If you’re trying to improve the air quality in your bedroom and create a non-toxic environment, apart from investing in an organic mattress and an air purifier, you should also make sure that the furniture in your bedroom is made from organic natural materials free from potentially harmful chemicals.
Take a look at my top picks:
Disclaimer: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Nowadays, there are more and more companies offering non-toxic furniture as more people become aware of risks related to VOCs (volatile organic compounds) found in common furniture.
In this article, I’ll explain what VOCs are and how they can affect your health, but first, I’ll discuss a few non-toxic furniture companies that offer high-quality, Greenguard-certified furniture for a toxin-free bedroom and a healthy home.
Material: Solid Wood (Walnut or Maple)
Finish: Natural Beeswax
Warranty: Lifetime
Medley Home was set up by nature and wellness enthusiasts and they use natural materials whenever possible. They only use domestically grown natural wood that follows strict FSC rules for sustainable forestry. Their furniture is made from solid wood and zero VOC finish with beeswax, carnauba wax, and olive oil.
The fabrics in their upholstered furniture contain no flame retardants or stain finishes, and they use fabrics such as 100% organic cotton, hemp, and wool, and some of their textiles are certified organic.
Check their green furniture selection to find bed frames and bedside tables that best suit your taste. This non-toxic designer furniture won’t be complete without a luxury organic mattress, such as Botanical Bliss Mattress by Plush Beds.
Atlantic Furniture is a member of the Sustainable Furnishings Council. They use only plantation-grown natural wood, mostly rubberwood, mahogany, birch, and poplar wood. Their eco-friendly furniture is finished with non-toxic zero VOC wood stains and uses non-toxic glues that don’t contain lead, formaldehyde, or VOCs.
This company offers some of the most affordable non-toxic furniture pieces on the market, including dressers and bed frames. Check their selection of solid wood bedroom, living room, dining, and office furniture.
Be sure to check their selection of storage and non-storage bed frames, bunk beds, and dressers. If you’re looking for an affordable organic mattress to go with your Atlantic Furniture bed frame, check Eco Bliss Mattress by Plush Beds.
Material: Reclaimed Douglas Fir Solid Wood
Finish: Zero-VOC sealant
Warranty: 10 Years
Promo Code: SAVE10 (10% off sitewide)
If you’re after a reclaimed wood bed frame or dresser free from flame retardants, you may want to check Avocado zero VOC furniture. This company is based in Los Angeles and specializes in organic mattresses, but they also have a small range of non-toxic furniture for your bedroom. Their wooden furniture is made from 100% reclaimed solid wood with a rustic raw finish and zero VOC sealant.
Within their natural wood formaldehyde-free furniture range, you’ll find non-toxic bed frames, dressers, and tables made from natural materials without harmful chemicals.
The price of this flame-retardant-free furniture includes in-home delivery and setup. To create a chemical-free bedroom, pair your Avocado bed frame with Avocado Green Mattress, made of 100% natural materials without toxic chemicals.
If you’re after a non-toxic bed frame, check Thuma affordable non-toxic platform beds. These US-made bed frames combine Japanese craftsmanship with modern, minimalistic design to create a non-toxic, sturdy, durable bed frame.
These solid wood bed frames are made from upcycled and repurposed rubberwood and finished with natural oil, making them a perfect choice for eco-conscious consumers who want to reduce the amount of chemicals in their homes.
The headboard is filled with eco-friendly recycled plastic and it’s got a removable, machine-washable cover.
To complete this bed, you can buy a Thuma nightstand or side table. Both pieces are made from natural wood using Japanese joinery. Their minimalistic design will complete your
Masaya & Co. is an environmentally conscious furniture company that offers incredibly beautiful and sustainable bedroom furniture for your home. They believe in the beauty of handcrafted furniture made from responsibly harvested solid wood.
This company is passionate about using environmentally friendly materials and practices such as responsible harvesting, healthy use of natural oils, and non-toxic finishes to create whole pieces of furniture that support the timeless design and artisan craftsmanship.
Each piece of their non-toxic bedroom furniture, including bed frames with handwoven headboards, is handmade by a team of architects, furniture designers, and artisan craftsmen at their facility in Managua, Nicaragua.
They only use natural wood such as Teak, Rosita Walnut, and Royal Mahogany. Their furniture is designed to feel as good as it looks in your home, and looks beautiful anywhere from a modern apartment to a furnished cottage.
Mash Studios make real wood furniture free from formaldehyde and other toxic chemicals. Their furniture is made in the US from solid English Walnut. Their finishes are either natural (linseed oil) or zero-VOC, so you can be sure there will be no chemical smell and they won’t be releasing any toxic substances into the air.
If you’re after a chic, modern bed frame with storage, that´s the place to go! All Mash Studios furniture, including bed frames and headboards, is 100% recyclable and eco-friendly.
