Environmental Home Center

Lucky for all of us, Environmental Home Center in Seattle is one of the few green retailers that has not only a pleasant showroom, which happens to be huge, but also a full-fledged commitment to web and phone orders. Accordingly their website is part catalog and part resource, with carefully thought-out explanations on green products from paint to decking. A few of their more unusual and/or problem-solving products follow after the jump, including our personal impressions...

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• OSMO Polyx Oil: Oil Finish for Wood Floors and Furniture

It's hard to find a wood finish that looks as good and is as natural as OSMO Polyx Oil... we were a little skeptical of a finish that required you to scrub off the excess, but it's been doing great on the butcher block bar in our kitchen for well over a year.

• Cork wallpaper (!)

We love the look of this wallpaper... perfect for a large room (or small area) to keep from visually overwhelming the space. And vinyl free, too!

• Gorgeous, durable, indulgent, expensive—did we mention gorgeous?—butcherblock countertops of reclaimed wood.

Tight-grained and full of character -- some of these butcherblocks were made from distillery vats -- this is the kind of material that you just know will be enjoyed by someone hundreds of years in the future.