White Lotus Home Blog

Organic Lifestyle

4 Things You Didn’t Think To Do with a Kapok Bean Bag Chair

If you missed last week’s announcement, we’ll happily shout again that the Kapok Bean Bag is FINALLY HERE!!! 🎉🎉🎉

Our bestselling Kapok pillow just got a BIG, TOUGH sibling who can take a beating and bounce back (but he’s really just a big softy on the inside).

Wondering what your life might look like with one of these big bags of fluff in your home?

While movie nights, video games, and book reading are a great start, here are 4 fun ideas you probably haven’t thought of…


#1️⃣: Practice Mid-Air Poses



Take a leap, snap a shot, and come down on a super soft landing space!

The only thing more fun than diving onto a fluffy bean bag is having photos to look at (and share) afterward. 🤣


#2️⃣: Kick the “Kapok” Out of It


video


Now we don’t mean that you should actually burst this bean bag chair and tear the stuffing out (you’d be missing out on an epic seat!). However, these soft yet resilient bean bags do make a great punching bag in a pinch. You can take the frustration out safely with these! Just like she did in the video! 👊


#3️⃣: Play a Game of Pass the Bean Bag


video


The bigger the bean bag, the bigger the challenge!

(Just don’t throw it too hard, or you might knock over your receiver.) 🤭


#4️⃣: Plank On It!



Did you miss the viral planking challenge of ‘09? Now’s your chance to jump back in!

Get your planks straight and keep your core tight all while protecting those elbows on a super soft yet firm bean bag chair. 💪


And as if all that fun wasn’t enough, our all new Kapok Bean Bag is a pretty good guy on the inside! Here’s why… 

video

Kapok is a natural fiber that comes from the seed pods of the Ceiba Tree in Central America and Indonesia. With a silky and fluffy consistency, it has the fluffy feel of down feathers, but is plant-based like cotton, making it a wonderful vegan down alternative!

White Lotus Home’s Kapok is:

🐥 Soft & fluffy, similar to down pillows (minus the animal products)

🌳 Vegan & Sustainable for a guilt-free addition to your home

🌱 Hypoallergenic & Ethically sourced

There is so much to love about this amazing fiber! We know you’ll love it too.

Treat yourself to fun, comfort, and sustainability all in one! 





In Stock List: Ships in 24-48 hours!

PAYMENT OPTIONS: Need to finance your purchase? Check out with Klarna and finance or split up your payments!

Our NEW JERSEY SHOWROOM is Open by Appointment ONLY 24/7!

CLICK Here to schedule your appointment!

For other retailers that carry WLH products near you, please click here.


732-828-2111 | TEXT ONLY 732-352-3628 | info@whitelotushome.com

745 JOYCE KILMER AVENUE, STE E NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ 08901

Finally, Furniture with a Conscience! 👏

Please meet our newest partner, Timeless Designs. 

We started with green sleep, and now we’re here! White Lotus Home is thrilled to announce that we’ve recently partnered with Timeless Designs to bring you totally unique upcycled furniture! These are functional pieces of art you will enjoy (and feel good about!) for years.  

WLH Community Member, we’d like you to please meet Emeli, the Owner & Head Designer at Timeless Designs.

Inspired by her love and appreciation for old furniture, Emeli founded Timeless Designs because she didn’t want beauty to go to waste. 

I hate to see a piece of furniture go unloved because of its age,” she says. 

“The quality and uniqueness of older pieces deserves a new life. That dated furniture can be a statement piece in your home.”

During her decade-long career as an Interior Decorator, Emeli used to notice old furniture that her clients no longer wanted. Her interest quickly shifted toward saving and restoring old unloved furniture, and that’s when Timeless Designs was born. 

Timeless Designs is here to provide you with a one-of-a-kind upcycled piece that you can’t find at a department or chain furniture store. As an artist, her goal is to provide you with high quality works of art that will last for years in your home. 

HOW TO SHOP TIMELESS DESIGNS

Check out what we currently have in stock by visiting this list here.

Schedule an appointment here to visit our New Brunswick showroom so you can shop Timeless Designs in person!

Ready to find a Truly Timeless Piece for your home? 

Delivery within 150 miles of New Brunswick, NJ is included, or you can Pick-Up & Save. To place your order, call 732-828-2111 or email info@whitelotushome.com and tell us what you’d like!

SEE WHAT’S IN STOCK!



