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Give your home the fair trade treatment


 By Lisa Haynes, The Journal

We can all buy into the idea of fair and ethical trading - in every aspect of our homes, explains Lisa Haynes.

Consumers with a conscience are putting eco-friendly products at the top of their shopping lists.

Fair trade food is taking up more space in the supermarket aisles, fashion chains are frantically launching organic clothing lines, and now even homewares are getting in on the ethical makeover.

And global homewares have certainly come a long way since the days of tie-dye throws and embarrassing earthenware.

"Being an ethical consumer no longer means you have to dress frumpily, and the homewares market is catching up fast," says Danielle Proud of The Times' Style magazine.

"Small, independent outfits are blazing the ethical trail by forging fair trade partnerships with groups of disadvantaged craftspeople."

Ethical shopping

The Fairtrade Mark is an independent consumer label that appears on products as a guarantee that disadvantaged producers are getting a better deal.

Today, more than five million people - farmers, workers and their families - across 58 developing countries benefit from the international Fairtrade system.

But Danielle admits that buying ethically for the home can be confusing. She says: "There are a number of different certifying organisations, all with their own criteria.

"Ultimately, though, the aim of all the organisations and sellers is the same: to offer a living wage and good working conditions, to abolish child labour and to pay a social premium to fund community projects. If ethical consumerism can contribute to the greater good, it's the perfect excuse to do more of it."

Planet-friendly furnishing

If you're looking to spruce up a room with global homewares, ethical goods are slowly becoming more accessible - and stylish.

We look at fair trade and planet-friendly products on the high street and beyond:

Living room

See the eco-friendly light with Home Temptations' trendy Hollow Mood Light, £30.

Designed specifically for energy saver bulbs, it's supplied with a long-life, low mercury, recyclable bulb - and the shade's fully recyclable to boot.

Peer into Traidcraft's grand glass painted mirror, £120, guilt-free. It's a unique fair trade product providing work for the poorest people in Peru.

Get the natural look in your home with Ganesha's Kauna-Phok cushion, £19.99. Kauna-Phok is a swampy rush native to Manipur, north east India.

Then bring your fair trade look together with a floral finish. Waitrose's Fairtrade Kenyan roses are priced £4.99-£12.99.

Bathroom

Slip out of the shower and cuddle up in eco-friendly towels. For designer luxury, try John Rocha's organic cotton towels at Debenhams: face cloth, £3; hand towel, £10; bath towel, £18. They are available in lemon, pink or beige to co-ordinate with most bathroom suites.

Or try House of Fraser's Santens 100% natural soft bamboo stem towels.

The bamboo grows in tropical countries in an environment without pesticides and has natural antibacterial elements ideal for hygienic use: face towel, £4; hand towel, £12; bath towel, £24, and bath sheet, £34.

Treat your tootsies to Ethnic Style's Tanushri bathmat, £20. It's hand-woven by a women's co-operative in Bangladesh, from natural jute and is from a BAFT-certified Fairtrade supplier.

Kitchen

Why not toast your ethical energy with some Fairtrade wine? Line up your bottles with Traidcraft's wine rack, £12 - the hand-wrought steel wine rack has space for seven bottles.

It's made in Bangladesh, and Traidcraft works with rural artisans reviving and promoting traditional craft skills.

Go the whole hog and sip from the Natural History Museum's cool Eco Ware Cups, £25 for four.

The biodegradable glasses are a mixture of bamboo fibre and resin, forming a durable plastic that you can compost back into the earth after use.

Serve up your Fairtrade food on eco-friendly plates like Ganesha's box of 20 leaf plates, £4.99.

Made in Orissa, east India, these disposable plates can also be composted.

Even doing the dishes can now be eco-friendly. Dry your crockery with Marks & Spencer's Fairtrade cotton tea towels, £7.50 for three.

Bedroom

Bed down on ethical sheets and sleep with a clear conscience.

Look at Marks & Spencer's Fairtrade bedding - including duvet cover, £19.50; sheet, £18, and pillow case, £6. M&S is working with over 600 Fairtrade cotton farmers investing in social projects such as development of a new school, health centre, nursery and literacy programme.

Pretty planet-friendly cushions will add luxury to your night-time haven. Go for The Green Apple's small Recycled Cushion, £35, by designer Liz Cook.

Each unique cushion is made from recycled textiles and is made to order.

Lamps are great for swotting up on Fairtrade bedtime reading. Try Ethnic Style's gorgeous Recherche lamp base, £120. Each base is handmade in a family-run workshop in the Foshan region of Southern China, using 100% local clay and recycled glass.

And kids can set the ball rolling on an eco-friendly lifestyle at an early age.

Ideal for friends' sleepovers, try Urchin's Bed in a Bag, £59.99, available in pink or blue gingham, which has the Fairtrade stamp of approval.

Stockists:

Debenhams - 08445 616 161/www.debenhams.com

Ethnic Style - 08450 557 710/www.ethnicstyle.com

Ganesha - (020) 7928- 3444/www.ganesha.co.uk

Home Temptations - 08704 280 958/www.hometemptations.com

House of Fraser - 08701 607 270/www.houseoffraser.co.uk

Marks & Spencer - 08453 021 234/www.marksandspencer.com

Natural History Museum - (020) 7942- 5494/www.nhm.ac.uk/buyonline

The Body Shop - www.thebodyshop.com

The Green Apple - www.the-green-apple.co.uk

Traidcraft - 08704 431 017/ www.traidcraftshop.co.uk

Urchin - www.urchin.co.uk

Waitrose - www.waitrose.com

* Learn about Fairtrade at www.fairtrade.org.uk

Fairtrade aroma

Freshly- brewed coffee is an excellent trick for tempting prospective buyers if you're selling your home.

So wake up and smell the coffee by supping Fairtrade. Made from 100% Arabica beans, Percol - the Fairtrade and organic coffee brand - has launched a new charity initiative.

A 25p donation from jars of their Fairtrade Colombia instant coffee, £2.99, will go directly to the Grounds for Hope Coffee Kids Charity to help improve lives of parents and their children in coffee farming communities. For details visit www.coffeekids.org

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