We endeavor to be as environmentally and socially responsible as possible in how we operate our business. This has always been a process for us. We try to not let perfection be the enemy of the good as we learn more and improve our operations over time. Outlined below are some of our efforts.

Thoughtful Design

We make purposeful objects that resonate and endure. We consider each of our products a small opportunity to contribute to the design of a more sustainable future.

Our work has grown and shifted over the years from practical solutions such as recyclable non-toxic shower curtains, to human-centered projects such as developing sustainable income opportunities for weaving cooperatives in Guatemala, to designing heirloom quality furniture and objects from natural materials and finishes that you can trust to be clean and safe for your home and family.

We aim to bring a holistic approach that begins with compelling design—objects of value that can last for generations—but also considers how each product will meet the end of its life.

We consider beauty essential and push what is possible within the practice of an independent design studio and manufacturing shop.

Material Selection

We design with deep reverence for materials. As designers and manufacturers, we spend a lot of time thinking about the materials we use.

Every piece begins with the careful consideration of the inherent properties of a material: the particular grain of a type of wood or the soft resiliency of cork. It is a privilege and responsibility as designers to respect and highlight these qualities.

We limit ourselves to working with materials that are long-lasting, non-toxic, made using recycled content, made from well managed renewable resources and/or are reusable or recyclable at the end of their useful life.

We offer vegan options on all of our designs. Please refer to each individual product for further details on material selection.

Production

Our American-made products are predominantly made in our manufacturing shop on Bainbridge Island, WA or in partnership with other small North American manufacturers and suppliers.

American production means higher levels of health and safety for both material use and manufacturing processes but also for labor standards. In these areas, we work beyond industry standards on health and safety for our employees, customers and the greater environment.

Local production reduces carbon emissions created through freight and allows us to collect any offcuts from production processes for reuse, recycling or composting. For example, all of our wood scraps are repurposed for smaller wood products or as heating fuel and the majority of our sawdust is composted. Domestic production also allows us to support more local and regional vendors and small businesses throughout the process.

Our small batch or made-to-order production means that we never over-produce our work to meet an imagined demand. This way of working opens us up to flexibility in terms of customization as well. Almost all of our designs can be custom sized and finished to better meet our client’s individual needs. We have learned so much from working in collaboration with our clients over the years. It is often client input that inspires new work.

Wood

We work with domestic hardwoods that are Forest Standard Certified (FSC). This third party certification ensures that the wood we source is being managed in a way that preserves biodiversity while creating sustainable economic opportunities for timber workers and the local communities that surround these managed forests. We do this because current laws do not do enough to protect wildlife habitats, waterways, old-growth forests and the rights of Indigenous people around the world from the devastating effects of traditional forestry.

Our standard wood is FSC certified ash. We love ash for its strength, color and grain. We also appreciate it as a fast-growing hardwood as this makes it a more rapidly renewable resource over other wood species.

To bring more choice to our clients and to deepen our stewardship as we look into the future, we plan to integrate additional ways of sourcing lumber within our local community and have begun working with a Bainbridge Island mill that can process forest free urban and rural salvage as well as reclaimed wood from architectural projects. A good example of this is our limited edition run of Dish Side Tables made from twice reclaimed Douglas Fir.

All of our wood scraps are repurposed for smaller wood products or as heating fuel and our sawdust is composted.

Cork

Cork is made from the outer bark of the cork oak tree. These trees grow in Mediterranean climates and can live for up to 200 years. The bark is hand-harvested every nine years without harming the tree in any way. This makes it a rapidly renewable material and a powerful carbon sink. Due to the regeneration process, the more bark harvested from the tree, the more carbon is absorbed.

We are grateful to source our cork from a family-operated business founded 1870 in Portugal. The drought-resistant cork forests where our cork is harvested are home to over 200 animal species and 135 plant species. These forests require no chemical agricultural inputs. In addition to all this, the inherent properties of cork include being hypoallergenic, moisture and fire resistant, sound and heat insulating as well as soft and resilient to touch.

Dark brown cork is achieved through a toasting process, allowing us to use cork that is discolored or otherwise unusable. This process not only eliminates a potential waste material, but it does so while adding value through its rich chocolate coloration.

Glue, Stains and Finishes

Our standard wood glue is vegan, water-based, low-VOC and FDA approved for indirect use with food. It passes California emission standards for individual VOC’s and formaldehyde. Safety data is available on request.

We use commercial grade durable hand-applied stains and finishes that are resistant to spills but safe enough to be used on children’s toys as per strict European standards. They are microporous and breathable to ensure that they do not crack or peel.

