5 of the best: eco paints

My line of thinking on paint used to be simple: if it was good enough for that fluffy dog on TV, it was good enough for me. Obviously the sheepdog in question had an immunity to the potentially dodgy volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in your average pot of paint. Enter eco paints, made from natural ingredients rather than oil and synthetic sources - think of them as modern Vermeers producing on an industrial scale. Chemical-free credentials aside, the big advantages are ease of use (you can wash hands and brushes with warm soapy water instead of white spirit) and healthy walls (as they're microporous, they let your walls 'breath'). Most are also biodegradable and compostable. The one catch is that they're far more expensive than average DIY store paint - typically four times the price of the cheaper brands - but you get what you pay for, right?

Here are five of the best:

• Earth Born Paints

Big range including other stuff such as varnishes and clay-based plaster - all made from clays, earth pigments, plants and other natural ingredients. The proud owner of the EU Ecolabel which, according to DEFRA, means 'the company         cares about the environment you live in, and so cares about you'. I've had this one personally recommended to me by friends.

• Nutshell Paints

A decent range of colours, undercoats and top coats, all made from natural, VOC-free ingredients.

• Auro

This is the only of these brands I've actually used, and it's brilliant - it smells good enough to eat. Emphasis on 'smells'. Produced from plants and minerals from 'environmentally managed sources'.

• Ecos Paints

A well-reviewed set of paints that are free of VOCs and dodgy toxic solvents. Also has a really wide range of products, including wood finishes. Shame its website is rubbish.

• Green Paints

British range of water-based paints. I've not heard a great deal about it before and its website is very limited in information. The main stockist appears to be the Green Shop.