Why buy new, when older is better built and Eco-Friendly?

This is an Article I really enjoyed and felt a pressing need to publish on our website. I would like to give special thanks to Vicky Sanderson for the story and all she does to produce products that are appealing but yet eco-friendly. Since EZ Furniture Assembly & Interior Innovations, LLC has begun to go Green it has been nothing short of amazing how we can utilize pieces of wood or scrap in another job, or to build a special, unique piece of furniture. Most kitchen cabinet companies just take town the old cabinets and throw them away where they will wind up in a landfill, unless they are of some value and the contractor decides to keep them to sell. If I were to tell you we weren't the same way I would be lying. However, today we operate quite differently we remove every cabinet with kids gloves and decide which ones are salvageable and which aren't. The ones that are we take back to our shop, clean them and do any minor repairs. Then when normally sand them down and re-stain or paint them and add new hardware (handles, pulls, hinges) and give them away FREE to a needy family. So many people think they are brand new cabinets, you would be surprised what a fresh coat of stain or paint can so! We do it with everything from clothes to children's toys. If you are a Church or non-profit agency in need of such things please contact us and we can arrange a schedule for when you can pick up such items or help us distribute furniture, televisions, and kitchen cabinets. To me it's all about doing the next right thing!

Christopher Purnell
President
EZ Furniture Assembly & Interior Innovations, LLC
www.ezfurnitureassembly.com



Vicky Sanderson
Special to The Star

One of the biggest trends in home decor is a movement away from slick composite and laminate materials toward wood that looks like it has lived a little.

Richly grained, weathered timber is turning up everywhere – in flooring, furniture and tabletop pieces – while wood-inspired design is showing up as a graphic element in textiles and wall coverings. At the same time, eco-friendly and sustainably produced housewares are becoming more desirable in decor and design circles.

The two trends merge nicely in furniture and accessories for the home made from "reclaimed timber" – wood that comes from existing furniture, architectural sites and urban canopies, or is surplus created in a building process.

The growing popularity of solid wood pieces with a time-worn look is no surprise to Rita Thiel, owner of JacKryn France, a boutique in Aurora that recently introduced a line of French country pieces handcrafted from reclaimed oak and pine.

Thiel says the allure of the new line lies in the simplicity of design and quality of timber, which is carefully stained and polished to create an effect called "Brocante," which Thiel translates as "country antique market."

Reclaimed pieces speak to a growing desire to own things that last, Thiel says. "People are more willing to save up slowly for a great piece because they understand that it will become an heirloom they pass on to their children," she says.

The signature pieces on display in her store work particularly well in kitchens, Thiel suggests, because they can be moved as needed, and can go with the family when it moves, as befits an heirloom.

The Brocante line includes a two-drawer sideboard with a chopping block, which sells for $1,020, while a classic sideboard sells for $1,116 and cane chairs retail for $612. For more information and for hours and location, go to jackryn.com or call 905-726-3451.

Urban Tree Salvage also makes furniture and accessories with built-in history, working with wood from urban trees that have been removed because of storm or insect damage, disease and construction, as well as timber salvaged from local historical sites.

Their serving platters are created from reclaimed slabs of wood, usually elm and maple, or occasionally birch and walnut. They're made with or without handles and finished in a food-safe hemp oil; prices start about $75. Candle holders are made of old-growth pine and hemlock salvaged from centuries-old timbers recently excavated near Toronto's lake front, at what was once known as Queen's Wharf. Four or six-piece holders sell for $20 and $25.

Later this year, Urban Tree Salvage will begin offering console, coffee and end tables made from the Queen's Wharf pine that will be shipped flat-packed for assembly. Prices start at $300. For more information, go to urbantreesalvage. com or visit 19A Malley Rd. in Scarborough 647-438-7516).

Ten Thousand Villages, a fair- trade organization that sells handcrafted goods from developing countries around the world, is a great source for wood products, including some from reclaimed timber. A teak bowl with undulating lines is made from salvaged Indonesian wood and sells for $150. For store locations or to shop online, go to tenthousandvillages.ca.

