Published on December 21st, 2007 | by Stephanie Evans

Spend, Ship, Save the Planet: Eco-friendly Gift Wrap

This year, go for a simple, elegant, and eco-natural twist with holiday packaging. More than likely, there’s a treasure trove of trimmings in your own home—scraps of fabric, tissue paper, ribbons, and last year’s boxes and wrap waiting to be unearthed. Reuse products may not cover all of your holiday wrapping needs, so try a sampling of these earth-friendly designs . . .

Product Purchasing

There are many great reuse wrap ideas (see Getting Creative with Holiday Gift Wrap), but if you have a small budget devoted to package adornment, you’ll want to browse the selection of creative, sustainable wraps. Many of these companies also offer recycled content holiday cards.

Ribbons

Go for veg-dyed, recycled content options:

Hemp Sisters features a colorful assortment of veg-dyed hemp twine
Natural Collection (UK-based) has a variety of brightly colored flat paper ribbon and paper cord made of raffia fibres from mulberry tree bark
Of the Earth sells Eco-Twist ribbon, a biodegradable, veg-dyed handmade paper product

Tags

Look for recycled content and plantable seed gift tags:

Botanical Paperworks: plantable gift tags and seasonal cards

Wrap

Browse the variety of eco gift wrap, from satsifyingly simple to simply stunning:

Green Field Paper: neat modern designs printed with soy-based ink on 100% recycled content and a selection of plantable seed papers and holiday cards
Green Girl Gift Wrap: holiday designs made with soy-based ink printed on 100% recycled paper with petroleum-free labels
Natural Elements: silky handmade recycled paper from shedding tree bark and colored with non-toxic dyes
Papermojo: gorgeous printed designs on paper made from recycled cotton rags, banana plants, and rapidly renewable stores of Asian lokta and mulberry plants
ReusableBags: reusable holiday gift bag starter sets
Worldgoods: handmade gift bags and fair trade products

Gift Accents

Make gift tags from last year’s holiday cards or cut sections from colorful tea bag wrappers and color-code each person’s gift(s).

Have a gift be part of the packaging:

Dress up an edible or beverage gift with fresh herbs or tea bags
If you’re gifting a stationery set, attach a couple of recycled content writing pencils
Fill a blender, serving bowl, or vase with fresh organic fruit, a package of dried fruit and nut mix, or homemade granola