November 19th, 2007

Make Your Holidays Evergreen

Posted by Jessica Jensen

The holidays are upon us, and thus the frenzy begins! As we start to prepare to bring the joy of the holidays into our homes, how about we think about how we can support mother nature in the process? It’s actually quite easy– you can create a warm, welcoming, decorative home and incorporate many eco-friendly elements at the same time. Here are a few green ideas to consider.

Get super energy-efficient holiday lights. LED lights use 80% less electricity than standard holiday lights and they are rated to last 200,000 hours. More importantly, they come in a stunning array of colors and patterns.  You won’t be disappointed– and you’ll have them for years to come.

Then you’ll need to wrap the presents. You can always reuse the paper you saved from last year (you did save it didn’t you?) or some good old newspaper. We also love to cut up magazines and tape them together into creative collages. Or how about using your paper grocery bags and pasting cut out photos from magazines? We cut out 30 photos of lipsticks and put them all over some bags and it was cute-as-a-button. You can also use the holiday cards you received last year, cut off the pretty decorative fronts, and glue them on bags and boxes to make stunning packages.

But if you’re looking for something a bit more festive in the wrapping department, may we recommend Green Girl Gift Wrap? The wonderful papers from Green Girl Gift Wrap are made from 100% recycled paper. They have beautiful, high-quality, affordable products. We love that their mission is to produce “Guilt Free Gift Wrap.” AND they donate 10% of their profits to environmental protection. Done!

Now let’s talk greeting cards. Think of all of the trees cut down and energy used to produce the millions of greeting cards sent out every year. It boggles the mind! We have a great alternative–send a customized, musical e-card from Three Leaf Cards. You’ll save paper, postage costs, and they donate 10% of your annual membership (only $19) to a non-profit of your choice (choose from the Breast Cancer Fund, Co-op America, The Conservation Fund, and more!). You can also use this site to send birthday cards, valentines, and more. It’s brilliant!

Do you have a box or a drawer full of wine corks in your house? If so, you have a wreath waiting to jump out and decorate your door or hearth. Making a wreath from corks could not be easier, and it is a lovely alternative to pine and other materials. We like the design shown at left that Erin Huffstetler created.  You can get her wreath directions by clicking here.

And then there’s gift-giving. We’d like to suggest that we all consider giving more experiences, and less stuff, this year. Don’t we all have enough junk in our houses already? And think of all of the boxes and packaging that go to the landfill after the holidays. Let’s give more time to each other and fewer boxes. How about tickets to a theater production? Or a taking your friends out for dinner at an organic restaurant? Give your partner the gift of a massage at a local spa (or at home!). You might also consider making a contribution to a non-profit on behalf of work colleagues, family members, and friends. Many of us our drowning in products and knick-knacks, and it’s eco-friendly and arguably more meaningful to shower our loved ones with experiences rather than things this holiday season.

Who doesn’t love to make a fire in the fireplaceat the holidays? We all do. Unfortunately, the atmosphere is not such a big fan of our fire-making habits. We hate to tell you that burning wood is not very eco-friendly. Burning wood not only uses wood that had to be cut down (sometimes unsustainably), but the burning process releases many nasty items. According to the EPA, wood smoke contains hundreds of chemical compounds including nitrogen oxides, carbon monoxide, and some carcinogenic chemicals, and also dangerous particulate matter. These all go right into the outdoor air where they contribute to pollution, but they also go into our lungs as we breathe the air coming out of the fireplace.  Natural gas fireplaces are much more environmentally friendly than wood ones, so if you have one you’re in luck.

If you don’t have a natural gas option, don’t Despair! Java Log to the rescue. This is a product we’ve recently found and we think it’s a great innovation– the Java Log. These are made from, you guessed it, compressed coffee grounds. We can tell you from personal experience that they make a nice crackle and burn great! (We tested them.) Apparently coffee is more efficient than wood: coffee has 25% more energy than wood. And these little java logs are much better for the environment than standard wood logs: they produce 8 times less creosote and 5 times less particulate matter. They also come in recycled packaging, which is a nice bonus.

Do you have any other ideas? Please add them to the comments section. And we hope you all have a wonderful, safe, sustainable holiday season!

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