SUSTYISH: Wrap Up Christmas, Plastic Free.
Whilst creating my sustainable Christmas gift, I was shocked, disgusted and confused by a statistic about how much wrapping paper the UK consumes at Christmas time. We throw away 18 million rolls of Christmas wrapping paper every Christmas. Wrapping paper might sort of look like paper, but it isn’t. It’s coated in laminate, dyes, glitter, plastic and foils which means we can’t recycle or compost it. It has to be disposed of in general waste, and it will end up in a landfill, sitting there for hundreds of years. It takes six mature trees to make one ton of paper on average; paper is a finite source. We cut down 50,000 trees each year to make enough paper to wrap gifts. We have so many things around the house that make perfect gift-wrapping solutions, you’ll neve have to buy a roll of wrapping paper ever again.
Check out some susty gift wrapping ideas instead!
FUROSHIKI CLOTH WRAP
I first saw this idea in a Lush store, where they used recycled fabric to wrap up their gift sets instead of paper. It’s actually a traditional Japanese method called Furoshiki, which is used to wrap clothes, food and other gifts. It gives an incredibly luxe feel that anyone would be impressed by. You can buy scarves from the charity shop, or perhaps you have a scarf yourself you no longer wear. You can either let the recipient keep the fabric as part of the gift or take it back to re-use for another year. Add some sprigs of evergreen or a pinecone to make it festive.
BROWN PAPER
Brown paper is one of my favourite and easiest ways to avoid using plastic at Christmas. It’s recyclable and cheap to buy (or re-use if you already have some). You can decorate it with ribbon or even try potato printing with water-based paint for stamps to give it a little pizzazz. If you’re not that creative you could just paint ribbons on. Don’t forget you can create gift tags using paper or card from other packaging too!
PAPERS & MAGS
Using old newspaper as wrapping paper is the cheapest upcycling method I can think of. The best sections are the cartoons and puzzles, as they make great graphics. If you read foreign papers, this could give an additional layer of interest. I have a habit of keeping magazines, and whilst i will never part with some of them (Vogue is expensive you know), there are definitely some that could have another use. I think these are perfect for smaller gifts. Why stop at mags and papers? Do you have old maps, gardening brochures, or sheet music?
BASKETS & BOXES
I’ve seen Fortnum & Mason baskets in the charity shop, and even own a few myself that I’ve upcycled into storage. If i was giving a special gift, such as a gift hamper to a new parent or someone dear to me, I would definitely go for this option. It looks stunning when you add some tissue paper or ribbon, and is incredibly low effort (perfect for me as someone who hates and sucks at wrapping gifts!). It’s also a great cheat for when you’re gifting a family or group of people as opposed to an individual. Basket of vegan cheese anyone?
ECO-FRIENDLY PAPER
If none of these takes your fancy and you really prefer to use
wrapping paper, then opt for eco-friendly paper.
Here are some I’ve found online for you.
NOTHING
I like this one for kids or people who are on the same wavelength as yourself when it comes to waste. Whilst children love unwrapping and unboxing things, they also love a game. Try sending the little ones on a scavenging hunt to find their gifts - it’s more exciting and generates no waste other than the item’s own packaging, if applicable. For my own family, i may at most re-use gift bags but i always take them back to use the following year or for birthdays.
Don’t Forget…
We’re trying to avoid plastic so also remember to avoid sellotape too. Alternatives would be bio-degradable brown paper tape, ribbon, and string. If you use sellotape on your susty wrapping paper, then it can’t be recycled which kinda defeats the whole point!