Our standard stain is made of plant-based oil and mineral pigments and uses a benzene-free solvent. The mineral pigments are non-toxic and do not include any heavy metals. Our standard hardwax-oil finish is made from plant-based oils (including sunflower, thistle and soy) and wax (carnauba, candelilla and paraffin) with a benzene-free solvent. Our finish passes food-grade use safety. Safety data on our stains and finishes are available on request.

Metal

The metals for our furniture and hardware are selected for their durability and beauty. Our standard finish for metal is organic jojoba oil. Oil allows our metals to develop a beautiful patina over time.

Custom finishes and powder coating are possible on request.

Glass

We work with expert glass artist John Hogan and members of the Seattle-based art glass community to custom make our blown and cast glass lighting components.

Our poured glass table-tops are made by an architectural glass manufacturer in California.

Rugs

Our braided wool rugs are made to order in Rhode Island through a partnership with a family-owned mill that has over 30 years of rug manufacturing experience.

We use 100% undyed English wool as our standard yarn. Natural wool is highly durable and inherently stain resistant.

We offer wool blend options as well as Sunbrella on request. Our Sunbrella yarn is made with 50% recycled content and is Oeko-Tex Standard 100 certified. As well as being our vegan and wool allergy option, Sunbrella rugs are fade resistant and can be used indoors and outdoors.

All our braided rugs have commercial fire testing and we can provide that information on request. We never use flame retardants or other chemicals to treat our rugs.

Textiles

For our Guatemala-made handwoven cotton textiles, we create income opportunities for artisans and their local communities while celebrating traditional craft techniques. The weavers we work with are predominantly women and are paid per project based on their own artisan-set pricing.

Many of our weavings are made by women in their own homes, allowing them to better balance their work life with their home life responsibilities such as childcare and family meal preparation.

We originally connected to these weaving communities in 2006 as students at the Rhode Island School of Design through a class led by designer Mimi Robinson and co-sponsored by Aid to Artisans and the Guatemalan Exporters Association.

We never use flame retardants or other chemicals to treat our textiles.

Hemp

All of our Stitch Mirror’s are stitched together using hemp twine.

Hemp is one of the strongest natural fibers. It is a fast growing, rapidly renewable and absorbs more carbon per acre than any other agricultural crop.

Hemp uses 20% less water to grow than cotton and no pesticides or herbicides are required. At the end of its’ useful life, hemp can be composted.

All of our hemp is sourced from a supplier that engages in free and fair trade.

Lighting

Our lighting is assembled using energy-efficient LED arrays and/or LED light bulbs reducing the lifetime energy drain of our fixtures.

Technology

Our work unites current manufacturing technologies and age-old craft techniques. We are deeply inspired by both ways of working and have made the union of the two a big part of our design process.

In late 2020, we integrated a robotic milling arm into our Bainbridge Island manufacturing shop in an effort to bring more of our production processes in-house.

We believe that this technology will help us explore form in new ways as well as improve the quality of our wood shop jobs while respecting the legacy of craft.

Client Care

Our business is built on the practice of attentive care. It is our hope that this practice builds trust and reciprocal client relationships that will last over time.

We are always open to working with a designer or client to come up with a custom solution for their specific space and needs.

We work to create products that when well cared for are made to last for generations. It is important that this attention to quality and service shows up in our client relationships from the very beginning.

Product Packaging and Printing

We reuse, recycle or compost as much as possible, and package all of our products so that our customers can do the same. Our packaging is designed to be minimal and is made from 100% post-consumer waste chipboard. Hang tags are hung with hemp twine. All packaging materials are biodegradable or recyclable.

For our printed materials, we work with carefully selected west coast printers who specialize in sustainable printing processes and use FSC certified high recycled content and/or cotton fiber waste papers. Our main printer is a B Corp, uses plant-based low VOC inks and offsets all its shipments.

Our popular Utility Cards are letterpress printed in a home-based California print shop on tree-free paper that uses cotton fiber waste from the textile manufacturing industry. The envelopes and cheat-sheets are 100% post-consumer recycled paper printed with low VOC plant-based ink and packaged in a biodegradable cornstarch polybag.

Greener Shipping

Our cardboard shipping boxes have liners made from 20-30% recycled content and flutes made from 100% recycled content. Our standard void fill is made from 100% recycled paper or non-GMO cornstarch foam or packing peanuts.

We sometimes have trouble sourcing our compostable foam and occasionally use polyethylene foam as an alternate. Polyethylene foam is a #4 plastic and can be recycled. We are actively at work on eliminating polyethylene foam from our packing and shipping. Our rugs ship wrapped in recyclable #2 plastic sheeting.

