Lower Waste Gifting - 2022 Edition
Post Summary: My 2022 personal gift guide featuring low waste goods and/or products from independent makers. (Note: None of the items on this list are sponsored, though I have worked with some of these products or brands in the past. This is my own roundup. )
The following is what we gift or recommend to our close family and friends throughout the year. Several of these items overlap with gifting lists / posts from previous years, because the point isn’t finding the best “new” thing— it’s finding goods that serve a practical purpose with unique style while bringing joy.
Railroad Lantern
The rechargable lantern from Barebones that we’ve been using nightly at the Cottage. It’s easy to carry, suspend, or display on small surfaces.
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Stabilo Woody 3-in-1 Duo Pencils
These multi-tasking pencils with 2-color points can be used in a multitude of ways, including on glass.
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Creative Style by Lizzie McGraw
If you’re on this site, you’ll love the interior design work of Lizzie McGraw. Every piece of multi-tasking furniture I’ve ever designed has been designed with Lizzie, and built by her and her team with reclaimed materials and lots of love. Lizzie turns overlooked items into treasures on a daily basis, and her long-standing shop on Abbot Kinney in Venice is one of my favorite places on the planet, as it shares her vibrant heartbeat. This book is full of inspiration and joy, just like its author.
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Reusable Ear Swabs
LastSwab replaces up to 1000 single-use cotton swabs. Their standard swab and their makeup swab both have a soft-feel tip and are easy to clean.
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Herbs for Home & Healing in the Anthropocene
Our bodies and this planet are our true homes, so we need to listen to and care for them. I have personally come to regularly rely on these Earth Star Herbals by Alyson Morgan.
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Me: A Compendium (Kid’s Journal)
This delightful, fill-in journal is one of West’s recent favorites. (For reference, he’s 6 years old.) It’s funny and playful, and a great outlet for kids who enjoy reading, writing, drawing, and thinking creatively.
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Water Carbonator
Our Aarke water carbonator is not only stylish, but it helps us save between 4-6 bottles from the recycling bin daily. We have the Carbonator Pro in Sand, because it uses glass bottles rather than plastic. But the traditional Aarke is fantastic too, and offers a tiny countertop footprint for space-savvy styling.
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Children’s Audio App Subscription
This app / audio subscription service has a diverse selection of programming for kids of all ages. (West and Léa particularly love Sarah & Duck, and also enjoy Alphabet Adventures.)
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Caraway Cook + Bakeware + Food Storage
I got Adam a set of Caraway’s non-toxic, colorful pots / pans for the new cottage, and we both appreciate them so much that we invested in their bakeware and food storage, too.
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All of Us Skin Tone Crayons
Handcrafted in the USA without any paraffin or fillers, these crayons are crafted with beeswax, carnauba wax and earth pigments.
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The Naked Stone
These low waste moisturizing stones are for the whole body, and are a made-from-scratch revolution against plastics, pumps, and chemicals, and come in a refillable bamboo canister.
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Portable Projector
We don’t have a TV or large monitor in our home, but we can watch movies anywhere thanks to our little projector.
Planetbox
This stainless steel lunchbox (which comes in a few sizes/styles) is one of the most-used items in our home, and eliminates the need for baggies and multiple containers for meals on-the-go.
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Safety Razor
We can prevent millions of plastic, disposable razors and razor heads from entering landfills and oceans with safety razors. Oui the People makes beautiful safety razors to last a lifetime, and also sells blade refills.
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Refurbished Ratio Coffee Maker
Ratio makes the most beautiful coffee makers— especially when paired with their glass carafes. The smaller model is particularly great for small spaces. We have the Ratio8 in a refurbished model.
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Steamline Luggage
These suitcases, which have been favorites of mine for years, are so stylish that they can be reused for a myriad of purposes and for storage around the home. This is particularly helpful in small spaces, where there’s often no place to store a suitcase. If you can’t store it, why not display and use it daily?
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Collapsible Water Bottle
Reusable bottles have never been easier to tote! These collapsible, pocket-sized Stojo bottles even loop over a bike/stroller handlebar or around a backpack with ease.
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Homemade Grape Jam & Bread
Nothing beats homemade food. No clutter. No waste. No costly spending. And a gift from the heart and hands.
Rechargeable Lighter
There are more than 300 uses per charge in this stylish lighter, and it’s rechargeable, eliminating the need for refills or disposables. Plus it has a safety mechanism for homes with little ones.
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Vintner's Daughter
This company’s skincare philosophy centers on offering multi-correctional performance and the belief that if one product delivers a myriad of benefits, fewer products are needed, fewer are produced, and less natural resources are utilized. Even better, the ingredients are sourced from responsible producers, many of which have used the same sustainable, organic farming practices for generations. It’s not cheap, but for the quality and all the products it replaces, Active Botanical Serum is totally worth it, in my opinion. (This company is also a donor to The RightWay Foundation.)
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Play Silks
Sarah’s Silks is a family owned company specializing in Waldorf inspired sustainable toys for children. Their silks are simple and versatile, and dyed with non-toxic, eco-friendly dyes.
