This is a sponsored post. All opinions are 100% mine. For many, the holidays can equate to wasteful excess that can harm our planet. This year, you can be more socially responsible with these 5 sustainable Christmas ideas!
Knowing the holidays are here, I cringe a bit. Not because I dread them, but because we tend to life to extreme. We have huge amounts of leftover food that gets thrown away, electricity bills are off the charts, and the kids get more gifts than they probably need.
I hate to be wasteful any time of the year, but especially during the holidays. That’s why I decided to sit down and brainstorm new ways to stay as environmentally-conscious as possible: even through the holiday season!
Five Ways To Have An Eco-Friendly Holiday Season
No-Bake Recipes: What good are the holidays without a delicious spread of food? Give your stove a break this year and try to prepare as many “no-bake” recipes as possible.
There are plenty of dishes, both sweet and savory, where an oven isn’t necessary. It’ll help save energy and cut costs on your electricity bill.
LED All The Way: Lights can add so much festive joy during the holidays. I love passing by homes and seeing what others have done with their lighting setups.
If you can’t resist lighting up your home this year, then go for LEDs. They last longer than traditional bulbs and you won’t need as many to create an impact. Great for energy and sustainability!
Reusable Gift Wrap: There are many ways to present gifts in sustainable ways. Recently, I came across the most brilliant gift-wrapping system.
Wrapeez is a great, eco-friendly way to wrap your presents. They’re reusable, easy to use and best of all, they’re incredibly cute! One of my favorite sustainable Christmas ideas!
Time Those Lights!: A timer on your Christmas lights is absolutely key in controlling energy use. Whether it be for the lights hanging outside of your house or the ones surrounding your tree, make sure you’ve got them timed to avoid any overuse of electricity.
Say No To Disposables: If you plan on hosting a party this year, stay clear of disposable plates, napkins and flatware. Think of all the piles of trash that goes into landfills.
This is especially true during the holiday season. Plus, it’s a great opportunity to bring out your nice dishes and show them off a little!
I am in love with Wrapeez for so many reasons! My first three? No tape, no scissors and no waste! All you need to do is simply stretch it over your gift and you’re all set.
They are perfect for my sustainable Christmas ideas mantra for this holiday season! They are so easy to use, even the kids can wrap gifts!
Wrapeez is made of a special stretch fabric, and comes in a variety of gorgeous colors and patterns. They are perfect for any occasion including the holidays, birthday, anniversary, baby shower and more!
You can purchase Wrapeez in a variety of sizes, ranging in price from $3 for the gift card holder, $6 for a small to their Celebration Bundle, which I chose and retails for $30. The Celebration Bundle comes with two small, two medium and two gift card holders, one of which includes a tag.
I love that they are so easy to use, even if you don’t know how to wrap a gift, you can use the Wrapeez products! See what they’re all about on social media: Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, Instagram, Google Plus and YouTube.
Do you have any sustainable Christmas ideas? Tell me your “green ideas” in the comments below!
Stacie @ Divine Lifestyle says
November 11, 2016 at 12:29 pmThank you so much for sharing this. These are all great ideas, and with the state our planet’s in, we need them.
melisasource says
November 11, 2016 at 2:52 pmI think its really important to be aware of the environment, and always try to be ecofriendly. Great post!
Pam says
November 11, 2016 at 4:58 pmI try to be as eco friendly as possible. However that can definitely get pushed aside during the holidays. These are great tips.
Audrey Stewart says
November 11, 2016 at 5:20 pmWe reuse gift bags.
Shannon says
November 11, 2016 at 6:36 pmI stay eco friendly by reusing gift bags and gift boxes. I’ll even reuse bows if they don’t get damaged.
Tina W says
November 11, 2016 at 7:00 pmLove this idea! My sister and I are both gift-bag hoarders, we will re-use them until the handles fall off. And we always choose solid colors or neutral patterns instead of holiday-specific bags so they can be used anytime.