WHY I’LL ONLY BUY ORGANIC SHEETS

CREDIT TO:  Annmarie Skin Care > Healthy Lifestyle > Why I’ll Only Buy Organic Sheets

yoann-boyer-276971

Contributed by our friend Destiny

Any time I buy new clothes or sheets, the first thing I always do is wash them. Detergent, warm cycle, cool rinse. I do it because that’s just what you do, because factories are dirty, and what we buy travels a long way before it makes its way to us.

Short of sanitary reasons, I never gave this little routine of mine much thought, until I got pregnant with my first child and decided, quite suddenly, I wanted to know exactly what I was washing out of my clothes and sheets every time I bought them.

What I learned was that an industry responsible for clothing us and tucking us in at night was doing a lot more than just transporting and dying our fabrics. What goes into the materials that spend all of their time right up against our skin was, to be honest, pretty sketchy. That was when I decided enough was enough — organic sheets and clothes, from here on out.

flame retardant chemicals and our sheets

First things first, your sheets, your bedding, your clothes — just about any conventional fabric you come into contact with — is treated with  flame retardant chemicals. There are federal manufacturing regulations that often require it, particularly since most fabrics these days are synthetic and particularly quick to burn.

When I looked into flame retardant chemicals further, I learned that, while they had come a long way from the proven carcinogenic PBDEs of the 70s, these new chemicals were still linked to reproductive and respiratory disease, and were proven endocrine system disruptors.

As I looked at crib sheets and onesies, the reality of that set in — these fabrics would be right up against my brand new baby’s face.

pesticide exposure in our clothes and bedding

When I had officially written polyester and nylon off, it occurred to me that natural fibers, at the very least, had to be better. They weren’t made of petroleum products, and they didn’t require as much, or sometimes any, flame retardants to be safe to use.

What I didn’t realize at the time was that conventionally grown cotton consumes 24% of the world’s insecticides every year, and 11% of the world’s pesticides. Ironically, this fluffy, pure white plant was one of the dirtiest crops in the world.

Cotton and other fibers go through a lot of processes before they wind up hanging on store racks, but were they being adequately rinsed of pesticides? In a world bent on reassuring us of their safety, I wasn’t so sure.

stripping toxic chemicals from fabric

All of this information lead me to one conclusion — I was about to start taking my new clothes routine a lot more seriously. The bottom line was, I’d rather take my chances with fire than flame retardants, and so I started stripping all of our sheets, clothes, and towels.

There isn’t much scientific research out there to back up how to remove flame retardants and pesticides from clothes, but ultimately, my research seemed to point towards breaking down those chemical bonds with what was essentially an acid soak.

I mixed up big buckets of vinegar and lemon juice to break down the chemical bonds between the flame retardants and the fibers. I don’t know how much it helped, but it gave me peace of mind to see that water change colors. For 48 hours, I soaked buckets of fabrics, then washed them thoroughly, hoping to make the best with what I had.

It’s worth noting though that removing flame retardant chemicals from flammable materials is a catch-22. On the one hand, I felt better about snuggling up next to these fabrics, but on the other, I was trading chemicals for an increased flammability.

Which was worse? I’m still not sure.

the alternatives i can’t live without

I decided I didn’t want to have to keep making these choices.

I decided, from here on out, my family would spend one third of their life in bed next to cotton sheets that weren’t grown with pesticides. They would sleep in pajamas that didn’t have to be saturated with chemicals to keep them from bursting into flames. And we would support clean, sustainable agriculture that didn’t endlessly consume our planet’s resources.

I didn’t throw everything out and start from scratch. Even as I write this, I’m sitting in an ancient black polyester spandex tank top. Not being of celebrity wealth status, replacing my entire wardrobe and linens collection all at once just wasn’t in the cards, nor was it how I wanted to do this.

What I did instead was start looking at alternatives, so that when it came time to replace those hole-y socks or those threadbare sheets, I could do so with materials I felt great about buying.

ORGANIC COTTON

Soft and breathable and made 100% without pesticides or insecticides, organic cotton is my go-to fabric for sheets and pillowcases, in addition to socks, underwear, and shirts. It’s easy to care for, and getting cheaper all the time.

WOOL

Wool is a natural insulator, which doesn’t just mean that it keeps you warm, but keeps excess heat out, too. Naturally antimicrobial, it’s worth the extra trouble to treat it delicately in the wash, and I LOVE it for duvets and shirts!

NATURAL LATEX

Memory foam, move over, because your eco-friendly buddy is here, and he doesn’t stink. Natural latex is a natural thermal regulator, so it doesn’t make you sweat like a memory foam mattress does, it lasts longer, and it’s free of flame retardant nasties. If you like the floating-on-a-cloud effect of sleeping on a memory foam mattress, you need to try a latex mattress—you’ll never look back!

