Tired of the Holiday Hype? Fabulous, Inexpensive Environmentally-Friendly Gifts

Somewhere along the line, Christmas lost its charm for me. The Christmas music in the stores, the Christmas displays, the "buy, buy and buy some more" mentality just wore me down and reminded me every day that I was broke, broke and more broke!  When I was married, my husband and I would take more money than we could possibly afford to spend, go to the mall with a list in hand and an exact amount to spend on each person and robotically buy a ton of presents for a ton of people (some of whom I didn't even particularly care for)!
I would send out my obligatory Christmas cards, complete with my obligatory xeroxed list of my family's past year's events to the people on my obligatory Christmas card list and suddenly, somehow Christmas had become a time of financial stress and obligation instead of a time of joy and giving.
At some point a few years ago, I decided that I needed to bring back the joy and the magic of the holidays. I needed to get away from the commercial chatter and stop believing that I was somehow not a good person if I didn't give a gift to everyone! I've given myself permission to just give gifts to my immediate family. When I do feel inspired to give a gift to a friend, I give something useful and/or consumable. I have requested that my parents and my friends return the favor if they feel inspired to give me a gift!
My holiday card list has shrunk down to a few faithful friends. I no longer send cards to every person in my address book (yes, I really did that, I really thought I was somehow obligated to do that!).
I have created traditions for my kids that I hope they will take with them for the rest of their lives. Hay rides and hot cider and a u-cut Christmas tree from a local tree farm, a roast "beast" and Yorkshire pudding feast, complete with poppers full of jokes and silly paper crowns. I hope I have shown them that the most important things in life aren't things and that you don't have to spend a lot of money to let someone know how much you love them.
I've put together some ideas for really cool, inexpensive, environmentally kind gifts. Yes, they require a little thought, a little love, a little extra effort but personally, I much prefer spending time at home making gifts than cruising the mall for obligatory, meaningless trinkets.
Happy Holidays!

Clothes Pin Candle Holders

My BFF, Kelle gave me a pair of these for my birthday.
Lovely and very simple to make!
Materials:
2 clean, empty 4 oz. tuna cans, labels and tops removed
Enough clothes pins to fit around the perimeter of cans
Raffia ribbons to make them pretty
Small glass candle holders
2 votive candles

Hand-painted glasses

I did these champagne flutes for my parents' 50th wedding anniversary and gave these wine glasses as gifts last year. You can paint anything from orange juice glasses to vases and pitchers. You can buy inexpensive glassware at places like Ross and buy the glass paint from a craft store like Michael's, but I always make an effort to buy from local businesses. I am always amazed at the beautiful glassware I can find in thrift stores! Follow the directions on the glass paint bottles and voila!, you have created a unique and truly useful gift!

Comfort Pillows

My mom gave each of us one of these comfort pillows. They are cozy, warm, fabulous gifts to receive! She made heart shapes but circles and rectangles are wonderful too!

Herbal Scented Lavender Heart

1.         Make a heart shaped pattern approximately 18” across at the widest part.

Using the pattern on double layers of the cloth, cut 2 muslim shapes and 2 shapes out of a pretty flannel or fleece fabric(the raised polka-dot fleece is nice!)

2.         Sew around the muslim heart using a ½” seam and leaving a 6” opening at the point.

3.         Sew around the fabric heart (with sides facing back-to-back) also using a ½” seam and leaving a 6” opening at the point.

4.         Turn both hearts inside-out.

Recipe for Flax/Lavender/Rice mixture:

Mix together

2 Cups Flax seed

6 Cups cheapest white rice

6 to 10 T Lavender buds

5.         Using a large funnel, pour mixture into the muslin bag and stitch the point closed.  Insert the muslin bag into the fabric and stitch the point closed.

To give as a gift, attach a tag saying:

Herbal Scented Lavender Heart

Place in microwave for 3-4 minutes until thoroughly warm.

Test for heat; apply to aching area.  Best to have a layer of

Clothing between heart and bare skin.

Basket of Goodies

You can really get creative with this one. You can find beautiful baskets and fun container thingies for a song in thrift shops and you can fill the basket with anything! 
It's a great way to really spend some time considering the person who will be receiving the gift and putting some thought into what will go in the basket. If cash is tight, bake some cookies, pick some flowers, write a poem. If money isn't an issue, you can pick a theme and go with that. Like "wine and chocolate", "lazy, rainy day essentials", "music lover" or "all organic"!

Hand-knitted scarves

I have attempted to learn to knit many times but the amount of time between the learning and the doing is always too long and I forget how every time. But, there is nothing like receiving a warm, fuzzy scarf to keep you cozy in the winter. If you are like me and don't knit or crochet, you can usually find some fabulous and fairly inexpensive locally made scarves and hats. Hit up the local holiday bazaars. I guarantee you will find some there!



