Once in a while I find a product that really impresses me, and Lakeland Paints is one of them. I’ve used these paints extensively for years and highly recommend them.
Lakeland Paints
There are many organic paints available these days and most high street and designer brands offer products that have low levels of Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs). But Lakeland Paints are the real deal. They are a stunning 7,000 times purer than standard low VOC paints, and are virtually odourless and completely solvent-free.
They do not contain formaldehyde, vinyl chloride, acrylic softeners, plasticisers, phthalates, APEOs, bisphenols, glycols, heavy metals such as lead, cadmium or mercury, or any kind of plastic or animal products. Unlike other organic paints, they also do not contain terpene VOCs, which react with ozone in the air to form formaldehyde. They are completely toxin-free.
In fact, the paints are so pure you can eat them, as part-owner and Manager of Lakeland Paints jovially demonstrates in this video:
Lakeland Paints are very fast drying, and it really is possible to paint a room and sleep in it the same night without any side-effects at all. They are also hard-wearing, available in a range of 180 colours, and can be individually colour-matched to thousands of other colours from designer brands at no extra cost.
The range includes wall paints, wood paints, floor paints, masonry paints, woodwashes, algicides, plaster sealers, and more. They even have anti-formaldehyde radiator paint and a primer you can use on MDF that absorbs and permanently neutralizes approximately 99% of the formaldehyde and other VOCs.
I discovered these paints many years ago, when Lakeland Paints were just starting out, long before most people were aware there were any healthy alternatives to regular paints. They were very expensive then, but are much more affordable now.
Where to buy Lakeland Paints
Lakeland Paints are based in the UK and ship worldwide (to 56 countries so far). The same paints are also sold in the US under the name of Ecos paints.
UK – www.lakelandpaints.co.uk
US – www.ecospaints.net
If you are chemically sensitive or simply value your health, it’s definitely worth investing in pure organic paints next time you do any decorating. Richard and I wouldn’t use anything else. And we’re in good company. It’s used by a long list of reputable organizations, including Getty Museums, the UK Houses of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, Heathrow Terminal 4, The Duchy of Cornwall, Clarence House, The British Museum and many others.
And full transparency: I don’t receive any commission from this company. I haven’t even told them I’ve written this article!
Copyright © Clear Space Living Ltd, 2019
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Anyone find the Lakeland paint to have a sweet clay like smell once on walks ? 2 weeks on and still strong 😩
Hi Nic
Lakeland Paints are odourless.
Perhaps the paint has been stored in too hot a location and has gone off? On the Tech Advice page of their website, it says: ‘Storing any paint at high temperatures (eg boiler cupboard) can cause many problems including gellation, bacterial spoilage (bad odour etc), accelerated can rusting/staining, separation etc.’
If this doesn’t apply to you, I suggest you contact Lakeland Paint’s Customer Support to get help. They usually respond very quickly.
Thanks for the link to the paints, we have just had a catalogue through and ordered a free sample. They sell them here too http://www.healthy-house.co.uk/category/organic-paints-and-varnishes, so it’s not just you who recommends them! We’re about to have our kitchen done, so this was good timing!
Very interesting. Thank you for that information. I knew such paints existed but didnjt know where. I have ordered their brochure but I guess shipment to Ireland is prohibitive. Thank you very much anyway. Teresa
Thanks for talking about these wonderful paints, Karen. I’ve just used a tin of ECOS paint to decorate my father’s bedroom before he is discharged from hospital. Sadly, he’s been diagnosed with lung cancer so it was absolutely vital for us to use paint that contained no potentially harmful chemicals for him. I was amazed by how pleasant the paint was to use and will definitely use it the next time I decorate a bedroom in our home (I may even use it on all of our rooms). Yes, it’s more expensive (mainly due to paying for postage) but very easy to use and gave an excellent coverage (I suspect it contains a high level of pigment). And no, I DON’T work for the company !
I, too, discovered Ecos paints many years ago, something like 12 years ago. As you say, they were very expensive, but I used a lot of them in my previous house, particularly on outdoor “gloss” areas, they were excellent for this, and, at the time, the only “healthy” water-based paints I could find that were suitable for such a purpose. Nowadays there are other alternatives, but you have inspired me to have another look at their website for future use.
Doesn’t seem to be too much other interest in paint here 🙂 But here is a link to the Milk Paint I found online in the U.S. – http://www.milkpaint.com/ and the clay paint – http://www.unearthedpaints.com/products/clay-paint
Apparently both are shipped as powders and you mix them up yourself with water.
EcoPaints look like they have much more variety! But just thought I would put this out there.
Great to hear! I have been looking at milk based paints and also clay based paints. At some point I figured okay how did people paint their houses say 200 years ago (!) and discovered milk based paints from the east coast of the US – undoubtedly used elsewhere too but definitely used there – however I live in a very humid climate so mold might be a problem with milk based paints. So I moved on to looking at clay based paints. Eco Paints sounds interesting! Not in my neighborhood but interesting nonetheless !