Recycled Packages Tied Up with String
Here are a few of my favorite things!
We enjoy the Christmas traditions of putting pretty packages under a tree, giving our home a festive vibe and making cookies and eggnog. It is a process but we have made small changes to be more aware while keeping the nostalgia.
Reusable gift boxes and bags
For about 10 years I have used pre-wrapped boxes. Shoe boxes or specialty gift boxes work great. Wrap the tops and bottoms separately and tie it up with a beautiful string or fabric ribbon. At your holiday celebrations just untie the ribbon and lift off the top. You save time on your gift wrapping but most importantly no more big piles of wrapping going straight to the trash.
When is is not the holiday season, store ornaments and decorations inside these boxes. I talked about a similar idea in Packaging Beyond One Time Use.
DIY decorations and ornaments
When we moved to Japan in 2020, we did not have belongings like our boxes of Christmas decorations. I improvised with a few items I had on hand and made a few other items.
I baked salt dough in the shape of little stars and cinnamon applesauce dough in the shape of gingerbread men. I poked in some cloves and strung these on a mix of a cut up old T-shirt and yarn.
I gathered sticks from outside, sewed these onto a wire hoop, and mixed in natural elements to make a wreath for the door. The smaller twigs were gathered into little bundles with a ribbon tied in the middle and set around candles with other natural elements.
I cut cereal boxes, twisted them into cones, taped, and wrapped them up in yarn with a little bit of glue as I went. A short string of led lights and pine cones completed the look.
One of the things I love about these items is their ability to be combusted or biodegrade over most of the decorations purchased in shops. They may not last forever but this is an opportunity to refresh decorations every few years.
Giving what is needed instead of just stuff
Make and follow wish lists, write ideas down throughout the year, or give a gift card to a favorite store. Maybe it will not be a huge surprise but you ensure people get items they can really make use of.
Offer charity donations in someone’s name. We have food banks and such who we give towards and I was very excited that for two of my holiday events 20% of my sales went towards charities including ones assisting people who fell on hard times amidst COVID. In the coming seasons I hope to encourage people to make donations instead of buying me things and in turn offer their own favorite charities as an alternative or addition to a small gift.