Material: Solid wood
Finish: Natural Oil
Warranty: 1 year
The Online Amish Furniture Company has been able to manufacture solid wood furniture that is non-toxic and handcrafted using natural, sustainably sourced materials. They offer furniture for all of the rooms in your home, made from solid oak, maple, and more. They use ancient Amish craftsmen to ensure they produce strong, durable, and high-quality furniture.
Their furniture is available with an oil-rubbed finish, so it’s free from toxic chemicals. In their offer, you can find non-toxic natural wood armoires, bed frames, bunk beds, futon beds, dressers, and nightstands.
Their solid wood bedroom sets are available in a variety of styles, including mission, shaker, traditional, and contemporary, and colors to match the décor of your home. Be sure to check their wide variety of non-toxic bed frames and dressers.
Futon Shop offers a range of non-toxic mattresses, bedding, and zero VOCs furniture handcrafted in the US. They make beautiful natural bed frames made from sustainable solid wood free from formaldehyde-emitting glues and not fumigated with poisons. They only use simple linseed oil, no petroleum or heavy metal toxins.
They also offer 100% chemical-free solid wood futon frames that can be used as sofas made from cherry, oak, and walnut wood with no lacquer or stains just a simple hand-rubbed natural linseed oil finish.
Greenington offers bamboo furniture with low VOC finishes. They sustainably source bamboo and the adhesive they use to bond bamboo strips has very low amounts of formaldehyde. In order to cut their carbon footprint, they make their non-toxic furniture close to the bamboo source.
Apart from eco-friendly bedroom furniture, with modern bed frames and dressers, they offer living room and dining room sets with a modern, minimalistic design.
I’m impressed by Copeland Furniture as they offer beautiful designs that combine contemporary and traditional styles and all their furniture is Greenguard certified. Copeland was established in the 1970s and is located in Bradford, Vermont.
Copeland offers eco-friendly bedroom furniture collections for your whole house and their bedroom sets are characterized by impressive designs with classic lines available in five different shades of stained solid wood. If you’re after a Greenguard-certified bed frame, be sure to check their website.
Material: FSC Certified Solid Wood
Finish: Pure Tung Oil, Special Aged Linseed Oil, and Pure Organic Beeswax
Pacific Rim Woodworks company was set up in 1981 and it specializes in handcrafted, organic bedroom furniture. They use maple wood sourced in the pacific northwest and it’s certified by Forest Stewardship Council.
They also use hardwood plywood with PureBond formaldehyde-free technology helping them make furniture with low VOC emissions for your healthy home.
They use tung oil and pure beeswax to finish their pieces instead of harsh chemicals and they make sure that if they use other types of wood finishes, they are always low VOC. They also use low-VOC glues and adhesives and their designs are classic and simple.
Material: Solid American White Oak, Solid American Walnut, FSC Certified Sustainable American Ash
Finish: Natural Oil
Area Home is a Swedish design company led by designer Anki Spets. This company also makes sustainable, real wood furniture with natural wax finishes. This non-toxic furniture is made from solid FSC Certified Sustainable American Ash, American white oak, walnut, or maple.
They offer a small but beautiful collection of zero VOC bedroom and living room furniture, including modern bed frames. It’s also worth checking their collection of organic bedding products.
Viva Terra is a company inspired by green living. They offer a beautiful selection of reclaimed wood furniture and low VOC furniture. They use only natural finishes and rich water-based non-toxic stains. Their reclaimed solid wood furniture is handcrafted from reclaimed California Douglas Fir wood.
At Viva Terra you can also buy non toxic upholstered furniture with regenerated fiber fill. The fill is made from renewable, soy-based BiOH™ polyol core and 50/50 cotton and polyester blend down-proof ticking.
Read More: What are the best organic home decor brands?
Volatile organic compounds are organic chemicals that evaporate at a high rate at room temperature. Some of them can be potentially toxic and be harmful to your health if you’re exposed to them regularly.
The most common harmful VOCs found in toxic furniture, cleaning products, paints, and carpets are:
Indoor Air Pollutants
Some of these compounds release a toxic chemical smell, but others can’t be detected this way. VOCs in furniture can be released by finishes (wood stains and paints) as well as different types of MDF boards (particle boards, laminates, etc.).
Eliminating those compounds from your indoor air is one of the first steps toward cleaner and toxin-free air and organic natural furniture will help you create a nontoxic home.
Read More: Best Non-Toxic Dining Chairs
Volatile organic compounds found in toxic furniture are continuously released into the indoor air. They can affect you in different ways depending on how long you’re exposed to them. After short-term exposure, a few hours or days, you may experience:
However, long-term exposure, months or years, can have much more severe consequences including:
There’s ongoing research into other health risks related to volatile compounds, so there’s still much to learn. However, so far the evidence shows that VOC should be eliminated from your environment and buying non-toxic furniture is bound to improve the indoor air quality in your home significantly.
