Christmas day is just around the corner and so are those piles of ripped gift wrapping paper that give anyone with a conscience, a budget or simply a rubbish-tax a guilty feeling. Did you know that wrapping paper from holiday gifts is largely to blame for a 25 percent rise in the volume of rubbish throughout December? Did you know that burning it in the fireplace is even worse than sending it to a landfill?
So what’s the solution, give your presents wrapped in drab newspaper cuttings? This might be a start but here are a couple of funkier ideas to jazz up your Christmas present pile without harming the planet.
Old t-shirts, skirts, jeans or scarves can be cut, sewn or simply tied to gift wrap any shape or form. The best bit about them? Different textiles suit different sexes, age groups and tastes. Just like paper! Keep the scraps to use next year or collect them for that famous patchwork blanket you keep planning on making.
Plastic/metally ribbon is definitely NOT sustainable. Opt for cloth ribbon, raffia, hemp string or wool. Use something from you garden to decorate the bow – a flower, a chestnut, a sprig of fresh rosemary or dry twigs.
Last year’s Christmas paper. Ok so last year wasn’t that green but you did keep some of that pretty silver paper. Why not use it again? If your scared of it looking tatty make sure you put a really nice ribbon around it and a note explaining that you are recycling, not scrimping.
Small presents like jewellery, jam, pencils and cards fit perfectly into old pairs of socks. Make sure to wash them and darn any holes before wrapping though!
