Green House

No Harm Done

There's no harm done with these items. Kimberly picks her top five nontoxic home goods for cleaner, healthier living:

1. Woven hemp wall covering combines texture with rich color. Try the Hawaiian Hemp wall covering, sold to the trade at Phillip Jeffries Ltd. Contact them at 800-576-5455 or phillipjeffries.com. For an Earth-friendly, starch-based adhesive, try Golden Harvest TEKNAbond Dry Adhesive ($3.98 for 8 ounces) at Lowe's. Call 800-890-5932 or visit lowes.com.
2. Mild, detergent-free soap cleans clothing and surfaces. Try Liquid Sunshine, available at Vermont Soap for between $8 and $13. Call 866-762-7482 or visit vermontsoap.com.
3. Mix and match floral-print and solid-colored sheets made with low-eco-impact dyes. Try the premium organic cotton Gold Fiore print and sateen flat sheets sold at Gaiam. Prices range from $50 to $239. Call 800-869-3446 or visit gaiam.com.
4. You might miss the new-house smell—but not the chemicals that cause it—when you use low-odor, zero-VOC (volatile organic compound) paint such as Olympic Premium interior zero-VOC latex satin, which runs $17 and up per gallon. Call 800-441-9695 or visit www.olympic.com).
5. Hand-printed textiles make sprightly upholstery and curtains (shown above). Find organic cotton fabrics, $98 to $105 per yard, at Mod Green Pod. Call 617-670-2000 or visit modgreenpod.com.