Last spring I decided it was time to get a new kitchen sink.

I had been spending a lot of time on Houzz, a social network centered around home design, interior design, and landscape design. It’s complex, but somewhat comparable to Pinterest (if Pinterest allowed people to organize their selected pics into blog posts).

Mostly I was on there because it was more fun than reading textbooks and because I crave visual inspiration, and it was definitely time to get some stuff around my house figured out.

I’ve always hated a lot about my kitchen. But I won’t bore you with my gripes about it…  With the discovery that there were leaks around my sink, I figured it was clear that the place to start was with a new sink.  Lucky for me, one of my best friends is a plumber and is on a “Will work for a homemade dinner” status with me.

Due to my excessive amount of visual consumption on Houzz, I had discovered I wanted an apron-front (AKA farm-house style) sink.

Exhibit A:

A place to relax, wash veggies from the garden, and be all things domestic goddess.
Image from this blog.

Clearly, this was the sink for me. Perfect for washing all those veggies I was going to grow in my garden. (Hope springs eternal. I suck at gardening.)

But then… I discovered apron front sinks come in copper! Holy shlamoley, coolest thing ever!

Exhibit B:

Can I get an “Oh yes please!”
Image from here.

So after I did a bunch of research about how to care for a copper sink and this and that and I had one all picked out, I started to think about the movement to keep copper mining out of northern MN. As you can probably guess, I’m opposed to hazardous mining in the Boundary Waters, anywhere near them, or anywhere near me and my loved ones in general.

I’m also opposed to them anywhere, which means I really can’t buy copper from…well, anywhere? (Curses in head loudly.)

Plus, if I were OK with allowing the pollution to happen elsewhere (again, I’m totally not, but just for conversation’s sake), then I’d likely be purchasing a sink ‘made’ in China.  There is a concern about copper from China having lead mixed in to reduce cost/price. I’m definitely not cool with washing my food and dishes in lead-water.

Back to the drawing board, I guess.

“But hey, that’s OK!” Voice-in-head told me. “There’s so many awesome sinks out there! I’ll get one that’s, you know, eco-friendly. That’s cool.”

In keeping with the themes of ‘used adds character,’ ‘distressed is beautiful,’ and ‘farmhouse-chic,’ I managed to find a perfect sink, for free.

• My new sink was second-hand, so there were no problems from toxic mining methods.  Does it get more eco-friendly than that?
• My new sink was aged and distressed, with character that only comes with age.
• My new sink was a perfect fit for the hole in my countertop, which meant I didn’t have to go buy a new counter, either.
• You may have already guessed it, but I kept the sink I already had.

The leak was actually from the faucet (which plumber-friend explained was indeed beyond repair and I needed a new one). The other area causing a leak was a small gap between the counter and the wall which just needed repairing.

So I got a new faucet (so I guess it wasn’t totally free, but I would have needed a new faucet even if I bought a brand-new sink).  No more leaking, plus it totally changed the mood in my kitchen.

I now look at my kind of ugly sink and counter with pride instead of loathing because I chose to have them there. They are also now a symbol to me of a truly conscious style of consumerism – going beyond green-washed products that are really the same old form of “Buy buy buy” and getting back to the mentality of the people who originally owned those old, beautiful farmhouse-style sinks:

Make-do and mend.

Part of Britain’s WWII rationing efforts – Make-Do and Mend. Pic boosted from Ecouterre but widely available.

Note: I want to clearly state that this the choice that was right for me and my family. I know that other people will come to decisions in ways that are right for their family. I changed my choice of hammered copper sink to one that goes to a store instead of to someone else’s blog because I wouldn’t want anyone to think I am judging the other person’s decision to buy one.

Hey, they are gorgeous sinks! I totally get it! 🙂