Since 2017 we have been concentrating on making our business more environmentally sustainable. We have been encouraging other makers + small businesses to do the same by sharing our exciting discoveries through Instagram and Pinterest. Here are some of the changes we have made, along with others that we are working on. If you have found solutions of your own please do let us know so we can share them.
- All our products are now made from recycled + repurposed materials. This reduces CO2, landfill + the destruction + pollution of natural habitats in mining for raw materials.
- The first step we made was to switch to a 100% renewable energy provider. We are with Pure Planet for our electricity, a community run initiative based in Bath.
- We no longer use single use plastics in the finishing, packaging + posting of our products. All our packaging is plastic free, 100% recyclable + biodegradable. Our boxes are made from a mix of sustainably sourced + recycled card approved by the Forest Stewardship Council. Our box inserts are repurposed from used card packaging + contain 100% recycled fibre. Our glassine bags are 100% paper. Our sticky tapes are made from paper, with a natural rubber adhesive. All our care cards and stationery are made of 100% recycled fibres and printed with vegetable inks.
- The Internet uses data storage systems + the energy required to power these is said to treble this decade. That is why we have switched to Ecohosting which uses 100% renewable energy to host our email + use Big Cartel for our website.
- Patination, gilding + polishing are all processes used in the fabrication of metal. These can involve the use of harmful chemicals, so we no longer employ these processes in our workshop. However, we still need to clean the metal after working it + for this we now use citric acid which is kinder to the environment than industrial alternatives.
- Working with metal requires intense heat + this traditionally involves the burning of fossil fuels. We looked into using biopropane, but unfortunately the majority of this resource is sold to the domestic market. However we are continuing to look for a better solution.