Sustainable design is about finding the perfect balance between beauty and responsibility. As more people seek eco-friendly options for their homes, conversations about how to achieve a luxurious feel while keeping the earth in mind have become popular. We shouldn’t be sacrificing comfort, style, or elegance to achieve this either — sustainable design elevates your space by using thoughtfully chosen materials, craftsmanship, and innovative systems that not only make your home look refined, but also support the planet.
We keep sustainability and healthy products at the forefront of our minds when we work to make clients’ spaces come to life. By continuously researching sustainable and health products and incorporating environmentally conscious elements we can easily integrate sustainability in a way that feels personal to our clients’ lifestyles and does not sacrifice any style in the process!
Thoughtful Materials, Thoughtful Spaces
When we design with sustainability in mind, we’re drawn to materials that have a story—like reclaimed wood, recycled metal, and handcrafted details. These choices not only lessen the environmental impact but also add unique character and warmth that mass-produced items can’t offer. We also look closely at the health of materials and how they impact the user far into the future. Lastly, we utilize modern, innovative building techniques that allow for less environmental impact — without anyone knowing!
Embracing Natural Materials and their Uniqueness
There’s something special about the imperfections in natural materials—they remind us that luxury isn’t about perfection, it is about connection. It’s about feeling connected to the earth, to the artisans who create these pieces, and to the space itself. True luxury comes from embracing natural elements that make a home feel warm and full of character.
Using Passiv Haus Techniques to Eliminate Excessive Heating and Cooling
As discussed in our recent newsletter, we sparked heated debates on TikTok after suggesting we should rely less on air conditioning. The outrage was real—climate change, heat waves, humidity! But the truth is, we’ve known for years how to build homes that don’t need heating or cooling. The Passiv Haus movement, which started in Germany, uses five simple techniques:
- Triple-paned windows
- Insulation
- Eliminate thermal bridges
- Air-tight construction
- Heat Recovery Ventilation System
These homes stay cool in summer, and in winter, your body heat, appliances, and light bulbs keep them warm. If needed, a tiny heater—equivalent to 2 hairdryers—can heat a 2,800 sq. ft. home. The cost is only 3-10% more than a standard build, plus these techniques work for renovations too! Here’s a video walking through a Passiv Haus remodel that utilizes some other net-zero techniques as well.
Making Healthy Choices When Selecting Materials and Finishes
Materials matter, not just for aesthetics, but what we put in our homes, offices, and other spaces effects the air we breathe. Unfortunately the United States has rather lax laws when it comes to building materials allowed. Many things marketed at residential consumers have known carcinogens (*cough* LVT / LVP vinyl flooring *cough*). Where other countries, such as France, have banned the use of PVC (polyvinylchloride) in hospitals, the United States leaves these decisions entirely up to the consumer (who is often not well informed about these products).
Can you do your own research? Yes, absolutely, but be careful. Greenwashing is a major issue in product development, manufacturers often remove one toxic material popular in the news cycle in favor of another equally toxic, but less well known material. It’s unfortunate.
Kaiser Permanente has taken the lead in the United States on both researching and banning certain products in their hospitals, creating a Prohibited List of Harmful Materials they do not allow. The Green Building Institute similarly has a Red List of materials (updated annually) they do not recommend. Laurel Design Collective carefully follows the recommendations of both these organizations when making material selections.
A New Kind of Luxury: Where Wellness Meets Sustainable Design
Luxury goes beyond beauty, it is about how a space makes you feel. We emphasize wellness as a central part of sustainable, healthy design. Incorporating biophilic design elements like living walls, water features, and natural materials allows us to create spaces that feel nourishing and calming.
For Pacific Northwest retreats, we love using radiant heating, natural stone flooring, and sustainable wool textiles to create a warm, spa-like feel. These elements bring comfort and a hint of luxury, making the space feel both welcoming and eco-friendly.
Image Credit: Laurel Oberst for Studio Garrison
Sustainability is Personal
We know that design is personal. Every choice we make is grounded in understanding how our clients live, work, and relax in their space. That’s why sustainability isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach—it’s a conversation. We take the time to understand what resonates with each client, curating designs that blend their personal style with sustainable principles. Whether that’s selecting solar panels that align with the architecture of the home or incorporating handcrafted furnishings from local artisans, we ensure that every detail speaks to their values while supporting the planet.
Honoring Nature Through Design
Ultimately, we see sustainability as a way to honor the beauty of nature. When we choose sustainable luxury, we’re choosing to respect the earth while creating timeless, elegant spaces. It’s not just about design—it’s about making a lasting impact, ensuring that the spaces we create today will stand the test of time, both in their beauty and their environmental effect.
We invite you to explore how sustainable design can bring beauty and purpose to your design project. Together, we can create spaces that not only look amazing but also make a positive impact on the planet.
The Greenest Building Technique? Reducing Building.
It is well known that construction is one of the largest producers of waste material across all industries. Building generates a huge amount of waste and demoing even more. So how do we fix this? We reduce the amount of building needed. First, by renovating and restoring as many existing buildings as we can, and second, by building strong, well-constructed, timeless-style buildings that will stand the test of time.
Be Sustainable, Build Less
This is a hard one. Build less? But don’t we all want to have a new build home we designed from the ground up? Isn’t there a huge housing crisis in the US? Yes and yes. So how do we mitigate it? Building less might mean creating smarter floor plans than require less square footage. Or it might mean that rather than building 8 single family homes, we stack them as large apartments with common spaces or create attached homes horizontally. These are both uncommon and rather undesired options in America, but single family homes spread out the way we’ve built them in the decades since the post-WWII building boom are unusual and almost unheard of in other parts of the world.
What if you were to build anyways — that’s fine! No judgment here! — are there other things to consider? Consider multi-generational living. As the housing crisis rages in the US many grandparents are selling their large homes to their children and staying on in the guest quarters. Many young people can not longer afford to buy a house or rent a nice apartment and thus are living at home longer. If you’re building, consider the long term future. Do you have a parent or child who might want to live with you at some point? Incorporating a semi-attached apartment into your build is a great idea. In the short term it could house a nanny, be an additional income generator, or even be a place for your estate manager to live.
Restore, Renovate, and Reuse
Turning away from building and taking advantage of the many existing homes, offices, warehouses, and other buildings is even better. By restoring existing structures, you’re not only preventing a ton of waste from entering the landfill, you’re breathing new life into a structure and its neighborhood. In turn, your space gets an instant rich history, delightful quirk, and a wonderful story. Renovation projects are some of our favorite to work on at Laurel Design Collective, in part because they present fun and exciting challenges as we navigate and existing structure and story and turn it into one that represents the style and personality of our clients, while functioning for modern day life.
Sustainable, Healthy Design for Living a the Modern Life
By working with a variety of techniques, challenges, and materials, you can design a space that is not only sustainable, but also healthier for you. Buildings with a sustainable mindset last long into the future, becoming examples to others and outlasting nearby poorly-constructed buildings. Sustainability does not mean sacrificing comfort, luxury, or style, rather it involves thoughtful selections and planning.