Readers who want furniture that won’t poison them or the earth often find high price tags attached to the good stuff from companies including Palecek, Harden and Groovystuff. Well, Rowe Furniture is having none of that.

The company went into bankruptcy and bounced back last year, featuring a new collection it calls EcoRowe. Made in Elliston, Va., EcoRowe contains fabrics in natural fibers, cushions with renewable, plant-based materials and frames of wood from replenishable domestic forests.

At the High Point (N.C.) market earlier this month, the new Sanibel collection created a buzz. The frames are covered in abaca, a fiber extracted from the banana plant, and suggested prices start at about $349 for the end table/magazine rack, $399 for the ottoman, $649 for the chair and $999 for the sofa (depending on upholstery choices). The good-looking, upholstered Laine chair, above, starts at $549, ottoman at $399.

Sanibel probably won’t be available until July, but there are other EcoRowe offerings on the market now. San Francisco-area Rowe dealers include Z-Barn in the city, Papillon Home in Berkeley, Rockridge Home in Oakland and also Blue Tomatoes and Scandinavian Design stores. Visit www.rowefurniture.com for more.

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Trevor Webb found something worth admiring at the furniture show here: nail holes, scuffs and dents.

“It’s pretty cool, isn’t it?” asked Webb, admiring a massive wood table made by his Van Nuys, Calif.-based furniture company Urban Woods LLC. “You wouldn’t know this is reclaimed wood from soundstages and old buildings in California unless you look closely.”

Webb, and his furniture, are part of a growing green movement in the home decor industry that promotes recycled materials, wood collected from certified sustainable forests, cushions created from soy, vegetable-based stains and environmentally sound fabric and foam.

Yet there are no national standards that spell out what makes one couch more environmentally friendly than another. Currently, any company can claim their eco-efforts are more green than the next guy.

Dozens of manufacturers touted eco-friendly products at the High Point Market two weeks ago — the twice-annual home decor and furnishings trade show that previews what will be in stores next season.

Industry analysts see it as both a response to a growing need for accountability and an effective marketing tool.

“The industry is reaching out,” said Jerry Epperson, a furniture industry analyst with Richmond, Va.-based investment firm Mann, Armistead and Epperson. “Retailers see it as important to the younger generations.”

Wood used for tables, dressers and frames is typically harvested from responsibly managed forests. Glues and finishes are water-based. Sofas use recycled steel springs, while cushions are soy-based. Fabrics are organic cotton, hemp, bamboo and leather byproducts.

Then you have the more unusual offerings, such as chair slip covers made by using multicolored thread scraps or upholstery made from recycled water bottles.

“Everyone has a little something different to offer,” said Hamed Alaghebandian, who’s planning on opening a furniture store later this year in Maryland. “My job is to find things that my customers will want to help them maintain a greener lifestyle.”

The shift comes from small producers as well as large manufacturers such as Precedent, Rowe Fine Furniture Inc., Century Furniture LLC, and Harden Furniture Inc.

Vaughan-Bassett Furniture Co. has vowed to plant one tree for every tree it uses to produce its furniture — roughly 150,000 saplings a year. That’s a bold commitment for the Virginia-based company, which is one of the nation’s largest manufacturers of wood furnishings.

“We admit we needed to do something proactive,” spokesman Doug Bassett said.

The Sustainable Furniture Council offers guidelines and bases its membership on “evidence of performance, and of commitment to continual and demonstrated improvement in the sustainability of all company operations.” The Chapel Hill-based organization even provides a brochure with questions consumers can ask while buying furniture.

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Furniture orders in January were 5 percent lower than in January 2007, Smith Leonard Accountants & Consultants of High Point reports.

Shipments in January were 7 percent lower than in December 2007 and 3 percent lower than in the previous January, Ken Smith, director of furniture services for Smith Leonard, writes in “Furniture Insights,” his monthly newsletter. “The last time we reported an increase in shipments was May of 2006,” he adds. Backlogs increased 3 percent from December but decreased 7 percent from the previous January. Read more »

High Point furniture designer John Black creates pieces inspired by the great furniture of the 18th and 19th centuries but with the scale, proportion, function and finish aimed at today’s lifestyle. He usually includes some surprises as well.