These are just a few ideas that popped in to my head.  I will post more if I think of any. I am always trying to come up with new, creative gifts that don't cost a lot and have very little impact on the environment. If you have any ideas, please feel free to share them! If you have a photo, send it! I would be happy to post them here. 

Lower Your Carbon Footprint Without Spending a Dime!

Like many of you, I am environmentally aware but financially challenged. I am a single mom with three kids, receiving sporadic and minimal child support and according to the government, I live substantially below the poverty level (I think "poverty" is a relative term, but that is a discussion for another day!). I can't afford solar panels or an electric car. I'd love to buy only organic local produce but I just can't afford to feed my family and only shop at the local co-op. It is always a challenge to find ways to appease my guilty consumer conscience and live according to my philosophy of trying to walk gently upon the earth. I do a lot of things that may seem inconsequential to some but I like to believe that they all add up to making a difference in my own small way and if I can pass on my thoughts and ideas to others, maybe I can make a little more than a small difference.

Listed below are some ideas. Some are free, some might require some expenditure of hard-earned cash, but they all require a conscious choice to do something for the environment, to contribute to the crucial commitment that we all must make to stop treating the earth like a trash bin and destroying what sustains us.

1- Use your own grocery bags. I have a nifty little bag from Baggu that fits in a pouch that fits in my purse. I try to have bags in my car at all times. If you forget your bags, use paper bags! Yes, they are better than plastic. They bio-degrade and I've never heard of a paper bag strangling a fish, have you?

2- Grow your own herbs and vegetables. If you don't have enough sun or space in your own home, join a community garden. For a small fee, you can have enough home-grown, delicious veggies for your family and your neighbor's families too!

3- Drive less. This is a tough one for me. My three kids always have somewhere they need to be right now and I'm sorry, but I am not going to ride my bike to work in the rain and the dark. I'm just not that ambitious and I am that lazy. BUT, I do try to keep it to a minimum on the week-ends and as soon as I am financially capable of doing so, I will trade in the mini-van for something that gets a respectable mpg.

4- Wash and re-use plastic baggies until they can't be washed anymore and then recycle them.

5- Pay attention to packaging. Is it wrapped in plastic, put in a box and then wrapped in plastic again? Don't buy it unless it is something you can't live without! There is usually another more eco-friendly option.

6- Buy local goods as much as you can. The less distance it has traveled, the better! Even the next state over is better than buying something from overseas.

7- Compost. Not really much point in doing this unless you are serious about gardening but do think about how you throw things away. Don't put potato peels in a plastic bag and then put them in the garbage. That would just be silly.

8- Plant trees. Make shade. Cool things down. There are just way too many large expanses of asphalt in this world. Do what you can to counteract all that heat!

9- Only give consumable, useful gifts, stuff that can be eaten, drinken (drunken, dranken?) worn, listened to, planted etc. and don't forget that beauty serves its own purpose.

10-Trade in your gas mower for a hand mower. Haven't done this yet. I do kinda like my little mower with its little engine that can and it really doesn't use THAT much gas, right? I know, I know. Maybe next summer.

11- Fix up your old bikes. Even better, get your kids to fix up those old bikes. If you don't have any kids to boss around, check around and see if there is a bike swap or if a used sporting goods store might trade one of those old bikes in on a newer bike. Oh, and then ride them after you fix them up!

12- Don't run your dishwasher until it's full.

13- Wash your clothes in cold water.

14- Turn the heat down. Put on a sweater, some socks and a hat.

15- If it isn't broken, don't replace it.

16- Encourage others to recycle, reduce and re-use.

17- Have a chicken coop, raise goats, cultivate honey. I dream of chickens, goats and bees. Not a realistic prospect for most people, unfortunately, but a worthy and noble goal to have!

18- Don't use pesticides and herbicides. This really seems like a no-brainer to me but every year I have to remind my neighbor that I would prefer that she not spray poison all along the northern perimeter of my yard. I know pulling weeds can be a pain in the butt but there is something sort of zen about it. Give those slugs some beer and trap those yellow-jackets instead of poisoning them. Let those spiders live because they love flies for supper!

So there you go, some ideas from the brain of a perpetually poor, tree-hugging earth-lover. It's really all about changing your attitude and paying attention. My methods aren't flashy or loud or obvious but I am fighting the oil companies and the consumer machine every time I choose to buy olive oil in a glass bottle instead of a plastic one or re-use my coffee bean bag.

Every journey begins with a single step.