Lily has come up with ideas to help you have a merry, mindful Christmas by gifting eco-friendly gifts for your loved ones.
Make it sentimental
This may sound like a sinister start to a post about Christmas, but consider this: if you were forced from your home and could only take one bag of belongings, what would you take? It’s unlikely that it would be your novelty Christmas jumper that you got from your aunt or the novelty glasses that were discarded under your bed last Christmas. It would be photographs and meaningful jewellery, things that have meaning and are irreplaceable. So, when thinking about what to get someone for Christmas, why not make it something that will mean something? Something that has the potential to be passed down through generations.
There are two things that I have noticed about Christmas. The first is that, more often than not, when I ask people what they got for Christmas, by the time it gets to February, most people can’t remember. The second thing I have noticed is that there are very few presents you will get in your life that you will still have 20 years down the line.
So what presents can you get for your loved ones to save the bank, mean more, and be kind to the environment?
Photographs
Photographs are an incredible present because they have stories behind them and, unless you are EVIL, they are something you will keep forever and so produce no waste. They often hold more value than anything you could buy and are something that is unique as well as cheap.
Baubles
Christmas Baubles are a great gift. Yes, they are something that is only used once a year, but they again are something that can hold incredible sentimental value and be passed down to relatives. Everyone has that one favourite Christmas decoration they are excited to get out of the box each year, so think about getting one that could be someone’s new favourite. It could represent someone no longer with you, it could be a symbol of your presence if you cannot be with your family at Christmas, or it could even be homemade.
Plant a tree
Planting a tree for someone no longer with you is an incredible gift. An essential element of Christmas is family; when you lose a family member, Christmas can be completely transformed. Planting a tree for someone is not only an act of remembrance but is a great family activity to bring everyone closer whilst simultaneously helping the environment.
Experiences
When you are 100 years old and look back on your life, the things you remember most will likely be that bungee jump you did as opposed to the bath bomb, and the bed socks set you once got. “Experience gifts” create memories (which could create photographs for your next Christmas plans). They provide a gift for someone else and could include a gift for yourself! Experience gifts provide no waste and maximum memories.
Charity donations
Secret Santa must be one of the biggest novelty and waste-heavy gift producers. A budget of £5 each means you’ll probably receive some pointless junk and a bar of chocolate which is not valuable to anyone. Just think: if each individual of a 30-person group pooled together the £5 they were going to spend on useless rubbish, this would equate to £150 that could then be donated to a charity that could benefit from the money. I would prefer knowing I have helped someone than receiving a pair of wind-up chattering teeth.
The homeless charity Crisis provides a place for homeless individuals in the city centre to receive a Christmas dinner, a shower, fresh clothes, a medical check-up, mental health support and a series of other services for just £28.18. If you have a friendship group of 7 people, that is just £4 each. UNICEF is taking donations of £13.50 which can provide polio vaccinations for 100 kids, that’s less than a fiver between 3 people.
Alternatively, if you are shopping for someone else, why not buy them a donation to something meaningful to them? You could donate to a charity that has helped them or adopt an animal they love.
Homemade gifts
In every house at Christmas, you can almost guarantee that there will be at least 3 variety biscuit or chocolate selection boxes over the course of the festive period. As wonderful as these are, the black plastic trays within the lovely cardboard case are NOT recyclable. Switch it up and get on Google. The BBC food website has some amazing recipes for biscuits and treats that even the most uneducated bakers can tackle. Not only is this helping the environment, but it’s an amazing family activity and significantly cheaper.
Charity shop gifts
Charity shops are incredible, and if you have never been to one, I suggest you do. They are cheap, they prolong the life of products, they benefit amazing causes, and, best of all is that you never know what you might find!
At Christmas time, charity shops sell a huge range of products that have been donated as unwanted gifts. Gift sets that cost £50 originally can be bought for a couple of pounds! Not only does this save you money, but it stops these products from going to waste. This also works the other way around: if you end up with 10 bath sets you’re never going to use, then why not donate them and let someone else enjoy them?
Related Information
This blog was originally posted to TheSprout by Lily Stringer in 2018.