Ideas for Sustainable Gift Wrapping

Holiday gift wrapping can be hard for a conscious consumer: Most of those shiny wrapping papers, glittery bows and decorative tissue paper are unrecyclable.

Luckily, there are both new and old options for people who want to do their part and send less to the landfill.

The magic of holiday gift wrapping

The holiday season invites the maximalist in us to emerge when we are hosting or attending festive fêtes and participating in gift-giving celebrations. Beautiful wrapping is part of the spectacle.

I have visceral nostalgia from my childhood when my mom would hoist down her 50 lb. wet lock boxes, waxed corrugated containers designed for shipping fresh seafood from Alaska, pilfered from her days working at a fish packing house on the Seattle waterfront. These boxes were full of jubilantly decorated wrapping  paper from red plaids to tiny Santa prints and extravagant ribbons in every color of the season. My hands sometimes struggled to grasp the hefty bows, while my mom unknowingly passed down one of my most important holiday traditions in the art of gift wrapping.

She was also teaching me lessons in the spirit of gift giving. My holidays as a kid were scrappy but my mom made magic with minimal resources. The contents of my mom’s presents were acquired over the course of the year to stretch her dollar, and sometimes included necessities like socks and toothbrushes. Yet, the presentation of our gifts signaled thoughtfulness and love in how they were wrapped and her requirement that only one person could open gifts at a time, to elongate the moments on Christmas morning.

Today, I experience guilt about the waste and environmental impact of the winter holidays. Approximately 2.3 million pounds of non-recyclable  wrapping paper ends up in U.S. landfills annually, according to the online sustainability resource Earth911. Materials that are shiny, metallic, or glittery are destined for the garbage .

Yet, I still delight in the pageantry of wrapping presents.

And that’s OK. There are ways to do better without feeling like Ebenezer Scrooge:

Repurpose what’s around first

A gift is no less thoughtful or special if it comes in upcycled or reused packaging!  Some ideas:

• Round up the glass jars or tins around the house to repurpose them as wonderful vessels for gifting.
• Wrapping gifts in cloth is another ecofriendly option.
• Stock up on PCC’s paper bags and reuse them for fun gift wrap. Break down your bag to size, tie it together with some twine and fresh greenery, and voila.
• There is no shame in saving and reusing wrapping supplies from previous occasions for green gifting!

Seek out sustainable gift wrapping

PCC seeks out sustainable products for its wrapping paper and gift bags.  The co-op stocks   Stewardship Council (FSC) certified products, which promise zero deforestation, a fair wage and work environment, and support conservation and community rights. We prioritize recycled paper or upcycled cotton and we avoid gilding, a common culprit that inhibits recyclability.

“Thoughtfully merchandising to welcome all cultural and holiday traditions in November and December is another important lens for how the co-op chooses our wrapping goods,” said PCC Health and Body Care Merchandiser Steven Jamieson. “You’ll see prints and designs that pay homage to winter wonderlands along with seasonal hues and color pops. We know gift bags sell well — likely because they can be reused — and now I hope our shoppers feel just as good about our sustainable wrapping rolls.”

In partnership with locally based Cards & Gifts Northwest, PCC sources several lines of gift wrap and bags and greeting cards with sustainable and fair-trade attributes.

The Gift Wrap Company  uses recycled paper and some of their papers are sourced from managed forests. Even their shiny design prints are recyclable, using recyclable foil on kraft paper!

Tip: Look for the ecofriendly, open-easy pull tabs or pull strips on the wrapping paper rolls.

Matr Boomie (meaning “Motherland” in Sanskrit) is a handmade fair-trade collection that uses upcycled cotton rags from the apparel industry to make the paper for their bags and wrap. Shopping Matr Boomie extends your impact in other ways too. The company “works to provide a way to break the cycle of poverty in India by partnering with local artisans in communities there,” said Teri Sams with Cards & Gifts Northwest. “They go beyond fair wages and actively invest in development projects, healthcare and education.”

Two other companies with products stocked at PCC, Notes & Queries and Roger LaBorde, both use paper from managed forests and are on track to eliminate all non-compostable plastics from their packaging.

Tie it up in a bow!

For the finishing touches of your holiday parcels, there are beautiful and sustainable accoutrements for ribbon, twine and tape.

Wrappily, an eco-friendly gift wrap company, offers paper ribbon that is recyclable, compostable and made with non-toxic, water-soluble dyes. Try a festive option in gold to add color and texture to your wintertime gift giving. Get inspired with curling ribbon made from uncoated and unwoven cotton that is plastic-free, compostable, and biodegradable. It curls easily with scissors but can be tied crimped or uncrimped. If you prefer the look of natural fibers, this hemp twine adds brightness and color without toxicity because it is biodegradable, AZO dye-free, and oil-free.

Tip: Bundle your bow loops in uneven numbers like three, five and seven for an asymmetrical yet better balanced bow.

Winter foliage from evergreen and holly trees or fresh herbs such as sage and rosemary make for pretty and fragrant trimmings. Did you know there are even eco-friendly options for tape? This tape, made with paper and a solvent-based adhesive side, is both recyclable and compostable.

It is a gift that keeps on giving, knowing these wraps, ribbons and tapes bring joyful flair without contributing to the excessive single-use waste of the holidays. I have since inherited those 50 lbs. wet lock boxes — which now store my stockpile of sustainable holiday gift wrapping supplies.

 
Kate Hudson is PCC’s Director of Communications and her household’s designated gift wrapper.