Dress up your gifts in reusable raiment. It's a simple, easy way to "give green" this season. Here are some ideas and inspiration to get you started.
Reuse. Common items can make interesting and practical gift wrap:
- dinner napkins
- reusable shopping bags
- bandanas
- scarves
- hats
- towels
- fabric squares cut from old clothes
- hair scrunchies (for tying up)
Make Your Own Gift Bags. Add an extra element of originality to your gifts with homemade gift bags. Here's a blog showing you how to make these in a snap:
Track-a-Sack. If you'd like to encourage a friend or family member to try using a reusable gift bag, consider giving them a gift in a "Track-a-Sack" WrapSack. The sight of an overflowing trash bin the day after Christmas inspired The WrapSack founders to start selling reusable gift wrap bags. But they knew that just because something can be reused doesn't mean it will be. So they invented a way to track the progress of each bag as it is re-gifted. In their words, tracking gifts bags is "not just to protect our planet but also to see the journeys they take and hope that those journeys will bring people together so that there is just a little more peace on earth."
We sell Wrap Sacks in our store, available in a variety of sizes and patterns. In addition, we also offer reusable greeting card covers to eliminate the waste of paper envelopes.
Decorate Recycled Paper. While most people will be happy to receive and give gifts in reusable wrapping, others just won't get it. For them, consider rescuing and decorating paper from the recycling bin to use for gift wrap.
Children's Art. If you have school-aged children, you probably have a larger supply of drawings and paintings than display space on your refrigerator or walls. Your child's artistic excess makes great wrapping paper, especially for gifts given to their proud grand parents and teachers.
Plain Brown Paper. You can make classic and classy plain brown wrapping paper from paper shopping bags turned inside out. This paper provides a sturdy protective covering, and has the added advantage of being easy to compost. I'm often asked by concerned gardeners and home owners whether they can successfully and safely compost colorful holiday wrapping paper due to the coatings on the paper, residues from the bleaching process, and chemicals in the inks. While I personally shred and compost all types of paper, including wrapping paper, uncoated unbleached plain brown paper is the best for composting.
More Ideas. For more information and inspiration, check out the stories of these people who have gone to extremes to live with less garbage:
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