KAPOK FIBER

This interesting little fiber feels like silk and cotton had a baby together. Soft and fine, it’s a great vegan alternative to down for pillows and duvets!

BUCKWHEAT HULLS

I discovered buckwheat hulls when I met a girl who slept on a buckwheat hull mattress, and it blew my MIND. They feel like a beanbag when stuffed into a pillowcase, and are incredible because they’re non-toxic AND 100% biodegradable.

we’re all just doing the best we can

I get a lot of funny looks from friends and family when I pass up crazy sales on sheets and baby clothes because of what they’re made of.

“Huh? Wha—. But…it’s on sale!”

And I get it, because in the end, we’re all just trying to keep our families clothed and our beds made, and what they’re actually made of is often the furthest thing from our minds.

I’m not perfect. Sometimes I see an ugly Christmas sweater at Target, and I lose all resolve — retail instinct kicks in, and before I know it, I’m on my way home with a tinsel-covered abomination.

But now that I know better, I try to do better. I only buy organic sheets. I’m really picky about the clothes I buy for my family. And when I shop, I look at more than just the price tag. I see the manufacturing plants that were responsible for producing what I’m putting in my cart, and I take pause, I think about what that purchase means a little more before I make it.

If you’re ready to know what’s in your sheets and feel good about what you sleep on, check out White Lotus Home. Organic sheets, mattresses, and pillows for babies, kids, adults, and even futons, this store has it all!

12 Ways to Celebrate Earth Day

Everyday is Earth Day at White Lotus Home.Get involved.Here are ways to celebrate Earth Day. Don't restrict yourself to just April 22: learn about how you can help Save the Earth.

  1. Sleep on organic bedding.  Try a Kapok pillow, organic cotton sheets or an organic mattress or topper. Whitelotushome.com has Earth Day specials to make it affordable to achieve your first Organic Dream.
  2. Spread the word. Just talking about the environment with people who may not think about it that much is a good way to celebrate Earth Day. Talk to kids, co-workers, friends, neighbors and siblings about the environmental issues you care about most. Recycling?  Energy conservation?  Organic food choices?  You get the idea.
  3. Attend an Earth Day event. You’ll be introduced to new environmentally friendly products, eat locally grown food and chat with people who are making a difference. 
  4. Make a recycling plan. Know what you can and can’t recycle, and start separating out recyclable goods!
  5. Cook a special Earth Day meal. Invite friends and family over for menu that uses locally produced vegetables, fruit and other produce. Consider a totally organic meal.  If you still would like meat, look for locally produced, organic meat. 
  6. Fix a leaky faucets. Drip, drip, drip. You’ve put off repairing that leaky faucet project for some time now.  Only 1 percent of Earth’s water is drinkable, and our supply is endangered. Use Earth Day as motivation to stop wasting water and fix those leaks.  
  7. Carpool. Taking cars off the road is one of the best ways to combat climate change. Find people in your neighborhood to share the daily commute, or find a ride-sharing partner online.
  8. Skip the bottled water.  Bottled water consumes huge amounts of fossil fuels to produce and transport, and most of those recyclable water bottles end up in landfills. Get yourself a refillable and permanent water bottle to carry with you.  Save money, and the environment, too.  
  9. Organize a community cleanup. Get a group together to clean up your local park, schoolyard or beach.
  10. Write your elected representatives. Reaching out to elected officials to voice your concerns about local environmental issues.  Letter-writing is one of the best ways to have your voice heard.
  11. Go carless!   Walk, ride a bike or use public transportation.   Leave the car at home.  Plus, its great exercise!  
  12. Share Earth Day with children.  Help children use recycled products to make art projects. Talk with them about Green living and the importance of preserving Mother Earth.
What do you do to help SAVE THE EARTH? Leave your comments below.

ANOTHER GOOD GREEN QUESTION!

Another good GREEN question!

Another very good general question...

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Please help me understand what makes a bedding product Organic or Green?

Sincerely,
Inam

GREEN LIFE PRODUCT EXPO

Green Life Event THIS FRIDAY August 1! Don't miss it!

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Join us on Friday, August 1, from 5 to 9 pm to view displays from over a dozen natural, organic and sustainable local businesses.

WHY SHOULD I GO GREEN

Why should I go GREEN?

I am thinking about going Green but I have to ask myself: Why go GREEN?
How does this help the environment and more importantly how will it help me in the long run?

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Click on the blog post's title to read more and to leave or review comments and feedback. We hope this information is useful for you when deciding on the best natural, organic, or green mattress, pillow, or bedding item to add to your home. Thank you for Saving the Earth while you Sleep!