Today I’m sharing ideas for wrapping presents this holiday season without creating excess waste. These ideas are not only eco-friendly, they’re cheaper and make for unique looking presents under your tree!
Just last week I came across these facts from Vanderbilt University, and I had to stop what I was doing and write this blog post:
- Americans throw away about 25% more trash between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve.
- If every American family wrapped just 3 presents in reused materials, it would save enough paper to cover 45,000 football fields.
- About 35% of Americans have an unused Christmas present collecting dust in their closets.
Woah.
I already try to make as many sustainable purchases year-round as possible, but the holiday season tends to be a time of…well…excess waste.
I’m not trying to go all grinchy on you– not at all.
I think we should be able to have our frivolous holiday traditions, our happy holiday celebrations, our time of giving and receiving- but that we can do it in a more eco-friendly way.
So, today I’m sharing some fun ideas for making more mindful, sustainable choices when wrapping your presents this year. If the stats above are any indication, doing so can make a HUGE impact on the amount of paper waste, and can also be more affordable, since many of these options rely on upcycled or otherwise wasted materials instead of purchasing new. (links below are affiliate links)
I hope you love them!
If you incorporate any of these eco-friendly gift wrapping options into your holiday celebrations this year, I’d love to hear how it went. Leave a comment below, or snap a photo of your presents and tag me in it on Instagram! And, if you’re looking for gifts to wrap, check out my 2018 Holiday Gift Guide, full of ideas for sustainable, eco-friendly, artisan, and organic gifts (that I totally love!).
REUSE BROWN PAPER BAGS TO WRAP SMALL PRESENTS
Think high school text books, but the Christmas present version. If you shop at a grocery store that uses brown paper bags, simply cut them open, cut out (and recycle!) the tough bottom, then lay flat and wrap your smaller gifts with the plain paper side facing out. Fun twist: if you have little kids (or are particularly artistic yourself), lay out the paper blank-side up first, and use markers, paints, or stamps to decorate! I kinda love the plain paper look, but think little paint handprints, drawn-on Christmas trees, etc, would be so cute!
INSTEAD OF RIBBONS, USE NATURAL FOLIAGE
Tree clippings from fur, balsam, etc, winterberries, tiny birch branches, holly leaves with berries, etc, all look gorgeous when tucked into the strings on a package. Head out for a fun winter walk through the woods with a pair or scissors and a bag (or, go ahead, take some trimmings from the back of your Christmas tree, I won’t tell) and affix one to each box you’ve wrapped.
BUY 100% RECYCLED WRAPPING PAPER (and then recycle it after the gift is opened!)
I love keeping a big roll of Kraft paper around for art projects and gift wrapping all year round. The rolls are HUGE (like, 100ft of paper), last multiple seasons, and give the same rustic brown-paper look as using old paper shopping bags, but can wrap much larger presents. We love this one or this one, which are both cheaper than purchasing the same quantity of holiday wrapping paper, and can be used for every holiday/gift-giving occasion. They’re also sold in most craft stores, if you have one near you!
WRAP PRESENTS IN RE-USABLE ITEMS
Instead of wrapping in paper, try wrapping gifts in organic cotton totes, cute little baskets (like this or this), or even wrapping in something like a scarf or tee-shirt- in any case, the wrapping acts as another component on the gift, and absolutely nothing is wasted!
BUY 100% RECYCLABLE GIFT BAGS
If you’re going to buy bags (rather than just up cycling ones you have in the house, or saving ones you’ve been gifted each year, then reusing them on friends and family, like I do) I love this multi-pack of 100% recyclable brown paper bags. Again, these are blank canvas for adding your own decorations or designs, but also look totally cute with a piece of pine pinned to them, or a simple ribbon and tag.
USE ALL-NATURAL TWINE, RIBBON AND TAGS
Instead of the plastic-laden ones, opt for all-natural or recyclable versions for your gifts. We love jute or organic cotton twine, this fun colorful paper ribbon, and these recyclable paper tags.
I hope these eco-friendly gift wrapping ideas were helpful! If you have any other suggestions, or ways you make the holidays a little less wasteful, be sure to leave a comment below and share them! We’re all in this together, and it’s so helpful to learn each other’s tips + tricks for making eco-friendly living fun and enjoyable!
