Wrapping Packages. Eco Consciously. Busily.

So my intent was to post a few fun and inspiring ideas over the last few weeks about wrapping gifts this season more eco consciously. But  I have been SO DARN BUSY! So, in the midst of my busy-ness I have been at least trying to take some photos of what I have been up to while packing orders.

All the wrapping shown is thrifted or recycled. The ribbon in the first image I found at a close-out sale (the following week everything left over from that sale was at the neighboring thrift store.. so it was almost thrifted too : )

My business cards I make at home, and they are printed on 100% post consumer recycled cardstock, processed chlorine free (from neenah paper). I hang them with hemp or jute twine. I love wrapping packages. As a little kid I even used to get paid by a neighbor once in a while to do her wrapping.

And now, I need to get back to work!

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Tis the Season…

As the holidays approach, many people will be buying gift wrap, bows, ribbons, cards, etc. I thought I would offer a bit of encouragement to get creative and, rather than create more waste, let’s make less… while having fun AND saving money too. It doesn’t get much better than that!!

This is wrapped with re-used brown paper from a package that came in the mail this week. I think brown paper has such a nice, clean, neutral feel and is complemented well by almost any embellishment. In this case some jute twine, a small piece of cardstock paper, a small scrap of fabric and some thread.

It’s super simple! Get out your fabric scraps and choose some you find most attractive. Cut them into squares or rectangles, or what ever shape you like and zigzag stitch them to your paper. I used recycled cardstock here, but anything with a bit of weight will work, even the backs of cut up pieces of cereal boxes, old photos destined for the trash, magazine covers, or what ever you can think of.

Punch a hole in your card and tie around your package with jute or hemp twine, cotton string, old ribbon from your used wrapping paper supply stash, strips of selvage… and it is ready to give! I have had so many comments and thank yous for these simple, thoughtful cards.

I will be posting new ideas throughout the next few weeks. Let’s make this the season to make less trash and have more creative fun! I would LOVE to hear any of your ideas too.

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Co-op Project

We have a new co-op in town, which is an exciting addition after our longtime local healthfood store went out of business. I had a request recently for reusable produce and bulk bags, as a friend of mine who works there knows I like to sew. She saw a customer using a cloth bag for her produce and felt like something similar would be a nice addition to the store. This is what I have made up so far. The image above is my display.

The sizes range from about 4″ x 5″ for little things like spices and herbs, up to as large as a full size produce bag. They are made of natural cotton muslin, which is unbleached and undyed (with one made of recycled red calico cotton thrown in for fun). The muslin is a sturdy yet lightweight fabric. There is a cotton twill tape tie stitched into the seaming, so there is no need for those wasteful twisty ties either.

I look forward to washing a set for myself and putting them to use next shopping trip. No more digging around in the piles of used baggies and twisties! And when needed, I can simply throw them in the washer. How is that for a bit of eco satisfaction : )

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Reduce

Through the years I have intentionally simplified my life down, on every level I can. In a society where excess is the norm, and in many cases encouraged, it is a sure challenge. Considering the critical state of the planet and all the creatures that live here, this may be the worthiest challenge I can think of.

I thought it would be interesting, both for myself and for whoever might stumble upon this, to list all the ways I can think of where we have reduced here in our home and in our lives – lightened up our impact and limited down our consumption. The idea is to inspire further efforts. The idea is to ultimately live harmoniously with the planet and everything that lives on it. I think it is important to act as though everything we do matters to the life of another living being – because it really, really does.

R E D U C I N G  it down, to a list…

• We drive only 2-3 times a month
• We only flush when needed (it is really less times a day than you might think!)
• We eat whole foods rather than packaged foods where ever possible, which allows us to buy much of our food in bulk
• We eat organically grown foods, almost only
• We eat fruit instead of fruit juice
• We buy bulk tea instead of tea bags (no need for box, tea bag package, tea bag, tag)
• We are vegetarian (it is stunning, the ratio of resources used to resource output in the meat industry)
• We have a water filtration system (no landfill filling plastic water bottles!)
• We compost
• We recycle everything we can
• We reuse what packaging is suitable for things like shipping materials (those awful plastic blister packs make great padding!)
• We shop at thrift stores almost exclusively. There are SO many useful things that people get rid of.
• What we do not buy at the thrift store we buy from small organic businesses (Check out VitalBodies.com for a great selection of carefully chosen organic bedding, towels, water filtration and other such sustainable household items).
• Our home is filled with natural materials and fibers, which means everything in it will biodegrade! Oh, how I love this!
• We use biodegradable, non-toxic cleaners
• We do not watch TV or movies (if you think about it, this really does fit on this list!)
• We have a “bug cup” with which we take spiders, flies, moths, and other creatures that get into our home, back outside so they can find what they need (often moths cannot seem to make their way back out). Nothing is squashed, flicked or swatted in our house.
• We bring our own cloth bags (some of which I made myself out of recycled fabrics) when we shop for food. Since we only shop once or twice a month, this requires a lot of bags! I forget every now and then and it is always stunningly A M A Z I N G how many bags just ONE TRIP OUT accumulates.
• I will add to this list as I can…

We often talk about “the things of things of things…” when you have things, it usually requires more things to maintain, update, coordinate with, recycle, get rid of, transport, etc those things, if you know what I mean. Less truly becomes more, as there is more time and energy for more useful, progressive, healthy endeavors.

I would love to hear ideas about how others reduce and give back to the earth. Comments are sincerely welcome.

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