It is no surprise that, on certain dates (Christmas, birthdays, etc.), when gifts flood homes, they produces an average of 25% more garbage. And that people every time is more aware of recycling.
A user, last week asked me about ecological alternatives to wrapping paper read the article on the environmental impact of paper. Well… “newsprint” was my first reaction. Obviously, there are many other alternatives.
And as we all know, the kings, Santa Claus, the little mouse Pérez and even that invisible friend, have a lot of imagination and know that sustainable gift wrapping help the environment.
So we are going to propose some ideas of ecological packaging without losing originality and at the end of the article, we see how we should package gifts…
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You can do a lot with a simple cloth to replace the wrapping paper . Think of scarves, handkerchiefs, hand towels, large napkins, any piece of fabric that you have at home, with a t-shirt or even with funny socks.
It will be ecological wrapping paper that it can also be reused, which many of us have for house or very low cost if we buy it. If the piece of cloth is big enough, uses a furoshiki-style knot (The traditional Japanese art that uses cloth as a wrapper for gifts and objects) to hold it! Even Marie Kondo is! doing!
With reference to this Japanese technique, it is not that there Too much information in Spanish. But the next picture (Which we can expand from HERE) can give us a good idea of the techniques for wrapping gifts with fabrics:
As a side note, thrift stores always have bits of cheap felling and even IKEA, has scarves for sale special for this purpose.
Another original proposal to wrap a gift is to use organic cotton bags. Are similar to the similar plastic bags that we see in the supermarkets with fruits and vegetables.
These do not contain polyester or nylon, they are not bleached like the typical ones and are biodegradable. Also, they can be washed. reuse many times and do not produce waste.
The organic cotton bags are ecological packaging that is normally They buy in pack, with multiple dimensions and you have for multitude of uses You can see them from Amazon and they are nothing faces. Another way of packaging respecting the environment atmosphere.
As a note, there are also ecological bags made of linen or of jute that you can use for the same purpose and They are usually sold at low prices.
Baskets are very cheap at thrift stores and very practical. Even new, its price is not excessive and you can reuse it for daily shopping, decoration, etc.
There are a thousand shapes for packaging: rectangular, square, oval, small, large and a thousand materials, from bamboo, wood, wicker, palm. And we can even decorate or paint them. Due to their simplicity and minimalist appearance, they are perfect for combine with an original gift for an architect or engineer.
Of course! What we want is to reuse them, nothing here goes to the trash So, if you buy a nice one, then you decoration will thank you.
Although this type of reusable liner is more used in food, we have seen that they have a very well-cared for and perfect for wrapping gifts in a unique way more sustainable and different.
In principle, this type of paper is a combination of: wax bee, tree resin and organic jojoba oil and cotton organic. They are totally reusable, with a thousand uses and a different option to pack a present. we have liked many designs that BeeCool proposes to us, a small artisan company located in Zaragoza (Spain).
If you have small children, you probably live in an area of abstract art state. Put some of these to work original paintings by turning them into wrapping paper. your children will be very proud! And by the way you don't waste more paper.
As we probably have a sheet with a drawing. we left the following video on how to make a bag gift with a simple paper or DIN A4 sheet:
Of course, recycle cardboard boxes for packaging gifts is a good option, take a good look, I'm sure you have someone! From shoeboxes, somehow appliance, old filing cabinets, even boxes of cardboard from Amazon that are everywhere.
You can paint, draw, stick stickers, decorate with paper flowers, tie them, cut them out, cover them with cloth or the children's drawings In short… they can be tuned everything you want! And a good place to get ideas how to decorate a cardboard box for paper regalo is Papelisimo's Youtube channel.
Remember that all the paper and boxes that wrap the Christmas gifts must be deposited in the blue container. So it will be recycled and become new raw material.
Here, the possibility of using some wooden box as ecological packaging of a gift that will also have a double utility in the future. Obviously they are expensive, but it is a possibility as container for a special present.
At first glance, this doesn't seem like the most ideal choice, but with a small arrangement will end up being quite a wrapper attractive. Ideally, after packing it, tie it with a string, tape or a decorative tape, it is the perfect option and fast.
As a curiosity, the decorative paper comes from a Chinese tradition called Washi Tape.
In addition, you can put an ornament with a heart cut out of paper, some green leaves, etc. If you have a newspaper with foreign language better! (In Asian, they look great) and the older the newspaper, it also brings its touch elegant.
If we have more time, let's draw some shape geometry on paper and we can even use some wooden clip to close it. The comic sections too They can make it more fun. Imagination to the power!
We give a second life again, be it the one we already have in house or the one we can buy, it will surely be useful to us after; for the kitchen or storage something. It's a good one alternative to traditional packaging and it will not go directly to the recycling bin to thicken more trash.
This is also where metal cans for chocolates and Typical Christmas cookies are perfect! And besides, the we can reuse for the following year with new gifts. AND If you get very bored, on YouTube they propose a thousand ways to decorate them.
We all have an empty plastic bag at home, if you we turn around we will see that it is only one color and practically the drawing or logo you have, we will not see it. From there, it is best to remove the handles and start decorating (it must be said that you have to have skill if you want something to remain neat)
With paper and cardboard bags it is easier to wrap gifts to be rigid. As usually the problem comes in that one of the faces of the bag will have information and the logo of the relevant company, what they do is cover that area of some way. An example would be the following video:
It is an original way to give a present with a ecological packaging and that will surely be useful.
Gifts don't always have to be wrapped to Christmas, although by tradition it is so. It's a waste although brown butcher paper (Kraft Paper) is easier to recycle than brightly colored wrapping paper.
Gifts can be hidden around the house; in drawers, closets, in the kitchen, in attics, etc. and raise some game for children or people to look for them.
Of course, we all know how to pack a gift, but there is always the most correct technique to make it look good and not waste more paper than necessary.
First we must think that the complements give a touch different and originality, which we will mainly use; string or ribbon, either to tie or create a bow, a good marker, some ecological glue, some leaves and a piece of paper other than the packaging to be able to make a label according to the moment. As tips:
We would like to leave the following infographic with the techniques for wrapping gifts of different shapes: square, rectangular, round, long, cylinders, spheres etc…
Remember, the main thing remains… enjoy and have fun! With crafts.
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