Dana Rodriguez says
November 11, 2016 at 7:47 pmThese are great ideas! I usually use reusable gift bags and boxes. Even bows!
Liz Mays says
November 11, 2016 at 8:43 pmI think saying goodbye to disposables is a good start. Those Wrapeez are a great idea! We’d probably get a lot of use out of them.
Theresa says
November 11, 2016 at 10:32 pmI so love the idea of Wrapeez, especially since I hate to, and really suck at wrapping gifts. Plus, it’s eco friendly which is a total bonus!
Ernestine Perez says
November 11, 2016 at 11:36 pmI stay eco friendly by saving the Tshirt boxes that we might recieve in gifts given to us. Some wrapping paper can be salvaged and tissue paper as well. During the Christmas season we tend to constantly be snacking on goodies so I usually keep paper plates, forks, spoons, & cups to use instead.
Jocelyn Cañasa Brown says
November 12, 2016 at 12:11 amThese are really great ideas! And I need to get some of those Wrapeez. And I always reuse gift bags!
Annemarie LeBlanc says
November 12, 2016 at 12:57 amWe don’t use disposables during family gatherings. Like you said, it is not eco-friendly at all. My mom takes advantage of the holiday season to show off her precious china, most of which are her wedding gifts. I love that idea of Wrapeeze too.
Lady Noire says
November 12, 2016 at 1:57 amDuring the holidays, if I give out gifts, I use reusable gift boxes instead of wrapping paper. Thank you for this opportunity! This seems like an amazing way to stay eco-friendly during the holidays.
Julie Lundstrom says
November 12, 2016 at 3:27 amI am not very Eco-friendly during the Holidays. I think these wraps are a neat idea and I would like to try them.
Toni | BoulderLocavore.com says
November 12, 2016 at 8:39 amWow! Those reusable gift wraps are really amazing! Aside from being eco-friendly, it looks easy to use too! Amazing!
Dotty J Boucher says
November 12, 2016 at 9:23 amI collect newspapers from neighbors and use that as my wrapping, also I like to try to make home made gifts as much as possible.
@tisonlyme143
Beth Hill says
November 12, 2016 at 9:38 amI grew up with my parents saving wrapping paper after you unwrap your gift. I am used to opening gently and smoothing out the paper. My kids wanted nothing to do with that, but I do with my own gifts. I always reuse bows. And what does get trashed, goes in our recycle bin.
Janell Poulette says
November 12, 2016 at 10:22 amThese are great tips because there seems to be more money spent unnecessarily during the holiday season. I especially like the reusable gift wrap with Wrapeez, that is clever!
Sharon Kaminski says
November 12, 2016 at 10:34 amWe try and stay eco friendly by reusing plastic bags for garbage. We also do not waste any food.
jenn stapp says
November 12, 2016 at 10:56 amWe compost and we reuse and recycle everything, including the trash I pick up on my daily walks. I really love the LED lighting idea and if you have any suggestions on where to get a lot of them for DIY projects, please share. The Wrapeez is a genius idea!!
Jeanine says
November 12, 2016 at 11:08 amNo bake recipes are my favourite! I love them around the holidays especially. also reusing gift bags and wrap if I can is super helpful too! Very ecofriendly!
Heather Poindexter says
November 12, 2016 at 11:41 amI use the timer always on my tree as the plug is so hard to get to and now that I am disabled not only does it help with the bill, I just cant crawl under the tree nor do I want to! I also use old Christmas cards for gift tags! Saves money and the backs are bank so much easier to read!
monique s. says
November 12, 2016 at 12:12 pmwe will be using giftbags and then will save and reuse them next year.
Nikki Fahey says
November 12, 2016 at 12:22 pmI sm not the best. My family always reuses bags. When I was young my grandma used to save bows.. it became too much!
Jamie Williams says
November 12, 2016 at 12:58 pmWe try to reuse the really nice wrapping paper and the rest we can’t save we recycle.
velder dixon says
November 12, 2016 at 1:52 pmReuse gift bags
Brianne says
November 12, 2016 at 2:17 pmWow! These are such great ideas! Thank you for sharing this, it’s so important to keep this in mind during the holiday season!
