Gift Wrap Alternatives

Many gift wrap alternatives this holiday season

Yesterday, we posted about Eco-Friendly Wrapping Paper – which is a smart investment during the holiday season.  Using 100% post-consumer waste recycled paper for gift wrap is the green way to go this holiday season.

But what if you’re still concerned about the use of wrapping paper?  Can it truly be recycled again, even with soy-based, non-toxic inks?  The jury is still out on that one!

Consider these gift wrap alternatives if you don’t want to use traditional wrapping paper this Christmas season:

• Newspaper - We even used the comic pages to wrap last minute birthday gifts when I was a kid!
• Magazines – Thicker and more durable than newspaper, magazine pages can be used by themselves for small gifts, or taped together to cover larger presents
• Sheet music – As a piano player, I’ve had numerous music books start falling apart after years of use.  Take those pages and wrap a music-lovers gift in old sheet music.  Cool!
• Maps – Love to travel?  Does your gift recipient have wanderlust?  Take those old, partially torn maps out of the glove box and wrap a gift in them!
• Paper shopping bags – Did you forget your reusable shopping bags at the store?  Ask for paper bags instead and then use them for gift wrap.  Your kids can draw designs or pictures on them first.
• Fabric – Take old clothing or pieces of fabric and use them to create upcycled gift bags.  Check out this video:

You can sustainably gift wrap your presents this year and reduce a little bit of the guilt of the holiday season.  I can’t do anything about the size of your Visa bill, but at least your gifts will have a smaller carbon footprint!

Happy shopping and green wrapping!