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The Made In Brooklyn Nursery Furniture Everyone Is Talking About

Founded by a father’s desire to create a safe and cozy space for his daughter, Franklin + Emily is a Brooklyn based brand dedicated to designing and making furniture that is sustainably produced, non-toxic, and intended to teach kids the importance of renewable materials and true craftsmanship.

Elisse Gabriel Senior Writer & Editor

The story of Franklin + Emily started in Brooklyn with a broken printer and David Mawhinney’s daughter.

‘As an inquisitive toddler, every morning, my daughter would walk into our bedroom and perch on our printer. As she grew, the printer didn’t, and the paper tray no longer cut it as a spot for her to nestle. So, I started to build her a chair.’

As an accountant turned chef, David had an appreciation for things that took time, thought and passion. Just like a delicious meal, he knew he’d need to find the right ingredients to make a chair that looked right in every room in their home and provided a safe and cozy space for his daughter to sit and take in the beautiful world around her.

Adamant that the chair was produced sustainably and able to provide maximum durability, he started looking for sustainably sourced and FSC certified wood options, experimenting with plant based materials, natural finishes and vegetable tanned leathers. Pretty quickly, David discovered that his family wasn’t the only one needing a chair for their tots and thus, Franklin + Emily was born.

Franklin + Emily Chair – Walnut

$450

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Available in more colors

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Inspired by his children and his desire to protect the environment, David decided that Franklin + Emily furniture wouldn’t be the kind that inevitably ends up in a landfill like many mainstream options. It wouldn’t be the kind that cracked, flaked or off-gassed toxic chemicals. It would be a brand that would teach his kids about renewable materials, non-toxic ingredients and the importance of true craftsmanship. Today, the Franklin + Emily collection has grown to include chairs, sofas, stools and more.

Girl sitting on a Franklin + Emily Chai

Their Walnut and Ash hardwood frames are built from responsibly sourced wood from small local mills in upstate New York and finished by hand, while the Baltic Birch frames are constructed of 13 layer plywood that is certified by both the FSC and CARB (California Air Resources Board), ensuring trees were responsibly grown and harvested and that the bonding is free of toxic chemicals such as formaldehyde.

Franklin + Emily Chair – Ash

$450

EXCLUSIVE

Available in more colors

BUY NOW

Franklin + Emily Chair – Baltic Birch

$360

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Available in more colors

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Franklin + Emily Two Seater Sofa

$660

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Available in more colors

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All fee from solvents, VOCs and safe for food contact, Franklin + Emily’s pieces are finished with natural vegetable oils and waxes as well as packaged and shipped in 100% recycled material.

Durable, easily spot-cleanable and machine washable, Franklin + Emily fabrics are sourced from UltraSuede®, an innovative materials company working to contribute to building a carbon-neutral society as they work towards the development of a 100% plant based material. For their leather options, they use 7 oz vegetable tanned Wickett and Craig Leathers, a company that prides itself in its natural, eco-friendly processes producing superior leathers that are full of character.