Cassie Tucker says
November 12, 2016 at 3:19 pmWe do manage to create a lot of unnecessary mess during the holidays, don’t we? I think I will use Wrapeez for my presents this year.
Gabby Anderson says
November 12, 2016 at 3:29 pmLove the reusable gift wrap idea
Reesa Lewandowski says
November 12, 2016 at 10:28 pmWhat a great idea. I never even thought about how bad the holidays are for our environment! But man when you think about it, it’s awful!
latoya says
November 12, 2016 at 10:31 pmI don’t know that I do anything extra to stay green during the holidays. Mostly just doing what I do year-round: recycling plastic bottles and papers.
Linda G. says
November 12, 2016 at 10:33 pmI save my gift boxes and reuse them each year.
Brigitte Bauman says
November 13, 2016 at 5:18 amI don’t get upset if I run out of wrapping paper during the holidays. Instead I will use foil paper to wrap gifts and add ribbons along with bows to enhance the decorative look.
Paol Trenny says
November 13, 2016 at 9:24 amWe use our brown paper bags that we get from the grocery store as well as using twine from my hubby garage.
Paol Trenny says
November 13, 2016 at 9:25 amWe try to recycle as much as we can and reuse things so that we leave less footprints on this planet.
James Stringham says
November 13, 2016 at 9:27 amI stay ecofriendly by using LED lighting. I also stay ecofriendly by giving locally made gifts.
Seattle Travel Blogger says
November 13, 2016 at 10:03 amThis looks like a good list.
That Wrapeez product sounds like a good idea!
Cindy Peterson says
November 13, 2016 at 11:12 amI use re-useable shopping bags during the holidays to cut down on plastic bags. We also recycle our Christmas tree by feeding them to our goats.
heather kaufman says
November 13, 2016 at 12:21 pmWe save our gift bags & tissue.
Hannah says
November 13, 2016 at 12:26 pmThanks for sharing these great ways to help the environment while still enjoying the holidays!
Sheena Tatum says
November 13, 2016 at 2:13 pmReusable gift wrap is brilliant! Not sure why I never thought of that before!
Kita Bryant says
November 13, 2016 at 2:15 pmWe are all for no-bake items in this house. The less work the better on the holidays haha
Angela Mason says
November 13, 2016 at 3:37 pmBest way I have found to eliminate those high bills is to not participate in all of the hype in the first place. Happy Holidays Enjoy them!
shannon fowler says
November 13, 2016 at 4:13 pmwe tend to reuse our holiday gift bags every year. we also put our lights on a timer to make sure they aren’t going all the time. we buy organic foods to make as well.
Caroline says
November 13, 2016 at 9:10 pmWe reuse gift bags from previous years and try to make crafts from recycled materials.
Ann Bacciaglia says
November 13, 2016 at 10:38 pmWrapeez looks like a fantastic way to wrap gifts. I will have to look for some for this holiday season. These are great ways to have a eco friendly holiday.
AC says
November 13, 2016 at 11:01 pmIt’s just my mom & I, so we don’t wrap gifts. We’ll use gift bags & then we end up wrapping them. Or like this year, nothing will probably be in a gift bag or wrapped, as we already know what we’re both getting. LOL.
Laura says
November 14, 2016 at 1:09 amI sometimes re-gift items. Does that count? 🙂
Courtney says
November 14, 2016 at 4:51 pmI usually buy paper made of recycled materials and then recycle again but this is even better. Will be looking into it!
Miranda Ward says
November 14, 2016 at 10:52 pmI reuse boxes and bags others give me gifts in. I also use Newspaper to wrap stuff.
freebiegoddess03@aol.com
Kiwi says
November 15, 2016 at 4:30 pmThis is a cute way to wrap your gift. I love this innovative way!
