Eco Friendly Gift Wrapping Ideas

With Christmas just around the corner we need to look at ways to also be clever with how we gift the earth and unfortunately tonnes of extra waste just from the wrapping alone is not what we need. Especially when we have numerous options from various materials already made around us that do a lot less damage to the planet than typical packaging and wrapping, some of which cannot even be recycled. Below I have listed some options to consider when picking out wrapping paper.

1. Burlap 

   • Burlap is extremely environmentally friendly. It’s a sustainable, 100 percent biodegradable product and the second most important natural fiber in the world; of all reusable bags, burlap specifically has the lowest carbon and water footprint of all the options.
   • You can use Burlap to wrap around presents as you would with paper. You can use/ make burlap bags to put your gifts insides or you can use burlap material to make into beautiful ribbons and to put around jars.

2. Newspaper 

   • Newspaper is one of the easiest things that we can use as recycled wrapping paper. If you are someone whom has 101 gifts to wrap newspaper might be the easiest thing for you to use with a nice Ribbon around it.
   • You can store newspaper throughout the year and keep any black and white pages… Colour printed pictures of your local football teams don’t look great, unless that’s the look you are going for.

3. Children’s Artwork 

   • All those different pictures you are given through out the year that you don’t want to throw out, but don’t necessarily have space to put up around the house, could come in handy for Christmas wrapping paper for aunties, grandparents and family friends.
   • Have a folder that you keep your children artwork in through out the year and when it comes to wrapping the gifts try to keep the artwork colour scheme the same for each of your gifts. Some might be white, blue red etc.

4. Fabric Wrapping 

   • Scarves, pillow cases and other material could be a 2 in one gift. LUSH stores offer a wrapping service using beautiful scarves to wrap the goods in, it’s such a lovely concept and idea.
   • The wrapping art form is known as ‘Furoshiki‘ (click into the link to see instructions on how to wrap).

5. Baskets 

   • Who doesn’t love a basket full of goodness! Baskets are one of the best recyclable ways to gift someone. For multiple different reasons (They can keep them to store things around the house, they too can use them to gift to people and depending on what sort of basket you have, you could even take it for picnics and what not).
   • You just need to think what you want to put into you basket and perhaps theme it like that be it a basket full if homemade foodie gifts, cruelty free beauty products or some eco friendly home products.

Can you think of any other materials that make eco friendly wrapping paper?

x

Saoirse