Using reclaimed materials and cut-offs seems to be a major theme at Made, a store at 867 Dundas St. W., that specializes in handmade works and small-run pieces by Canadian designers and artists.

Galiano lamps by Vancouver's Propellor Design, for example, feature biodegradable shades made from reclaimed Douglas fir and funny little twig pulls made from arbutus tree branches that came down during the wind storms in Vancouver in 2006. The lamps can be disassembled for repurposing or recycling at the end of the product's life cycle. To encourage reuse, how-to instructions for disassembly are attached to the inside of the lamp. Galiano lamps come in various sizes; prices start at about $260. To see other works go to propellor.ca.

Designers Cristina Covello and Andrew Reesor, who work with recycled materials such as plastic bags, tin cans, pop bottles and windshield glass, have added a DIY twist to repurposing wood. Their simple rePly chair is made from lowly plywood, and is also available through Made. Ambitious homeowners can download instructions for making the chair with leftover material at replychair.com

For more information and store hours, go to madedesign.ca or call 416-607-6384.

And here's a hot tip if you love modern design and like the idea of supporting new Canadian talent. Made will be hosting Radiant Dark, an exhibit of emerging Canadian designers from Feb. 20 to 27 at the Burroughs Building (639 Queen St. W.).

EZ Furniture Assembly & Interior Innovations is Going Green

Hello Everyone!

I am very pleased at the emails I have received in regard to our postings, thank you! We do our best to provide you with information that is important, intriguing, and a pleasure to read while providing our opinion or point of view. I, myself, try to stay focused on furniture assembly retailers, new ideas or products, and an interesting story or two which we believe you will find of interest as well. However, as many of you already know I am the President & founder of both EZ Furniture assembly & Interior Innovations, LLC. And for the ones who have followed my writings you know that I started with no more than a few screwdrivers and a passion to make my dream a reality. I worked very hard to get where our company is today, and give great thanks to my customers who have became friends, as well as my wonderful staff who took pride in what they did, whether it was returning a call or building a kitchen. I have learned a lot about myself, the business, and the industry as a whole over the last few years and have decided to make some changes.

We are the first furniture assembly and kitchen cabinet installation company to go Green. Until I really reached a level where we were noticed as a real competitor and serious business in this industry I was unaware of all the things we could be doing to help our environment. I began to receive publications from companies that produced periodicals that related directly to our industry as a whole. A lot of what I began reading was foreign to me because most of the companies were far larger than mine, and it was a bit hard to relate. However, it took someone outside my company to show us how much we have grown and how we really do relate to these companies. The most interesting fact I found was that the vast majority of the companies I was reading about started just like me. Then I felt the relation, not yet brothers but maybe a close cousin. Right now protecting the environment is a hot topic which I find several articles relating to it in every publication I receive. The more I read the more i understood how we could be a much better company by making just a few small changes that have actually benefited us more than I ever could have imagined. I have always frowned on litter bugs and people who dumped illegally and so forth, but never paid much attention to water consumption and using rechargeable batteries, or how much we were hurting our environment by using our older vans to go to each job site. The more I read the more I began to make changes within our company.

Today we are a Green company. I decided to sell all but one of service vans that is used only for jobs that are located where public transportation is no available, or is needed to pick up materials for a job in which we order all the materials at one time so we only use the van once. I drew up a blueprint of how to make a portable tool chest that actually was much more, and allowed our technicians to use it on every job and since it's base is a dolly or hand truck they can take on the subway or bus while still appearing professional and able to carry all the needed tools. We also no longer just trash our old cabinets, we take them down just as they were put up so there is no damage and donate them to a needy family. If we do a full renovation we try to use as much Eco friendly material as possible and educate our customers on the benefits of using certain green and energy saving products over more traditional materials. We are about to launch a new program where we explain to the customer that we do our best to be a green company and then tell them about the importance of recycling cellular phone batteries, and that if they have any old batteries we would be happy to take them to a local drop off center for recycling.

To many it may not seem like a lot, but I am happy with our progress and in time we will implement more programs and policies to do our part. If you have gone green and have any tips or suggestions please feel free to add your comment or feedback here.

Thanks again!
Christopher Purnell