Melissa Storms says
November 15, 2016 at 7:46 pmI give a lot of handmade gifts like mason jar recipes with the ingredients inside the reusable jar.
Jeanice says
November 16, 2016 at 12:32 amexcellent submit, very informative. I wonder why the other specialists of this sector don’t notice this. You must continue your writing. I’m sure, you’ve a huge readers’ base already!
Keri justice says
November 16, 2016 at 11:31 amMy kids get crafty and we reuse things to make crafts, like bottles and boxes. We then use them as gifts! I also always save gift bags year to year and reuse them.
Annmarie W. says
November 16, 2016 at 2:23 pmI have a big ‘bag of bags’ which get reused year to year. Also I like to cut up old Christmas cards into gift tags.
Lynne B says
November 16, 2016 at 4:49 pmWe do reuse bows and paper as much as possible. We compost the tree and wreathes. We also like to decorate with leaves and branches and cones from the yard.
dxwnttrtkd says
November 17, 2016 at 5:33 pmFive Ways To Have An Eco Friendly Holiday – Kicking It With Kelly
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sandra says
November 17, 2016 at 6:02 pmi like to reuse gift bags. we also recycle wrapping paper.
Jodi Wresh says
November 17, 2016 at 6:22 pmI save and reuse gift bags and mag cards myself
Heather D says
November 18, 2016 at 6:28 pmI like to use cute gift bags and then re-use them the next year if they are still in good condition.
Carolyn Daley says
November 18, 2016 at 8:48 pmWe reuse gift bags every year. In fact, a few of us have designated gift bags we regift back and forth between holidays and birthdays. On occasion, we also wrap gifts in newspaper.
Marilyn Nawara says
November 18, 2016 at 11:56 pmI break down all of the cardboard boxes and take them to the recycling center.
craftyone says
November 19, 2016 at 4:01 amI may use newspapers to wrap gifts, which can be recycled. I do not purchase a real tree, or any, and make the very few decorations out of recycled materials.
Sue V says
November 19, 2016 at 7:37 ami like to make food from scratch and i never use throwaway containers
Jennifer Marohn says
November 20, 2016 at 9:13 amWe use reuseable store bags as gift bags
Rena Walter says
November 20, 2016 at 8:03 pmI am Eco friendly when I give Gift cards! I am Eco friendly when I give cash!
golden storm says
November 21, 2016 at 12:53 ami always make sure i recycle but its hard when everyone is here for the holidays.i think i am going to get a container and mark it next to trash so everyone can see.
KENNETH OHL says
November 22, 2016 at 5:43 pmWe love the gift bag wrapping idea because all our family and friends we use there gift bags for years and that saves on all the paper waste plus they have some beautiful ones to choose from
Sharon C says
November 25, 2016 at 7:47 amI try to give gifts that I know will be used and I try to be mindful of the waste including wrappings. I am glad to learn of this reusable wrapping. Since there is no “away” where we dispose of things we have to dispose of less.
Grace H says
November 25, 2016 at 12:36 pmI reuse boxes and bags. I also try to not waste food by using leftovers.
Vickie says
November 29, 2016 at 10:29 pmWow..what a great idea..is wish I’d thought of this.
Oh gosh, we’ve been green befor it was popular..my mom was so I gre up leaving a small footprint and being mindful.
Still am and your tips are terrific..I use them all.
I’d add I’ve been known to recycle boxes and bows..make my own wrap even…thanks to Martha S.
Ashleigh Hack says
December 1, 2016 at 11:44 pmI just try to recycle everything I can. It’s hard around the holidays when people come over and dont recycle.
Hargow Wong says
December 2, 2016 at 6:58 pmI try to keep old gift wrapper in good condition and reuse for smaller gift and purchase gift wrap made with recycle material.
Nancy says
December 3, 2016 at 9:04 pmWe try to stay eco-friendly all the time, even in the holidays. Some presents we do not wrap. We re-use gift bags, tissue paper, and ribbon.
