became known as Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) and their effect on the human body. "I searched for alternatives, finding none. I knew then that my upbringing, education, and deep interest in knowing how everything works could pay off for people and planet. I could step back and look at the whole picture. I could combine my sense of responsibility and professionalism with understanding, designing and marketing healthy, beautiful, and truly sustainable products. "To this day, I remain at the forefront of a unique intersection of natural healthcare, regenerative product design, and cooperative business principles that include both domestic and international fair trade. I continue to satisfy my thirst by studying these and many other subjects on an academic level and move towards developing a curriculum of my own to inspire the next generation of people for planet." Earthshade and beyond. |