For large furniture and mirror orders, we ship via custom made wood crates. Thin layers of recyclable poly-sheeting may be used to wrap furniture and mirrors to protect surfaces. White glove blanket wrapped inside delivery is possible on request.

For small shipments and samples, we like to use the US Postal Service. We do this to support our local USPS and because a third of all domestic deliveries are made on foot.

All of our shipments are offset via our Climate Neutral commitment.

Studio Land Acknowledgment

We acknowledge that we live and work on the ancestral land of the Coast Salish and Suquamish people surrounded by the Salish Sea.

Chelsea and James Minola founded our studio in a farmhouse on what is now Bainbridge Island, WA in 2008. We moved to our first commercial studio and manufacturing space in 2015 and have worked hard to remain on the island near family and community.

In late 2020, we moved into our current studio and manufacturing shop located eight miles from our founders home. It is important for us to work where we live as it allows us to reduce our commute as well as participate and invest in our local community.

Majority Woman-Owned

Though originally founded by the husband-and-wife design team, Chelsea and James Minola, it was important to us that Grain be majority woman-owned as women are underrepresented in both design and manufacturing business ownership and leadership.

When we transitioned to an S Corp in 2019, Chelsea Minola became the majority owner. Since our founding in 2008, 66% of our full-time employees have identified as women or non-binary.

Employee Health, Safety and Well-Being

We support our employee’s health, safety and well-being through skill training, fair salaries that start 33% higher than the living wage for Kitsap County, a healthcare contribution, workers compensation, a diversity, equity and inclusion commitment, up to 12 weeks of paid medical leave, a policy supporting breastfeeding mothers, a total of 24 days paid vacation and holidays and a deep belief in partner mentorship to support education and growth within the studio.

Since the summer of 2021, we have been experimenting with the 4-day work week.

Our employee relationships are one of the things we are most proud of. We are happy to report that 50% of our full-time employees started off in our internship program.

B Corp Certified

In 2022 we joined 4,000+ visionary businesses across 75+ countries to legally commit to balancing purpose and profit as a certified B Corp. This community of B Corps is driving the global movement of business as a force of good and we are deeply humbled to have our efforts working towards this common goal.

Read all about the process and our goals here.

Climate Neutral Certified

We are committed to mitigating and eliminating our entire carbon footprint. To reduce our footprint, we have made changes to our energy consumption, how and where we source materials and have reduced the non-recyclable and non-compostable waste we produce.

In 2020, we committed to measure, offset and further reduce all the carbon it takes to make and deliver our products as a certified Climate Neutral brand.

Banking and Accounting

We are proud to bank with Beneficial State Bank. Beneficial State Bank is a values-based B Corp that pursues economic justice and environmental sustainability by focusing on change-makers that need loan capital in California, Oregon and Washington.

Our bookkeeping and accounting firms are both majority woman-owned.

Red more about our thoughts on responsible banking here.

Giving

Since our founding, a small percentage of our annual revenue has been invested in environmental nonprofits such as Bainbridge Island Landtrust, Surfrider Foundation, Organic Seed Alliance, Washington Farmland Trust, The Nature Conservancy, the National Park Foundation, Save Bristol Bay, and Burn Design Lab.

For our 2020 giving and beyond, our donations will be divided into carbon offset projects via our Climate Neutral commitment, wilderness preservation and employee selected social and environmental nonprofits.

Community

We are proud to be a part of the independent American design community. You can find our work represented at the Colony co-operative showroom in New York year-round. Colony is a community of independent furniture, lighting, textile and object designers that come together to celebrate American design with an international audience. A group show of new work launches each spring as part of NYCxDESIGN.

In 2008 we co-founded JOIN along with Iacoli & McAllister and Ladies & Gentlemen Studio. JOIN brings independent American designers together to share resources and collectively show in national exhibitions such as Dwell on Design, Sight Unseen OFFSITE, NYNOW and the International Contemporary Furniture Fair.

Grain partners Chelsea Minola and James Minola were project leaders for Project H Design’s Seattle Chapter from 2009 - 2011. Chelsea Minola was the Rhode Island School of Design Seattle Alumni Club co-chair from 2012 - 2017.

Chelsea Minola is passionate about design education and has designed curriculum and led art and design education programs for teens, including projects for Rhode Island School of Design, Sweat Equity Enterprises, Nissan, Seattle Art Museum, Frye Art Museum and Open Satellite. She also teaches community yoga at Bainbridge Yoga House.

James Minola is a Bainbridge Island Emergency Medical Responder and Wilderness First Responder.

Both Chelsea and James Minola are members of Vegan Islanders on Bainbridge Island. If you are local and would like to learn more about this welcoming plant-curious group, please contact us.