Sustainable Holiday Gifts for Everyone in Your Life
by Bria Zegarelli
November 17, 2023
With the holiday season approaching, it’s a good idea to start looking for gifts that are not only perfect for your loved ones but also excellent for the environment! While they may be hidden gems, eco-friendly gifts are important to consider, especially as sustainable swaps to your typical products or more mainstream items that will be bought in larger quantities over the next month.
Need ideas or don’t know where to start? The following 12 items are perfect alternatives to your regular holiday gift purchases!
1] Plants, Indoor Garden, or Pollinator Push Gardens
Plants might be the most obvious idea here, but they are perfect for decor, cooking, air quality, and showing your love! Flowers specifically are always a great gift, and if you wrap them in recycled paper rather than plastic when transporting them, that makes for an even more eco-friendly present.
If your loved one really likes gardening, this set of three pollinator push gardens might be perfect for them! Each of these push-pop pollinating products contains a custom seed collection and nutrients to attract bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds to your garden.
If you’re thinking of less maintenance, an indoor garden might be a better fit. You can grow plants and herbs on your own right inside your house! Here is a list of some great indoor gardens:
2] Sustainable Beauty Products
Beauty products are always a favorite and popular gift idea, and there are so many options that are much better for the environment. Products from companies like LUSH, Burt’s Bees, or Notice Hair Co. are known for their efforts to increase recycling, protect the earth, and reduce plastic waste.
3] Green Toys
If you’re looking for toys, Green Toys is a company that uses 100% recycled plastic to make their products! From toy trucks to roleplaying kits, they have a lot of different options for younger kids.
4] Zero-Waste Kits from Etsy
If you’re worried about finding individual eco-friendly products, a zero-waste kit might be a good idea! There are many small businesses on Etsy that sell kits containing a set of eco-friendly products. Some of the categories include cleaning, beauty, shaving, or dining.
5] Vi Bella Jewelry
Vi Bella Jewelry is a company that handcrafts jewelry from sustainably sourced and recycled materials such as horn, seeds, clay, shell, leather, and tin. The company prioritizes ethical manufacturing and employment, and the makers of the products are artisans from Haiti and Mexico.
6] Pela Phone Case
Instead of buying a plastic phone case, consider Pela phone cases! They are eco-friendly and 100% compostable, and they are made from flax shive and plant-based biopolymers.
7] Pottery with a Purpose Kits
A Pottery with a Purpose kit would be a great choice for an art-loving friend. These pottery kits are plastic-free and responsibly sourced. The included paint brushes also have vegan bristles and a natural bamboo handle.
8] Rocketbook Fusion Notebook
This notebook is totally reusable, so it is a perfect sustainable option for college students! After you write on it, you can scan the pages to your phone or computer and then wipe the pages clean with water!
9] Food Huggers
These food huggers are a great way to drastically reduce your plastic waste in the kitchen! They come in both covers and bags. I’ve heard especially good things about the avocado hugger, which covers the exposed part of an avocado once it’s cut in half.
10] NOTES Candles and Waxwing Candles
These refillable candles are an effective way to reduce waste with home decor!
11] Artifact Uprising Softcover Photo Book
If you like homemade, sentimental gifts for your loved ones, this photo book with a 100% recycled interior might be the perfect idea!
12] Thrifted Items!
Although this may also be an obvious option, don’t skip out on thrift stores or secondhand items for your holiday gifts! Thrift stores as well as websites that sell used items are great ways to be sustainable with both the environment and your money during the gift-giving season. If you want secondhand gifts that are not clothes, don’t worry! Most of these stores do not only sell clothes; they sell books, home decor, accessories, and other items as well.
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