Read More: Best Non-Toxic Mirrors
When looking for non-toxic furniture, make sure it’s Greenguard certified. Greenguard certification is issued for products that meet rigorous criteria for VOC emissions set by key public health agencies.
By buying furniture with Greenguard Certificate you can be sure that it’s got very low emissions of chemicals into your indoor air helping you create a healthier environment for you and your family.
There are also many manufacturers whose products have not yet received a Greenguard Certificate. You should also take them into consideration as they usually offer quality products that may have a different kind of green certification or haven’t been assessed by Greenguard yet.
Forest Stewardship Council is an international non-profit organization that promotes responsible forestry. FSC assesses forests all over the world to check if they meet their strict environmental and social standards. It’s better to choose FSC-certified bedroom furniture because it doesn’t contribute to damaging forests and natural habitats.
This is due to sustainably sourced wood from forests that meet FSC requirements. There are no empty patches of land where trees used to grow in responsibly managed forests because when one tree is chopped, a new tree is planted so that the forest continues to grow sustainably and biodiversity is protected. FSC strives to protect the environment and create a healthier future for people and animals.
The principles of FSC are based on the idea that forests need to be protected and used sustainably. They maintain cultural rights and consult and engage the forest inhabitants. FSC-certified companies also provide their workers with safety training, general training, and decent wages.
Products made with wood and paper from FSC-certified forests are labeled with their logo (on the right). FSC-certified solid wood is harvested respecting indigenous people’s rights without causing any harm to the environment.
The Sustainable Furnishings Council works to raise awareness of the importance of sustainability in home furnishings. The SFC works with businesses to reduce their environmental footprint by providing guidance for companies and education opportunities for consumers interested in purchasing more eco-friendly products.
Networking events are available throughout different regions where members come together to share information about sustainability efforts within their organization or company while learning from one another’s experiences.
These networking events allow organizations who may not have had contact before an opportunity to learn how to work together towards achieving greener goals, benefiting both parties involved.
Sustainable furniture includes any product that meets certain qualifications such as minimizing carbon emissions, waste stream pollutants, un-recyclable content and primary materials from unsustainable sources. SFC members are dedicated to minimizing waste by supporting recycling within their organization and educating their customers on how to recycle their products.
Apart from making sure that the manufacturer doesn’t use adhesives and paints with high VOC concentration, you should also pay attention to the following:
The difference between solid and engineered wood is that the former is manufactured from raw material, whereas the latter is made from processed pieces of natural materials. Engineered wood includes particleboard, MDF and plywood.
As pressed wood products are cheaper to manufacture and not as durable and strong as natural wood, this kind of furniture will start to sag and squish, whereas quality solid wood furniture will last decades or generations.
Natural wood has also a more natural appearance than particle board. The most important difference between solid and engineered wood is the amount of toxic chemicals these materials contain.
Engineered wood is bound to off-gas VOCs, which are toxic chemicals. In order for furniture manufacturers to create smooth surfaces and achieve the perfect finish when preparing engineered wood, they have to use a range of chemicals and adhesives that are toxic in nature.
On the other hand, natural wood does not need toxic adhesives as it is a natural product. Just be sure to choose furniture with a natural finish (linseed oil) or zero-VOC finish.
Engineered wood is manufactured from smaller pieces of wood than solid wood, so the grain pattern will not be as visible. It also tends to have a blander look than natural wood, with little variety in color or texture (though some people may prefer this neutral, basic look).
Apart from buying an eco-friendly bed frame and dresser, there’s a lot you can do to reduce the concentration of VOCs in your indoor air significantly.
Some solutions require spending money while others are completely free and involve changing your old habits. Check the following tips to see what you can do to breathe toxin-free air in your home:
Research shows that VOCs can have a catastrophic effect on your health and your family. Lowering VOC emissions in your home should become one of your priorities.
It does require some investment, but healthy you and a healthy family are worth every price and buying non toxic furniture is one of the most important steps to a chemical-free home.
Consider buying organic cleaning products, organic mattresses, organic mattress toppers, low VOC furniture, non-toxic sofas and paint your walls with low VOC paint. These steps will help you achieve a nontoxic home and healthy sleep.
You’ll see a big difference in the quality of the air you and your family breathe and you may notice an immediate difference if you suffer from asthma or other respiratory diseases.
I’d love to hear about your experiences with non-toxic furniture. Do you have your favorite brands you’d like to recommend? Please share your opinions and questions in the comment section below.
My name is Kamila, and I'm passionate about researching non-toxic, organic products for the home. I believe it's so important to create a safe and healthy environment for our families, and I enjoy helping others do the same.