The holidays bring warm thoughts of family, friends, laughter, and for our younger ones, presents! However, between shopping, buying, and packaging, the holidays can leave a noticeable impact on our environment as well as our mindset. Although the focus should not be on gift-giving, oftentimes that’s one of the most stressful parts about the holidays. Consumerism reaches a high point during the holiday season, but it doesn’t have to break the bank or your eco-friendly habits. Keep the air and your conscience clear by following these eco-friendly options for conscious consumerism this holiday season!
Practice Local Consumerism
By shopping locally, you not only help the businesses in your community but you eliminate the wasteful packaging that comes when an item needs to be shipped. It’s a win-win!
Eco-friendly Shopping Bags
If you are reading this, there’s a good chance you’re already making the effort to eliminate plastic bags from your routine. Put those reusable bags to use while you’re out doing your holiday shopping! If you just have one or two items you are purchasing from a store, you can also opt to go bag-free. Some stores may even offer you a discount for going green!
Be Conscious of the Environment...and Your Bank Account
If you have someone on your list who doesn’t mind gently-used secondhand items, take advantage of that! There are so many nice (and even new-with-tags) items in thrift stores that can make great gifts. These tend to come with a lower price tag as well, so you will be saving money along with recycling merchandise!
Avoid Wasteful Consumerism
When you are doing your shopping, practice conscious consumerism by having a list on your phone or in your head to stay on track with your purchases. If you go out shopping without knowing what you want to buy, the chances of you making frivolous purchases increases. To avoid buying something that no one on your list needs, put the time into choosing a thoughtful gift before your shopping trip!
Enjoy the Holiday Season by Making Fewer Shopping Trips
By making fewer trips, you’ll likely cut down on the amount of “extras” you buy as well as your carbon footprint for your transportation needs. Choose one or two big days where you plan out your stops and purchases. Bonus: avoiding the holiday chaos of shopping centers as much as possible makes for a much less stressful season!
Eco-Friendly Holiday Gift Options
Sometimes it seems impossible to find just the right gift for those on your list. If you are looking to be conscious of the environment with the gifts you give, there are plenty of eco-friendly gifts that nearly everyone would enjoy!
Stainless steel water bottle
Encourage your gift-receiver to transition to a reusable bottle for water instead of adding to the growing pile of plastic water bottles. With all of the different sizes, colors, and designs, you should have no problem finding a bottle that matches the personality of your gift receiver!
Grooming supplies
We have a great line of grooming products, including this Beard and Facial Oil. Help promote healthy natural skin and facial hair care by giving a friend or loved one this multi-purpose product.
Pregnancy and baby care
If you’ve got a new parent on your shopping list, the best gift you can give them (other than time and love) is postpartum essential Mommy’s Belly Balm. You can include baby on your list by tossing in some sweet-smelling lotion and bottom ointment.
Green candles
A beeswax or soy wax candle is the perfect eco-friendly gift for those who love to keep their homes smelling clean and fresh without polluting the air with paraffin fumes. They also tend to last longer than other candles and usually don’t drip!
Solar-powered charger
Nearly everyone has a cell phone, and inevitably that phone will need to be charged. A solar-powered phone charger is a perfect way to harness solar energy and use it to charge your devices. These are very handy if you are on a road trip or spending time outdoors. No power source needed!
Essential oil kits
Has the person on your list expressed interest in essential oils? A starter kit may be the perfect gift for them! We have multiple options to choose from, and one of our essential oil starter-kits is sure to be perfect for your gift-receiver!
DIY spa gift
Who doesn’t enjoy a bit of pampering and self-care? If the person on your list could use a pick-me-up this holiday season, we’ve got plenty of products for you to choose from! Our suggestions for the best spa gift packs are as follows:
Eco-Friendly Options for Gift Wrapping
So you’ve got your gifts. You’re done, right? Nope! There’s one last step: the packaging. With the exchanging of gifts comes trash cans full of discarded wrapping paper. Instead of spending money on something that will get thrown away, try these eco-friendly alternatives for wrapping your gifts!
Paper sacks
If you have a collection of paper grocery sacks, a great way to repurpose them is to use them as gift wrap! This works particularly well if your gift is in a box shape. All you have to do is make a few strategic cuts to get the sacks to lay flat. This is a great wrapping idea for children, as they can personalize the paper with their own drawings.
Newspaper
If you or any of your family members are still receiving a print copy of a newspaper, take those old editions and repurpose them into wrapping paper! Newspapers are fairly durable, and if you have the time, you can customize the wrapping by finding funny comic strips or intriguing headlines.
Reusable bags
What better way to get the most out of your wrapping by making the packaging something the gift receiver can use again? Most grocery stores sell reusable bags for their conscious consumers. If your gift is small enough, this can be a great gift bag and can also serve as a reminder to be a smart shopper all year long!
The gift itself (or part of it)
This is particularly useful if you are giving a selection of similarly-themed items. For example, if you are giving a baby some bath toys, you could put the toys in a water bucket so it doubles as the packaging and a part of the gift! Maybe you’re giving a pre-university gift to a young person; a large mesh laundry bag could be another bonus and packaging for a college survival kit!
Recycled paper
If you can’t break the habit of wrapping your gifts in wrapping paper, try to buy recycled wrapping paper. Recycled paper is just previously used paper scraps transformed into new usable paper. Using recycled paper helps lower the number of trees being cut down and also uses less energy during the production process!
Hopefully within this post you’ve found some new eco-friendly options for conscious consumerism this holiday season. Do you have other suggestions? Head on over to our website, like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram. We’d love to hear your ideas and feedback and answer any of your questions!