Lauryn R says
December 6, 2016 at 2:05 pmI always reuse gift wrap as well as bags for the holidays, this saves on paper.
JIll Rivera says
December 7, 2016 at 5:37 pmI have reusable gift bags for presents. I use each year.
Sarah Arellano says
December 8, 2016 at 10:28 amI save and reuse gift bags, tissue paper and sometimes the bow’s too! I recycle everything! I use boxes i’ve saved through the year from a variety of things to wrap gifts in instead of buying boxes. Did i buy you a box of muffins? Maybe open the box! Is it shoes? Probably not, open the box!
Krissy Carr says
December 8, 2016 at 3:07 pmI reuse a lot of stuff, gift bags, ribbons, bows, etc. I save paper towel rolls and TP rolls, make Christmas ornaments and decorations.
Kathleen S. says
December 8, 2016 at 3:13 pmGrowing up, we didn’t have close access to a store if we ran out of something. My parents would be known to use cereal boxes and cracker boxes to put gifts in, and then wrap the gift. I do that to this day. It saves me from buying gift boxes at the store. This year, I think I’m going to also use brown paper bags wrapping paper. I usually use reusable bags for groceries but I’ll be buying some food this month! So i usually ask for paper bags instead of plastic, if need be. I think I’ll use those for gift wrapping! Maybe buy some neat stamps and colorful stickers. Then it can go into recycling on Christmas morning!
Kelley Roach says
December 8, 2016 at 7:34 pmThese are great ideas! I usually use reusable gift bags and boxes. Even bows!
Debra Jensen says
December 8, 2016 at 9:20 pmI try to use reusable bags for presents!
Deb E says
December 9, 2016 at 9:01 amI keep my wrapping as eco-friendly as possible by using cookie tins as boxes (bonus, already decorated just add bow!); saving and reusing tissue paper and bows; and saving and reusing gift bags. I also keep old Christmas cards and cut them up to use as gift tags.
Laura B. says
December 9, 2016 at 2:33 pmI try to compile a few items per package to save on wrapping paper. I think reusable gift wrap is a great idea.
Jennifer H. says
December 9, 2016 at 6:03 pmI like to use paper store bags. I like to design them myself.
Wendy Sebastian says
December 9, 2016 at 6:15 pmAs people are unwrapping their gifts, I am collecting the bows and ribbons! I cringe inside when they tear the paper to shreds, and I save wrapping paper when it was neatly unwrapped. This product is so GREAT!! Thanks for showing me this, I would not have known about it otherwise.
betty league says
December 9, 2016 at 9:15 pmI stay stay eco-friendly during the holidays by wrappings gifts in brown paper with home made cotton bows. After the holidays, I use the wrapping paper in the bottom of my bird cage and remake the bows into bird toys. (animal friendly paper and materials)….thanks
Julie Lutz says
December 9, 2016 at 11:38 pmWe us an artificial tree instead of a real one.Even though I love the smell of a real tree I hate that they cut down all those trees for a couple weeks of decorations. and then out to the trash they go. I’m going to look into getting a tree that you replant after you use it next year. It sounds like a much better way to decorate than just decorating a tree in your house to throw away a few weeks after you buy it.
Dorrie Turner says
December 10, 2016 at 6:09 pmBesides reusing gift bags and some boxes, we break down the rest of the boxes and shipping boxes taking them to the recycling center.
Jessica Whitehouse says
December 10, 2016 at 7:53 pmWe don’t buy a lot of gift wrap, instead, I use t-shirts. Graphic Tees can be wrapped around gifts and secured with a ribbon; hence no paper to dispose of.
Peggy Nunn says
November 8, 2018 at 9:55 amI really like this idea. We also reuse gift bags. We like to think we are conscious of the paper we use.
Ajay Verma says
November 11, 2018 at 1:46 pmGreat ideas for the Christmas. I liked your idea of reusing the gift bags and would really make use of your tips this Christmas and would like to share your ideas and tips with my friends too. Keep posting.
Rita C. Donnell says
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