Eco Show Home & Garden unveiled by Gladedale

Gladedale has launch its first Eco Show Home & Garden at The Garrison, the historic development at Shoeburyness, as part of a new campaign to ‘Go Green at the Garrison'. The new Eco Home and Garden has been designed inside and out by Flair, the renowned interior designers, to highlight the desirable, community based location of the development, but more significantly, to reinforce Gladedale’s commitment to green issues.

Arguably the first developer in the UK to do so, Gladedale has designed and furnished a green show home within one of its four bedroom family homes. The unique Eco Home features a comprehensive range of environmentally friendly materials – without compromising the style and comfort of this stunning family home.

The Eco Home environment showcases innovation both inside and out, making full use of natural and recycled materials from sustainable sources including cane, rattan, rubberwood, cotton, silk and bamboo.

Accessories too are green, from eco-friendly detergents, glasses manufactured from recycled wine bottles, a water-powered clock and organic & vegetable bathroom soaps.

The green credentials of the 4 bedroom house start with the decoration. All wallpaper is from Harlequin and sourced from sustainable forests. Earthborn Clay Paints used throughout the house are organic and solvent free. This and their low odour minimises the impact of damp and makes them much more suitable for allergy and asthma sufferers.

Energy efficient lighting is used throughout the house. The bulbs are designed to use just 20% of the electricity and last an incredible 8,000 hours, eight times longer than conventional light bulbs, while the Plunger Filter Kettle saves both time and money boiling only the water you require.

A mix of natural, sustainable materials are used throughout the whole house, including engineered solid wood flooring and furniture made from a mix of cane / rattan and rubberwood, an excellent exotic timber with a natural finish.

Closer to home, the dining table and chairs have been created from UK grown ash, one of the temperate hard woods with minimal wastage in its production. A water-based lacquer is used for some of the furniture finishes.

Soft furnishings include items made from 100% wool, cotton and silk, cotton/silk weaves and natural, feather-filled seat pads and cushions. The distinctive hand towels featured in the kitchen are a combination of cotton and bamboo fibre. Bamboo fibre is anti–bacterial and anti fungal, and naturally repels bad odours.

In one of the bedrooms you’ll find a Sun Jar solar light. As its name suggests, it resembles a jam jar packed full of solar cells, batteries and LEDs that absorb the sun’s rays all day and emit them at night, making it a very practical and environmentally-friendly light source.

The second bedroom boasts a unique bed designed in the shape of a boat and takes the same space as a three foot divan – but is much more fun! It’s also fully re-cycled as it was previously used by the designer who’s since refurbished it.

Another ingenious feature is a bamboo LCD monitor casing, effectively a green PC. The bamboo used in its construction is hard bamboo, not the type eaten by pandas in the wild, so its use does not affect their natural diet.

Maggie Brodie, of Gladedale Eastern, said: “The Eco Home was a tremendous challenge but is a fantastic achievement and well worth the effort to create such an innovative and beautiful home.

“The design is not just about the end product but the entire product life cycle and we have tried to incorporate as many items as possible that have been used in a previous life, such as the bedside tables which are made from reclaimed washing machine drums.

“We are extremely proud of the new Eco Home and hope it will be as much of a success with our customers.”

Just as much attention has been given to ensuring the exterior of the house is as environmentally friendly as the interior, with the use of materials from sustainable sources. Many sustainable materials can be verified by trademarks, such as F.S.C. which denotes that timber decking is sourced ethically from sustained manageable forests.

The beautifully designed garden is split into two: a low maintenance shingle / pebble garden that takes its inspiration from the surrounding seaside using a wave of blue slate.

All these materials were sourced from non sea-dredging suppliers and will reduce water evaporation from the soil by up to 85%, while the use of drought resistant plants ensures minimal watering.

The focal point of this area of the garden is a delightful old sailing boat which dates back to 1920. This has been filled with nasturtiums planted in willow baskets along with a collection of sedums in clay pots which appeal to bees. An old anchor and pieces of driftwood add to the nautical theme while a deckchair made from recycled seat belts provides the ideal spot to watch the grass grow.

The remaining area is a small ‘kitchen garden’. This includes a hazel enclosure with herbs, tomatoes, cucumbers and a grape vine with grapes growing up old recycled timber groynes.

This part of the garden has been mulched using 100% organic manure which will also prevent excessive water evaporation. A composting bin in the shape of a beehive makes use of the lawn cuttings, while a water butt collects and recycles rainwater.

This stunning garden is illuminated at dusk by low energy solar lighting and a bird box and roosting boxes provide shelter for wild birds and encourage habitation.

Jean Atkins, managing director of Flair, said: “Designing the Eco Show Home was a real challenge and involved significantly more research from the outset to ensure all the products used were from natural and sustainable sources, right down to the wallpaper and paint.

“There is a tremendous sense of achievement creating a green living environment both inside and out and we tried to incorporate eco-friendly elements which could involve the whole family, such as growing organic fruit and vegetables and creating a focal point in the garden using a reclaimed sailing boat filled with flowers and fruit.

“Not only are we creating a sustainable environment, we are introducing and educating young families about a greener way of life. I do hope the Eco Show Home and Garden will inspire more interior designers and homeowners to replicate the eco home and adopt a greener lifestyle.”

And as if all that isn’t enough, Gladedale has made a corporate and personal pledge to maintaining green credentials - one day a week, each of the staff at The Garrison has agreed to leave their cars behind and instead of driving back and forth through the 180 acre site, they walk – simple, but effective.