If the doom and gloom surrounding climate change is getting you down it can start to feel like your actions are futile, but we all have a part to play in the sustainability of our planet. We’ve become a ‘throwaway society’ where keeping up with trends is more important than quality, longevity or caring for the environment. Some companies have capitalised on this, intentionally making items of inferior quality that they know will not last so that you are forced to shop with them again when you’re ready for a replacement!
Doing our little bit to help the earth starts with changing our mindset. Investing your money on hardwearing, quality items will be better for the environment, and your pockets, in the long term. When you’re faced with the choice between an expensive item and a cheaper item it can be hard to look past the immediate bargain, however if you can stretch to the more expensive item you will likely never need to replace it, thus saving you money in the long run as well as helping to save the planet, isn’t that a lovely bonus!
Benefits of Investing in High Quality Furniture
If the lure of bargain prices is proving strong then allow us to give you a rundown of the four main reasons to invest in high quality furniture…
- Appearance - the most obvious benefit is that more expensive furniture will look much more stylish than its cheaper counterpart. Teak has a natural beauty that doesn’t need to be painted or treated, it even looks stylish when weathered!
- Maintenance - teak is very low maintenance, you don’t even need to treat it as long as you give it a clean occasionally to remove any dirt that builds up from being exposed to the elements – leaving you more time to enjoy your furniture rather than maintaining it.
- Durability - our furniture is robustly made in the traditional manner of mortise and tenon joints. For example, our bench legs are typically 6cm thick, a cheaper version might only be 3cm thick and likely to snap under too much weight!
- Longevity - cheap furniture will be more susceptible to wear and tear leading you to need to replace it sooner. Investing more money in a better quality item means it could last you for decades!
So to sum up – high quality furniture is strong and sturdy, likely to last for years, doesn’t take up too much of your time with maintenance and looks stylish – suddenly those higher price tags seem like value for money!
Sustainable Materials
Teak is sustainable, renewable and not an endangered species. We are proud manufacturers of sustainable furniture, sourcing our teak from the sustainable plantations of Perum Perhutani on the island of Java. Illegal or unsustainable logging harms wildlife and the biosystems of our forests, accelerating climate change.
The production forests on Java have evolved into strictly managed plantations. Java has 54 forest management districts covering 4.9 million acres of plantations – these lands are managed by the state through the State Forestry Corporation (SFC). Owned and managed by the government, they have strict policies regarding the age, size and number of trees felled each year, together with a comprehensive, sustainable replanting program. They assure the legality and sustainability of their teak through SVLK certification.
Managed forests will only cut timber when the trees are mature, ensuring they will be able to regrow and replace, reducing the effect of climate change.
Knowing Your Certifications
SVLK stands for Sistem Verificasi Legalitas Kayu. It is Indonesia’s mandatory national timber legality and sustainability certification system, also known as the Indonesian Timber Legality Assurance System (INDO-TLAS). All of our teak carries SVLK certification confirming it is legally sourced, thus allowing our furniture to be bought in confidence.
FLEGT stands for Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade. All our furniture is made of FLEGT-licensed timber from Indonesia. The legality of the timber in our furniture is assured through Indonesia’s SVLK and FLEGT licensing scheme. The FLEGT licence confirms that the timber covered by that licence has been harvested, imported, processed and traded according to the relevant laws of Indonesia.
Click here for more information on certifications
Eco-Friendly
Another wonderful thing about teak wood is that it grows without the need for artificial fertilisers or heavy irrigation, making it an eco-friendly choice. Teak features natural oils, which make it naturally pest-resistant. This means that teak can be grown without the use of insecticides or chemicals.
Leftovers from teak production can be recycled or returned to the earth without damaging the environment. Teak is a hardwood and high quality teak furniture is built to last, so as long as you take care of your furniture then you may never need to replace it, which is much better for the environment long term.
Buying With Confidence
We hope we’ve given you a lot to think about when it comes to choosing your next piece of garden furniture. We all want value for money with our purchases and it can be hard to think of the long term benefits when you’re faced with a bargain that suits your needs for right now. If we can just change our mindsets and start to see the value in higher quality items then we’ll be helping ourselves as well as the environment!
When you buy teak furniture from Cyan, you can be assured that you are getting a product that is compliant with sustainable timber practices. Not only are you being mindful of climate change but you can be safe in the knowledge that you are getting a quality piece of furniture that is built to last - and if you look after your teak furniture then it can literally last a lifetime!
For more information please visit our website www.cyan.co.uk, call our friendly team on 020 8655 6240 or email us at [email protected]
Follow us