Saint Objets specifies OEKO-TEX class fabrics where the certificate is available for the chosen cloth, but a safe sofa rests on more than one label: toxic-free materials that keep a home healthy, and made-to-order construction in the studio's own atelier in the Emirates, so one piece is kept and re-covered for years rather than replaced.
What OEKO-TEX Actually Tells You
OEKO-TEX is a useful, recognisable signal that a textile has been tested against a list of harmful substances, and many of the fabrics we work with carry it. It answers one honest question well: is this cloth low in the chemicals you would rather not live beside.
It does not, on its own, answer whether the whole sofa is safe, well made, or worth keeping. A label describes a metre of fabric. It says nothing about the frame, the finish, or how long any of it survives daily use in a warm climate.
How We Treat a Certificate
At Saint Objets we treat a certificate as evidence for the chosen cloth, not a headline for the whole studio. Where a certificate is available for the fabric you select, we reference it plainly and can point to recognised third-party evidence rather than a general claim.
Our fabrics are chosen for:
- Toxic-free, safe non-toxic composition.
- Low chemical emissions indoors, which matters in a home kept cool against the heat.
- Hospitality-grade performance for pieces that see hard use.
Keeping the air in a room healthy is not a marketing line for us; it is the reason the materials are chosen the way they are. That conviction runs through the studio, and it belongs to Sarah Koben, who founded Saint Objets and set this standard for how her furniture is made.
Why Made to Order Is the Safer Choice
The quieter part of a safe, responsible choice is how the piece comes into being. Nothing is produced in advance, and nothing waits in a warehouse to be discounted or discarded.
- A sofa is made only once it is ordered, for one home.
- It is made locally, in our own atelier in the Emirates, rather than imported from a factory on the other side of the world.
- It travels from that atelier straight to the client's home, a short journey that plainly carries far less transport than furniture shipped in from overseas.
- Built to be re-covered and lived with for years, it replaces nothing and sends less to landfill, which is the plainest form of sustainability there is.
If you want the full picture of how we approach materials, our non-toxic fabric furniture in Dubai page sets out what we can and cannot claim, honestly.
Frequently asked questions
How does Saint Objets choose safe sofa fabrics?
We select fabrics for toxic-free, safe non-toxic composition and low chemical emissions indoors, with hospitality-grade durability for real use. Where a certificate is available for the chosen cloth, we reference that recognised third-party evidence plainly rather than making blanket claims. For Sarah Koben, who founded the studio, keeping the home environment healthy is a personal conviction, not an add-on.
Why is made-to-order more responsible than buying a stock sofa?
Made to order means nothing is produced in advance. There is no stock overproduced for a warehouse to discount or discard; a piece is built for one home only once it is ordered. It is made locally in our atelier in the Emirates and travels straight to the client, a short journey that carries far less transport than furniture shipped in from overseas. The sofa can be re-covered and kept for years, replacing nothing and sending less to landfill.