“There seems to be a resurgence in interest in classical pieces,” said Brigette Breitenbach, a spokeswoman for Councill in Denton. Read more »

Trevor Webb found something worth admiring at the furniture show here: nail holes, scuffs and dents.

“It’s pretty cool, isn’t it?” asked Webb, admiring a massive wood table made by his Van Nuys, Calif.-based furniture company Urban Woods LLC. “You wouldn’t know this is reclaimed wood from soundstages and old buildings in California unless you look closely.” Read more »

High Point Furniture has agreed to give refunds to consumers who lost money when the Tallmadge store abruptly closed in October, according to Cynthia Sich, director of the Summit County Office of Consumer Affairs. The case marks the first time the county office has reached a voluntary compliance agreement in a consumer case with multiple victims. The agreement requires High Point to return money to those who bought furniture and never received it or were making layaway payments. To claim the refunds, consumers must file a written complaint with the consumer affairs office.

Forms are available at co.summit.oh.us/conaffairs.htm or by calling 330-643-2879. The company has already repaid $23,011 to reimburse 43 customers.

A group of furniture manufacturers gathered in High Point this week to make plans for the next Pre-Market, scheduled for March 3-4.

Pre-market happens in between the twice-yearly High Point Market wholesale furniture trade shows, and gives buyers and sellers an opportunity to preview new introductions and make last-minute changes for the big shows.

During the past several years the future of Pre-Market has been uncertain with the opening of the rival Las Vegas Market, but last year a group of 16 manufacturing companies partnered to bring a new structure and formality to the event.

That group expanded to 25 manufacturers this year, according to Brian Casey, president of the High Point Market Authority, who serves as a spokesperson for the group. The Market Authority does not have a direct role in planning Pre-Market. Read more »

A longtime Ethan Allen furniture dealer in Kettering will stop selling the manufacturer’s products this fall to bring a new furniture maker into the store.

Owner Bob Day plans to convert his store, Ethan Allen of Kettering, to the Drexel Heritage furniture line in November. A sale on Ethan Allen furniture begins Sept. 18, he said. Drexel Heritage has a much broader selection than Ethan Allen, he said. Drexel’s brands include Lillian August, Postobello Home and Vera Bradley.

Day, who owns the store with his wife Susie, said he and other independent Ethan Allen dealers are growing unsure of the manufacturer’s direction. The product selection has shrunk over the years, leading to a 3 to 10 percent yearly decline in store sales, he said. Read more »

The American Furniture Hall of Fame Foundation, Inc. (AFHF) announces the nominees for induction into the American Furniture Hall of Fame for October 2, 2007.

“The individuals nominated by their industry peers represent leaders whose notable contributions have had a significant impact on the success of the furniture industry,” says J. Don Coleman, president of AFHF. “They are an inspiration for setting standards of innovation, determination and service.”

The slate of nominees were selected from nominations by the AFHF members. To make a nomination, members submitted a biography (500 words or less) of the nominee including detailed information about their professional achievements, personal standards and civic involvement. Read more »

For small, independent store owners, figuring out how to compete with mega-chains has always been a challenge.

Now more furniture and home-furnishing stores are taking a bigger-is-better mentality and opening showrooms of their own to compete directly with their largest rivals.

Rather than asking customers to look through catalogs to find the sofas, chairs, dining room sets or other furniture they want, many independents are giving shoppers an experience much like the one they get in larger stores. And with the explosion of e-commerce, brick-and-mortar merchants often can offer more selection, helping them compete with online clearinghouses.

Still, it’s not a decision to be taken lightly, said Jim Brandt, who recently opened a Drexel Heritage showroom for his Raleigh Design Center.

“There’s a major cost layout. It blows my mind how much money I’ve had to pay out already,” said Brandt, who estimates that he has spent $50,000 just on the inventory to fill the showroom. Read more »