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Braiding Sweetgrass
Everyone could do with putting down the phone and picking up a book. In Braiding Sweetgrass, Robin Wall Kimmerer shows that, “the awakening of a wider ecological consciousness requires the acknowledgment and celebration of our reciprocal relationship with the rest of the living world.”
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Handmade Wooden Incense Burners
I purchased one of these little gems for the new Cottage and the entire family is enamored with her.
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OddBird Robes + Towels
Sustainably robes made in small-batches, using 100% natural fibers and woven by artisans on century-old semi-automatic looms.
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Late Sunday Afternoon Ascots
These responsibly-made ascots can be worn in a myriad of ways— around your neck, on your wrist, in your hair, on your bag/pack/basket, and around the brim of your hat. Our friends at Late Sunday Afternoon use locally sourced deadstock fabrics to create their ascots in-house. Any scraps are used to stuff handmade dog beds that they then donate to animal shelters.
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Repurposed Gift Wrap with a Story
Repurpose items from around your home into low waste / reusable holiday gift wrap.
(Original post from 2020)
We haven’t bought wrapping paper or gift bags in years. Even though we live in a small space and don’t have many spare supplies of any sort sitting around, it’s still surprisingly easy to shop our own home for items that can be repurposed as playful packaging.
While the end result is rarely perfect, there’s so much to love— it’s original, it’s free, and it generates less waste. (Related post: Playful Low Waste Gift Wrap)
These handmade bars of soap were wrapped with completed pages from one of West’s work booklets, and topped with salvaged ribbon and tree clippings.
What I enjoy just as much as the searching and wrapping is passing along the stories behind each repurposed ribbon, book jacket, muslin bag, or fabric scrap.
Dust jackets remain my go-to for wrapping presents for kids. (We store most of these paper covers beneath our mattress throughout the year to flatten out the lines, and then grab one whenever we need some colorful packaging.)
While the illustration art is the attraction for the recipient, there’s usually a tale behind the rest of the bundle for the parents / guardians to share.
This method of wrapping is also friendly for folks who aren’t hugely into DIYs (that’s me). Plus it’s also safer this year than going to the store, as we’re meant to shelter at home whenever possible.
Below are a few glimpses of this year’s very quickly completed wrappings, as well as cleverly designed bundles that needed no wrapping whatsoever.
Above: Brown paper biodegradable tape from Net Zero Co.
Almost everything used above has a story to tell— a ribbon that has been passed down through multiple generations and households. A remnant that once held a stone that traveled the country. A string that once wrapped the weighted blanket that helped improve my sleep habits. A spare/unused shoelace from a pair of sneakers designed by a well-known creative and dear friend.
(And, of course, customized boxes of dog treats that shows the sweet faces of our pups— why would we want to cover those up?!)
Low Waste Holiday Wall Decor for Small Spaces
Creative, low waste alternatives to Christmas trees for small spaces.
Not enough room for a tree in your small space? Here’s one easy way to use fresh greenery to create space savvy holiday decor for a small home. (View the 30-second video here.)
List of supplies:
Live branches
A bit of rope
A nail or damage-free Command strip
Battery-operated twinkle lights (we use rechargables)
A zip tie (to attach the battery pack to the back of the branch)
Clippers
I simply wrapped the twinkle lights around the branch, tied the rope to either end, suspended the entire piece from a sturdy wall hook, and then added small florals and twigs throughout the branch for a pop of color and variation in texture. I carefully spritz the branch with a bit of water every few days, and replace the bright floral clippings as needed after they’ve fully dried up.
The final result is simple yet striking. And, best of all, at the end of the season the rope, hook and twinkle lights can be reused, and the greenery can go in the compost.
Repurposed Gift Wrap with a Story
We haven’t bought wrapping paper or gift bags in years. Even though we live in a small space and don’t have many spare supplies of any sort sitting around, it’s still surprisingly easy to shop our own home for items that can be repurposed as playful packaging.
While the end result is rarely perfect, there’s so much to love— it’s original, it’s free, and it generates less waste. (Related post: Playful Low Waste Gift Wrap)
These handmade bars of soap were wrapped with completed pages from one of West’s work booklets, and topped with salvaged ribbon and tree clippings.
What I enjoy just as much as the searching and wrapping is passing along the stories behind each repurposed ribbon, book jacket, muslin bag, or fabric scrap.
Dust jackets remain my go-to for wrapping presents for kids. (We store most of these paper covers beneath our mattress throughout the year to flatten out the lines, and then grab one whenever we need some colorful packaging.)
While the illustration art is the attraction for the recipient, there’s usually a tale behind the rest of the bundle for the parents / guardians to share.
This method of wrapping is also friendly for folks who aren’t hugely into DIYs (that’s me). Plus it’s also safer this year than going to the store, as we’re meant to shelter at home whenever possible.
Below are a few glimpses of this year’s very quickly completed wrappings, as well as cleverly designed bundles that needed no wrapping whatsoever.
Above: Brown paper biodegradable tape from Net Zero Co.
