'Tis the Season...

As the weather turns colder, the snow begins to fall, and the calendar creeps ever closer toward December, it’s official: the holiday season is upon us!

At its best, the holiday season is a time steeped in tradition, family, and the act of giving. At its worst, this season is a time marred by capitalism, greed, excess, and waste.

From Thanksgiving to New Years Day, household waste increases by more than 25%. Food waste, shopping bags, packaging, wrapping paper, bows, and ribbons used and discarded during the holiday season account for an additional 1 million tons of waste being sent to our landfills, weekly!

Whether you’ve waited eagerly all year or you already cannot wait for it to be over, the holidays are a time both to honor old traditions and embrace new ones. This year, I encourage you to embrace and incorporate sustainability as a new tradition—and there is no better place to start than with the simple act of gift wrapping.

In the U.S., annual trash from gift wrap and shopping bags alone produce 4 million tons of waste.Traditional wrapping paper is often dyed and laminated in a way that makes recycling difficult. Any wrapping paper that is metallic, has glitter on it, or has velvet flocking cannot be recycled and should instead go directly into the trash. Simple wrapping paper without such additives can and should be recycled, although recycling your wrapping paper is a last resort and should be utilized only after first attempting to reuse or reduce paper use altogether.

Reusing wrapping paper is a viable option if your are willing to unwrap presents carefully so that the paper remains in pristine condition. You can then save money and reduce waste by reusing your carefully collected wrappings in your future gift wrapping endeavors. Wrapping paper that cannot be recycled can also be reused in a variety of crafting projects, as padding around fragile items you may be boxing up, or to make ornaments/decorations for next year’s holiday season. Check out some creative ideas and instructions on how to reuse your wrapping paper.

Better than both recycling and reusing, is the option of reducing your wrapping paper use by avoiding the product altogether. I’ll admit that traditional wrapping paper is often irresistibly fun and festive, but other materials you have on hand such as paper bags, newspaper, old maps, and different sorts of cloth can be used to cover your presents as a unique, creative, and sustainable alternative to single-use wrapping paper.

You can also utilize reusable gift bags, boxes, baskets, or reusable gift wrap made of stretchy/stylish fabric such as Wrapeez.

I haven’t yet used such products myself, but they are reviewed positively as being easy to use, looking professional, and saving time and resources as compared to traditional wrapping paper. One reviewer aptly suggested using these only for gifts to immediate family members or close friends so he can take the wrapping back, but other reviewers found the wrap could be passed on and reused by the recipient of their gifts and seemed unbothered by the prospect of not getting the wrap back. Other companies, like Wrag Wrap offer a range of recycled fabric gift wrap and bags as being an “ethical alternative to wrapping paper.”

You can also decorate old sheets, blankets, or clothing to be used as a reusable gift wrap option. There was even one year at Christmas when, much to my family’s chagrin, I simply draped some sheets and blankets over their gifts. Admittedly, that was more motivated by the pressing time constraints of having the gifts ready to go for the next morning rather than a desire to be more sustainable, but it just goes to show you that when it comes to alternatives to single-use, disposable wrapping paper, it’s alright to get creative!

Not just around the holidays, but for all my gift wrapping needs, I frequently turn to brown paper bags or old newspapers lying around my house. You can put as much time and effort into decorating these wrappings as you want, and you can watch the recipient tear open their gift with unbridled glee, your conscious no longer weighed down by contributing to the wasteful, single-use, disposable culture that so often accompanies our gift-giving occasions.

Of course, wrapping paper is but one source of avoidable waste this holiday season. If you’re looking to commit to a more comprehensive sustainable holiday season this year, consider incorporating some of these tips as well:

1. Bring reusable bags when you’re shopping for those holiday feast items, Black Friday deals, or last-minute gifts

2. Consider buying gifts with an environmental message, such as a reusable water bottle or thermos, a canvas tote, or items made from recycled materials

3. If you’re receiving tons of unwanted magazines or other holiday promotional mail this time of year, call the company’s customer service number and ask to be removed from their mailing list (and be sure to recycle the magazines, letters, etc. you do receive)

4. Send electronic cards or purchase cards made from recycled materials


5. Use reusable cutlery/plates/cups when entertaining


6. Make recycling easy and accessible for your guests

7. When you dispose of your tree, make sure it is either being composted or chipped into mulch rather than being deposited into a landfill (each year in the United States, 50 million Christmas trees are purchased, and of those, 30 million end up in landfills)

8. Alternatively, consider investing in a live tree that can be planted outdoors afterwards or a cost-saving artificial tree to be used year after year

9. Turn off holiday lights when you go to bed to conserve electricity, use energy-efficient LEDs, or consider stringing popcorn and cranberries instead of lights

10. And of course, wrap your gifts in a reusable alternative to single-use wrapping paper 

So, as the holiday season inevitably progresses this time of year, by all means celebrate however you want to. Enjoy your time off with family and friends. Eat, drink, and be merry. But, consider making a commitment to a more sustainable and environmentally-conscious holiday season this year. Whether it be investing in energy-efficient holiday lights, putting out a recycling bin at your holiday party, composting your food scraps, or bringing a reusable bag with you on your shopping trips, I urge every one of you to adopt at least one sustainable practice this holiday season. And, if nothing else, wrap your gifts in something other than single-use, disposable, non-recyclable wrapping paper.

As you embark on your sustainable initiative this holiday season, feel free to let me know how it goes. Also, if anyone has other tips or earth-friendly traditions they’d like to share, please do so in the comments section below.

In the meantime, have a happy holiday season and stay tuned next week for my look into reusable cloth napkins as an alternative to single-use, disposable napkins.

~Sam