I know, I know, you just put the pumpkins in the green bin and already you have to think about Christmas!! In order to avoid a last minute Christmas eve midnight madness sale and buying over packaged, plastic, lead covered toys just for the sake of buying a gift, start thinking about your purchases now and be mindful of your gift giving. Here are a few ideas to get you on your way...
*Make a list and don't buy twice.
* Choose a family member or friend you usually exchange with and suggest you be gift free this year.
* Make a donation in lieu of gifts.
* Pick names in the family, to reduce gift consumption.
* Craft shows are starting now, buy a locally made gift.
*Put together an organic food basket (without all that cellophane!)
*Spend some time with your family at the local food bank sorting cans.
*For those who need nothing, take your friends or family out for a special meal instead of buying a gift they're going to return.
*Buy fair trade, organic chocolate.
*Suggest to close family members that you buy second hand gifts.
*Buy less but better quality so gifts don't end up in the trash.
*Be creative with packaging to avoid waste. Reusable bags are sprouting up at every store these days.
Send me your green holiday ideas!!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
2 comments:
Great ideas! A few things we've done in the past:
- For kids, get a subscription to NWF's Big Back Yard or Ranger Rick.
- Pick a small number of gifts to buy for the kids, and stick to it.
- Consider doing a favor in lieu of a gift.
Excellent ideas, Monique!
You may also re-use gently used gift wrap, bows, gift bags and even tissue paper. My mom used to have a box full of gift tags to and from our family members that we used year after year!
Mary Ellen
Post a Comment