Healthy Interiors

This is a step-by-step DIY “how-to” on painting and sealing terra-cotta clay pots with food-safe paints and a natural sealant.

I used two food-safe/plant-safe paints that are all-natural – milk paint and linseed oil paint. The pots were sealed with a natural oil.

This post contains affiliate links. Upon purchase, I make a small commission at no extra cost to you.

This is the finished product!

Milk Paint on the left in yellow, with pure Tung Oil sealer on the inside. Linseed oil paint is on the right with Tung Oil sealer on the inside and outside (under the paint).

Paints:

Milk Paint

Milk paint that comes in powder form is all-natural, the binder is casein and the pigments are natural oxides. It has basically no odor when wet. I used The Real Milk Paint Brand. Milk Paint is suitable for the exterior of the clay only, as it cannot hold up over time to damp conditions and watering.

If you wanted to use this on the exterior of the pots, they you can add an exterior grade sealer like Tung Oil over top (but still only on the exterior of the pots).

Linseed Oil

The linseed oil paint is also all-natural. The one I used is Allback brand. Linseed oil is the binder and there are no solvents, just natural pigments and fillers like clay. It has a natural linseed oil smell.

I ordered samples of The Real Milk Paint, the sunflower yellow is what I ended up using.

These are the brushes I ordered from Amazon, they were affordable and of very decent quality, plus the sizes were perfect.

The sample sizes of milk paint are perfect for small projects you can buy all of the colors on Amazon.

Sealing:

I sealed the inside of both of the pots with Tung Oil using a rag. This reduces the permeability of the pots but it doesn’t make it waterproof. It can still breath somewhat. I applied 3 coats. (Be careful with how you dispose of your rags with Tung Oil, they can self combust if not disposed of properly).

The pot with milk paint on the outside was sealed inside and on the bottom with Tung Oil.

The pot with linseed oil paint on the outside was sealed on all sides with Tung Oil.

I also sealed the saucers.

Wipe it on and wipe off the excess.

The Tung Oil should be pure, 100% tung, and with no solvents added. The Real Milk Paint makes a pure one.

If you only intend on sealing the inside be careful with drips or smudges getting on the outside!

I made the line with this medical tape (shown in a picture below) because it works really well.

I mixed milk paint powder with water in a 50/50 mix and applied two coats. It didn’t need long to dry in between.

This is the brush and medical tape I used for both pots.

This white paint is the all natural linseed oil paint from Allback in white.

I applied 3 coats of linseed oil paint and made sure each coat was totally dry before adding the next one (at least 24 hours between coats).

The first coat dried in about 24 hours, the second and third coats took longer to dry. Make sure to apply thin coats.

If your humidity is high or your temperature is low it takes much longer to dry.

Medical tape sticks well to terra-cotta, that’s why I used that. The line was mostly clean!

ta-da!

I go much more into the sealer options for terra-cotta here if you don’t want to use Tung Oil as the sealer. There are other paint options as well in that article.

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Corinne Segura is a Building Biologist Practitioner with 8 years of experience helping others create healthy homes.

Despite the name, “latex paint” is no longer made with natural rubber latex and most brands (if not all) should be safe for those who have to avoid natural rubber latex proteins. However, I asked the most eco-friendly paint brands if they are free of latex and I have reported on that below.

The following polymers (binders) can be referred to as “latex”, when speaking of paint:

• Acrylic polymers (this is what the majority of “latex paint” contains as the binder)
• Vinyl Acetate Ethylene (VAE) – Farrow and Ball paints use this binder and in some sublimes they use acrylic as well
• Polyvinyl Acetate (PVA) – this is usually used in specialized primers

Alternative binders used in specialty paints include:

• Casein (from milk) is the binder in milk paints
• Linseed oil is the binder in natural linseed oil based paints (like Allback)
• Potassium and sodium silicate are the main binder in mineral paints (like Kiem)

[Read more…] about Latex-Free Paint Brands (Latex Allergy Safe)

Choosing a paint that is safe for a baby is a different task than choosing a paint for chemically sensitive folks, despite a lot of overlap. Babies can’t tell us if they are reacting to a paint or not.

It’s natural to feel worried about which paints are safe for a baby and how long they need to cure before your little one can occupy the room. (Especially since so many companies have been dishonest in the past).

My approach is to start with the best paints out there, these are zero-VOC when possible, some are natural and emit no synthetic chemical emissions. They have all been vetted by chemically sensitive folks and tested by me. I then talked to the companies to ask them how long you should wait before your baby sleeps in the room, and if known, when does it stop offgassing.

[Read more…] about Baby Safe Paint for Nurseries, Cribs & Furniture

Non-toxic wedge pillows are a popular choice with people who find the wedge design comfortable for sleeping, sitting in bed, lounging, or leg support.

The wedge pillows are divided into two categories – all natural and low toxin synthetics. Some are the traditional wedge pillow shape, others are more of a reading pillow or bolster pillow.

Here are the best choices for those shopping for non-toxic wedge pillows.

[Read more…] about Non-Toxic Wedge Pillows (Natural Latex, Organic Fibers & More)

I have tested all the brands (but one) on this list, from the totally 100% natural options to the “next best” options. Natural paints can perform as well as conventional paints if you use them for the right application.

