November 6, 2007
go green along with me, the best is yet to be
If you want to go green at Christmas, you've got to start early and plan. These days those are not my strong points. But no mind. I am starting today.
I am back to the yearly dilemma about the wrapping paper. The bins, no the aisles of wrapping paper at the local super stores are bothering me more and more. The other day I wandered by and the thought of all of the paper going straight into the trash in so many homes made me queasy. At the same time I am having difficulty with the thought of not giving my kids the pile of wrapped presents. So I am making a compromise and ordering recycled, earth friendly wrapping paper today to kick things off. It isn't the best option, but it isn't the worst either.
- PapOrganics has some beautiful hemp paper printed with vegetable inks (Looks like some Whole Foods will be carrying it)
- Smith & Hawken has some recycled options, like Winter Pine Gift Wrap
- Importica has gift wrap made from shedding tree bark and colored with nontoxic dyes.
- How about some super hip paper from Fish Lips Paper Designs?
- Etsy comes through as usual: Erin Ruth (although this paper is only 50% recycled)
While you're at it, how about some recycled tissue paper? (Or just skip it altogether.)
The best recycled paper is made from post-consumer waste (PCW). There are also good sustainable alternatives like hemp and banana paper. But don't listen to me—there is a wealth of information on the internet, too much for me to process on this night when half of my mouth is aching from a deep cleaning by the snotty dental hygienist.
Okay, I'll go green with you! After reading this, I thought, duh...recycled paper, why haven't I bought this before?? So thanks for the reminder. I'll be wrapping with the Smith & Hawkins papers I believe. Do you think they carry it in the store too? No shipping costs or extra packaging!
Posted by: Bobbi Jo at November 6, 2007 11:49 PMThanks for the links!
Posted by: Courtney at November 7, 2007 12:02 AMAnother great idea is to use hemp or organic cotton fabric bags tied with ribbon - they're reusable! Thanks for the links!
Posted by: Mary at November 7, 2007 8:05 AMI was thinking about this the other day as well. I want my son to unwrap presents, but I didn't want to buy all that paper. So, I decided that this year we would buy a big roll of recycled paper. Then, I would cut some present-size pieces and give my son some finger paints, paintbrushes and sponges and let him get to work. I figure that our family wouldn't mind and we'd be saving some money too. I'd also be painting/sponging some paper myself.
Posted by: Chantale at November 7, 2007 10:03 AMI know what you mean about the pile of wrapped gifts under the tree - I'm glad you found a solution that will work for you. My compromise is a little different. Recycled paper is a good option, but it's probably going to get thrown away (by my non-recycling relatives), plus, it took twice as much energy to make as first-use paper. At the moment I'm more worried about reducing the production of plastic and use of fossil fuels than conserving trees. We know we can find other sources of pulp if we need to, but plastic is forever. So I'm going to buy a minimal amount of regular paper and hope that people recycle it.
I'm also going to make reusable fabric gift bags. I still have three fabric gift bags that were given out free by a gas station in the early 90's (it was Canada) and I use them all the time. They are a simple fabric rectangle with a drawstring. In addition, I've decided that the gifts inside the wrapping will be handmade, hopefully by me. Absolutely no clamshell packaging and hopefully a minimum of plastic film wrap on a few things.
Thanks for the links.
Posted by: Elise at November 7, 2007 3:44 PM