Almost everything used above has a story to tell— a ribbon that has been passed down through multiple generations and households. A remnant that once held a stone that traveled the country. A string that once wrapped the weighted blanket that helped improve my sleep habits. A spare/unused shoelace from a pair of sneakers designed by a well-known creative and dear friend.
(And, of course, customized boxes of dog treats that shows the sweet faces of our pups— why would we want to cover those up?!)
Low Waste, Small Space Holiday Wall Decor
Not enough room for a tree in your small space? (Same here, although our 4 year old might wear me down with his requests to get a tabletop version this year.) Either way, here’s one easy way to use fresh greenery to create space savvy holiday decor for a small home. (View the 30-second video here.)
List of supplies:
Live branches
A bit of rope
A nail or damage-free Command strip
Battery-operated twinkle lights (we use rechargables)
A zip tie (to attach the battery pack to the back of the branch)
Clippers
I simply wrapped the twinkle lights around the branch, tied the rope to either end, suspended the entire piece from a sturdy wall hook, and then added small florals and twigs throughout the branch for a pop of color and variation in texture. I carefully spritz the branch with a bit of water every few days, and replace the bright floral clippings as needed after they’ve fully dried up.
The final result is simple yet striking. And, best of all, at the end of the season the rope, hook and twinkle lights can be reused, and the greenery can go in the compost.
P.S. Here’s an alternative for folks who prefer an artificial, ready-made version.
Video: Low Waste Holiday Decor Workshop
With just over a week until the holidays, we decided to do a little low waste decor and upcycling workshop here in Venice at one of my favorite small businesses, Big Red Sun. (Note: Scroll to the bottom of this post for the event video.)
I broke the workshop down into several components / activities:
Repurposing old clothing into reusable gift wrap
Wrapping the clutter-free, low waste gift of biodynamic wine with leaves in lieu of disposable packaging
Creating a zero waste centerpiece entirely from foraged materials
Wreath making (as a low-lift warm up activity to tackle while getting to know new friends)
Discussing the low waste materials and methods used to plan and execute the event itself
ACTIVITY 1: REPURPOSING OLD CLOTHING INTO REUSABLE GIFT WRAP
We hired a Thumbtack Pro to attend the event and repurpose old garments brought in by attendees while the workshop took place. The Pro, Keyra, has been a seamstress, designer and tailor for over 20 years, mainly working in costume fabrication and sewing home decor items.
I brought a stained old holiday romper that once belonged to West’s cousin, and was passed on to West. Kira transformed the piece into a sweet little buttoned pouch for stocking stuffers, and even turned remnants from the jumper into ribbons and ties for miscellaneous use throughout the season. Other attendees brought garments such as lace skirts, bandanas and tops.
ACTIVITY 2: USING LEAVES TO WRAP WINE BOTTLES FOR LOW WASTE, CLUTTER-FREE GIFTING
Our friend at Winc have a line of eco-friendly wines, and they generously gifted us several bottles of one of their biodynamic varieties to use in a zero-waste wrapping activity. The grapes used for this wine are farmed organically and biodynamically, resulting in a wine that’s good for those in search of sustainably farmed, small lot bottles in lieu of mass production and additives.
We wrapped the bottles in soft, flexible leaves, and added decorative organic touches. Each participant had their own style. I chose to show the label, while others wrapped theirs up entirely so the reveal would be part of the gifting process. Some folks chose to wrap only the neck of the bottle, or to create a little trivet of greenery at the base.
ACTIVITY 3: CREATING ZERO WASTE CENTER PIECES WITH FORAGED COMPONENTS
The owner of Big Red Sun, Selena, creates the most gorgeous centerpieces entirely from found organic materials she forages here in Venice.
She turns husks, bark and fronds into oversizes vessels that can be filled with fruit, veggies, acorns, pine cones, moss, flowers, branches, leaves, and a myriad of texture-rich, sweetly scented compostable materials.
For the workshop, we used some of the smaller pieces to craft festive, zero waste decor for our homes and for gifting.
ACTIVITY 4: MAKING LOW WASTE WREATHS
Wreath-making is a great intro activities for a workshop like this. They get attendees warmed up and into the crafting mood, while encouraging conversation that sparks new relationships in the spirit of the holiday.
ACTIVITY 5: ADDRESSING LOW WASTE SOURCING, EVENT SUPPLIES, SIGNAGE, INVITATIONS & TRANSPORT
We tried to keep our carbon footprint in mind from start to finish with this event. From biking whenever possible, to foraging local material rather than buying, to using remnant twine and wire, to bringing existing supplies like clippers and scissors, to using washable drinkware, cloth napkins, and porcelain / glass / ceramic pitchers and platters, we were able to throw a delightful gathering with minimal waste.
I had such a fantastic time conducting the workshop, and getting to see old friends while meeting new ones. Thank you to our event sponsors and attendees for such a joyful holiday experience.
Note: This blog post and the corresponding video were not sponsored, but the event itself was sponsored by our friends at Thumbtack. The biodynamic wine was generously gifted by Winc. (The final photo in this post was taken by Sara Toufali of Black & Blooms.)