The reasons to go with a natural paint could include:

• to reduce plastic use (and microplastic pollution)
• to reduce petrochemical use
• they give off no synthetic volatile organic chemicals (VOCs), and are often better for the chemically sensitive
• the paints are biodegradable
• they are vapor permeable

[Read more…] about Natural Paints for the Home (That Perform Well)

What is Prop 65

Proposition 65 is a warning label for Californians about significant exposures to chemicals that cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm. Any product that is sold in California will have this label even at retailers outside of California.

The list contains naturally occurring and synthetic chemicals. It is updated yearly and there are currently 900 chemicals on the list in 2023.

Exposure Limit?

Technically this label is for “significant exposures” and the chemicals are not listed if “the exposure is low enough to pose no significant risk of cancer or is significantly below levels observed to cause birth defects or other reproductive harm.” However, in reality the exposure risk is not usually calculated and you will still see the label if the products contains only trace levels of the Prop 65 chemicals or even when the chemicals are enclosed within the product and there is no reasonable way to gain exposure to them.

Are Companies Adding this to Everything?

It does seem like there are companies that add this to all their products even though they might not contain a chemical on the list or even if the exposure is extremely minimal or exposure is not expected with regular use.

There is no penalty for providing an unnecessary warning, this part is frustrating to me.

You will often see the statement that the company “has elected to provide the Proposition 65 notice out of an abundance of caution in order to avoid the potential for liability.”

However when it comes to fridges, they do contain quite a few Prop 65 chemicals, they are not being overly cautious in declaring that Prop 65 chemicals are present. The real question and uncertainly around fridges comes down to whether that exposure is really large enough to be of concern, especially since the chemicals are largely enclosed within the appliance.

I’ll go over which Prop 65 chemicals are found in fridges and how to minimize your exposure.

This post contains affiliate links. Upon purchase, I make a small commission at no extra cost to you.

Which Prop 65 Chemicals Can be Found in Fridges:

1. Phthalates may be present in plastic components of appliances (specifically in flexible vinyl) according to the Prop 65 website. Electrical wiring is often coated in vinyl, and there may be other PVC parts.

2. Flame retardants may be present in plastic components of appliances according to the Prop 65 website. Fridges have foam insulation on all sides and this presumedly has flame retardants (which could be “tris”, a Prop 65 chemical). Electrical wiring and cords also can have flame retardants.

3. Antimony: Tamara Rubin has found that most appliance electrical cords will test positive for Antimony (as a component for added flame retardants). When she tests electrical cords of appliances, she normally finds the level in the range of 5,000 to 15,000 parts per million (ppm).

4. Arsenic: Tamara says she often finds trace Arsenic in black plastic handles of kitchen tools and appliances. She believes it is likely a contaminant of the black pigmentation. In one test she found extremely low levels of Arsenic in the black plastic handle of a kettle (3 +/- 1 ppm). This is safe, by any standard she explains, though it’s still a Prop 65 Chemical.

5. Cadmium: Tamara has found trace Cadmium (13 to 22 ppm) in borosilicate glass of a kettle. This is not unusual, says Tamara. There is no risk of exposure here in fridges.

6. Lead: can be found in plastic, electrical cords, nuts, painted parts and more in appliances.

7. Other Proposition 65 chemicals may also be present in enclosed components of the appliance (such as printed circuit boards). During normal use, consumer exposure to these chemicals is expected to be negligible according to the Prop 65 website.

Minimize Exposure to Prop 65 Chemicals From Fridges

Since most of these chemicals are found in internal parts, and some are found in extremely low levels, the exposure if going to be minimal.

Flame retardants and phthalates do tend to leach out into household dust and so to minimize exposure to these chemicals, minimize your exposure to dust:

• Wash your hands before preparing food and before eating.
• Clean floors regularly, using a wet mop for hard surfaces and a HEPA vac for soft or hard surfaces. The HEPA component is important as it picks up these tiny contaminants (and is one of the best interventions you can make towards a healthy home).
• Wipe up dust regularly, using a damp cloth free of chemicals.

Brands With Prop 65 Warnings

Frigidaire, Samsung, Whirlpool, LG, GE, Magic Chef, Hisense, Haier, KitchenAid, Bosch, BLACK+DECKER, Kenmore, UNIQUE, Smeg, IKEA, and more, all have the warning.

I’ve not seen any fridge brands without the Prop 65 warning.

Lower Offgassing Fridge Brands

If you’re looking for fridges that are lower in initial offgassing, this post on appliances for the chemically sensitive has some ideas. These are all based on the experience of highly sensitive folks, not on empirical testing.

Corinne Segura is a Building Biologist Practitioner with 8 years of experience helping others create healthy homes.

There is an adage that is going round and round on the internet that onions help reduce new paint smell. In all of the articles out there, no chemist was named or sourced.

So I wanted to get to the bottom of this to see if it was really true. I talked to two chemists to see if this was a likely chemical reaction. There aren’t any studies directly looking at onions and new paint (or other VOC producing products), but they still had specific ideas on the chemical reaction that is likely taking place.

[Read more…] about Do Onions Neutralize (or Absorb) New Paint Smell (VOCs)?