If you’re looking for green living tips, there’s still time to catch the Better Homes and Gardens Living Green home tour in cities across the US.  The exhibit showcases green home decorating options, including a kitchen with bamboo cabinets, recycled glass counter tops, a recycled mosaic tile back splash, and green kitchen appliances.

Designed by Libby Langdon, the Living Green exhibit also includes a green living room, bathroom, and laundry room.  If you go, check out the bathroom vanity made from a salvaged dresser, sustainable wood furniture in the living room, and a media cabinet made from a recycled baby changing table.

Although it began in June, the tour continues through October with upcoming stops in Boston, Washington DC, Jacksonville, Atlanta, and NYC.  Here’s more information, photos and the tour schedule for the Better Homes and Gardens Living Green home tour.

Is it environmentally friendly furniture or is it art? Perhaps both. This custom-made rocking chair is made from surplus stock of car seat belts, and certified sustainable wood . Clean lines and simple design give this sustainable wood furniture a look that would complement nearly any green home decor.

Made by Atmos, the rocking chair is available in three wood finishes including oak, ebony, and mahogany. You can also choose the color of the seatbelt straps which are stretched across the frame of this rocking chair like webbing.  Color choices include red, tan, silver, black, and olive. Atmos makes other styles of sustainable wood furniture including arm chairs and side chairs.   I found this eco-friendly chair at Green and More.

Sometimes the “almost perfect” room needs just a single finishing touch to become the “perfect” room. If you’re looking for green decorating accessories to put the final touches on your green home, you might want to consider occasional tables, coffee tables, and end tables like the one pictured above.

This eco-friendly coffee table is made from 3 pieces of SmartWood, which is rain forest certified and certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, a non-profit dedicated to sustainable forestry practices. All the wood for the environmentally-friendly furniture is harvested in North America, and it’s finished with non-toxic, formaldehyde free, water-based finishes. In addition, this end table is UV sealed to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Wondering how they’ll ship it to you? The table folds flat to reduce packaging and shipping requirements. I found this occasional table at BuyEnergyEfficient.org, which offers a wide variety of environmentally-friendly household items, including green furniture and green kitchen appliances.

Choosing environmentally furniture can be a complicated decision. Here are a few things to consider when choosing furniture for a green home.

Start with the Finish- When selecting green furniture, especially wooden furniture, be especially particular about the finish. Even the most environmentally friendly materials in your furniture can be ruined by chemicals and toxic finishes. Specifically ask for furniture treated with non-toxic substances.

Examine the Construction- Durability is an important factor in choosing environmentally friendly furniture. After all, if you’re just going to have to replace a supposedly green furniture item after a few years, then you really are just creating more waste.

Go Vintage- Perhaps one of the best ways to add green furniture to your home, is to skip the new purchase altogether. Could you rescue a sofa or end table from your local second hand store and add new upholstery or a fresh finish? There are many varieties and shades of non-toxic furniture finishes widely available for such projects.

Living green doesn’t have to mean giving up the beauty and durability of wooden furniture. Many furniture makers are now offering alternatives to traditional wood furniture with green furniture selections made with sustainable woods. Here’s one I found today:

This environmentally friendly dining room table is made by Atlantico. It’s handmade using woods harvested via sustainable forestry practices, and it’s certified by the Forestry Stewardship Council, a non-profit organization dedicated to responsible forestry. This table is made without toxic chemicals and preservatives and is finished with only a coat of Danish oil. The table is simple in design and I think it would blend well with any green home decor. I found this green furniture selection at Bluehouse.