Although Christmas is the gift of giving, many of us tend to go overboard with the gift shopping, ending up not only spending more money than necessary, but we’re often left with gifts that didn’t quite hit the mark, despite good intentions.
With the minimal waste movement becoming more and more popular, we have created a list of sustainable and eco-friendly gifts to spoil your loved ones that won’t cost the planet:
Gifting an experience
Sometimes, despite good intentions, gifts don’t hit the mark and instead of receiving something meaningful, we are left with unnecessary clutter. We tend to forget that we don’t need to buy something materialistic for our loved ones – we can gift an experience that they’ll love.
Gifting an experience is a thoughtful and sustainable gift to give. Whether your loved ones would like a few surfing lessons, a skydiving session or a nail salon voucher, there is an experience to suit all. To make your gift extra personal, why not gift an experience you can share together?
Home-made gifts
Rather than looking through shop after shop for the perfect gifts, why not make gifts out of what you already have at home?
Round up all of your unused glass jars at home and sterilise them in boiling water. Once they have dried, you can fill them with:
- Epsom salts and dried lavender for a relaxing bath
- Your famous chutney recipe
- A body scrub made from raw sugar, coconut oil and essential oils
Alternatively, make a big batch of your favourite Christmas biscuits and gift to your family and friends, wrapped in a festive tea towel.
Eco-friendly gifts
Are you struggling to find the time to make a home-made gift? Not to worry, there are plenty of eco-friendly and sustainable gifts you can buy to spoil your loved ones. Here are a few examples:
- Reusable coffee cups – whether your loved ones enjoy an espresso or a large latte, there is a reusable coffee cup to suit. With a wide variety of colours, styles and sizes to choose from, you’ll be sure to find the perfect cup. These cups are an eco-friendly alternative to the non-recyclable, take-away coffee cups.
- Stainless steel drink bottles – stainless steel bottles are durable and eco-friendly compared to plastic bottles. Look out for insulated bottles that keep drinks cold for hours.
- Wooden toys – ditch the plastic and opt for wooden toys for your children. Wooden toys are durable and more sensory than plastic toys, and are better for the environment too.
- Beeswax food wraps – say goodbye to single use plastic food wrap and hello to reusable beeswax food wraps. They are an eco-friendly alternative to wrap up your left overs, and can last up to a whole year!
Let’s not forget about Kris Kringle
Participating in Kris Kringle is another sustainable gift idea. Rather than buying dozens of gifts for every single family member, friend and work colleague, organise a Kris Kringle to avoid excessive gifts (as well as all the excess gift wrap, sticky tape, ribbons and cards that get thrown out and usually end up in landfill).
Kris Kringle, also known as ‘Secret Santa’ involves putting all of the participant’s names in a hat. Each person picks one name from the hat without telling anyone else, and they are now responsible for buying a gift for the person they selected.
