A Green Holiday - A Recycling Revolution

A Green Holiday:
Tips for an Eco-Friendly Christmas

Happy Holidays!!!!!

I love the holiday season! I love the way my home looks and smells during this time of year. The decorated tree, the smell of evergreen, the twinkling lights. It just makes me smile. But this time of year can create mountains of waste of torn gift wrapping, excess packaging, and even the tree itself. How do we make sure that our holidays are eco-friendly?

Your Christmas tree: fresh or fake? I have always been a fresh tree person. The smell is essential to put me in the holiday spirit. Through the years, though, I have often wondered if this is the best way to go. I worried that I was contributing to the depletion of our national forests. Truth be told, though, most Christmas trees are grown on sustainable farms specifically for this purpose. New trees are routinely planted to keep up with demand. At the end of the season, your tree can easily be recycled and made into a wonderful mulch. Fake trees on the other hand are made from petroleum by-products. And when these trees ultimately wear out, they cannot be recycled and end up in landfills. So fresh is the way to go. Make sure your tree is recycled when the holidays are over.

The wrapping paper debate. You work tirelessly to wrap all of the gorgeous and thoughtful gifts for your loved ones only to have the paper ultimately torn off and thrown away. What a waste. Luckily, there are several ways to reduce the impact of wrapping our gifts.

1. Use reusable gift bags instead of wrapping paper to conceal your recipient's gift. Paper gift bags can be used several times over before they need to be retired. Most can then be recycled. Another alternative is cloth gift bags. You can make your own from any type of fabric or purchase them pre-made. These bags are wonderful since they can be used indefinitely. I absolutely LOVE receiving gifts wrapped in these bags. You can find gift bags made from recycled plastic here...Recycled Plastic Gift Bags or try the gorgeous Native Leaf Gift Bags.

2. If you do use wrapping paper, purchase paper made from recyclable material. Recycled gift wrap is becoming easier and easier to find.

3. After the unwrapping is complete and your home is covered with wadded up balls of paper, gather up the mess and put it in the recycle bin instead of the trash. Be sure to remove the ribbons and bows first since they are likely not recyclable and also because you can reuse them!

Holiday lights and wasting electricity. I've got to have lights! On my tree, on my mantle, on my banister, on my house...everywhere. It's part of the beauty of the season. So what about all the extra electricity I'm using? The easiest way to conserve energy while still lighting the season is to use timers on your lights. This ensures that your lights are turned on and off at appropriate times. The newer LED based lights are also more efficient than standard lights using 90% less electricity. That's a huge savings! They also produce much less heat so they are less of a fire hazard than traditional lights.

The season of giving. Another great way to reduce the impact of the season is to choose gifts that are eco-friendly. I've included a few green gift ideas here for everyone on your list:

Gift the gift of beauty and pampering. The Massager Reflexology Roller from the Body Shop is a wonderful little tool to spot massage tension and knots from your body leaving you more relaxed. Or try the Massager Starter Giftto help sooth tired muscles. Give the gift of beautiful hands with the Hands Pamper Pack. Or for a beautiful home fragrance; the Home Fragrance Gift brightens any home. And we can't leave out the men in our lives, the Men's Grooming Gift is a great way to give him a bit of pampering. And my favorite way of pampering myself is to treat my feet. The Foot Dee-Luxe Gift gives those tired over-worked tootsies sweet relief. For more ways to pamper the people in your life, Shop The Body Shop's Luxury Gift Collection. All Body Shop products are free from animal testing and the company is dedicated to environmentally and socially responsible practices so you can feel good about the gifts you give.

Surround a person on your list with comforting scents and body care. With the warm, yummy fragrance of almond sugar cookies, Garden Botanika’s Almond Cream captures the scent of the season and uses all natural ingredients.

Give the gift of serenity this holiday season. The magical sounds of water from this Desktop Fountain brings serenity to even the most stressed people on your list.

For the person on your list that sits long hours at his or her computer, treat them to Corduroy Stripe Herbal Keyboard and Mouse Rest. The organic flaxseed filling conforms to the shape of their wrist for support while typing. The pillows can be heated or cooled for additional comfort. They even release the fragrant and relaxing scent of lavender.

A wonderful gift for the gardener or even the gardening challenged on your list is the Tree to be Kit. It's a beautiful way to enhance your yard and help the environment. Just add sunshine. Or have a tree planted in honor of someone you care about. It is a Christmas gift for a friend... a priceless gift for the environment...

For the outdoor enthusiast on your list give a gift subscription to Trails.com. They'll gain access to maps of over 30,000 hiking and biking trails and unlimited topo maps and aerial photos.

For that hard to buy for guy on your list, check out the Level Cufflinks. These are so cute and so unusual that they are certain to make even the toughest guy smile.

For the caffeine fiend in your life, this Tea Chico Gift Basket is an excellent choice and a healthy way to get that caffeine fix. Or try the Cafe Chico Gift Basket for a more traditional method. And for a chocolaty dose of caffeine, choose the Chocolate Lover's Gift Basket.

For the environmentalist on your list or to promote environmentalism to someone that isn't, give a $25 Sierra Club Membership. Each membership comes with a FREE backpack, Sierra magazine subscription, and more!

For the young (and young at heart), check out these Kids Karma Cards to help nurture a sense of kindness and responsibility in the next generation.

Give a gift while helping to protect, save, and help the lives of the world's children. Find inspired gifts and cards from UNICEF.

A Green Holiday:Tips for an Eco-Friendly Christmas

A Green Holiday:
Tips for an Eco-Friendly Christmas