Furniture Thoughts

We all love new things, but the issues of where they are manufactured, the materials used in that manufacture and the intended life span are crucial questions that we as a world culture need to answer whenever we buy a product.  We humans need encouragement to think long term and to consider some of the additional costs that are not always included in the cash price we pay for a product.  How is a person supposed to calculate value when there are carbon footprints and landfill closure and VOC emission costs that are not included in product prices?

Choosing the lowest cost does not equal choosing the best solution for long term environmental efficiency. Simply because a manufacturer or end purchaser does not have to pay these environmental costs out of pocket now doesn't mean that we won't eventually have to pay. Just because we are not explicitly paying a designated environmental cost at the time of purchase does not mean that we won't pay some other way. Whether this cost takes the form of government cleanup expenses or a child's asthma medicine, it is a real cost. So as an exercise, we can look at probable issues created by always selecting the lowest price item as opposed to the highest value item. Just because we are not explicitly paying a cost at the time of purchase does not mean that we have escaped the cost. Lowest cost manufacturers are betting that you do not care. I am creating products hoping that you that do.