Gift Wrapping - Green Up Christmas Without Becoming a Grinch
Statistics show that landfill volumes increase by 30% during the festive season and a good portion of this comes from wrapping paper.
According to surveys and reports, on average every Australian uses between 8-10 metres of paper to wrap Christmas gifts every year. That works out to be a staggering 8000 tonnes or approximately 150,000km of wrapping paper - enough to wrap around the Earth’s equator almost 4 times!
No matter how you look it, we’re using a hell of a lot of wrapping paper just for it to be ripped off and discarded.
Yes, yes, I’ve heard the argument so many times – ‘but it can go in the recycling bin’ But... can it really? And even if it can… should it? It’s kind of confusing…
Every council has different regulations, so while one council might accept a certain type of wrap in the curb side recycling bin the neighbouring council might not.
If the wrapping paper is metallic, has a velvety texture, or a glitter component then it might not be recyclable.
Cellophane is a tricky one especially for the untrained eye! Genuine cellophane is a good option. It is NOT recyclable, but it is plant based and can go into your home compost which is awesome! However, a lot of cellophane on the market is actually polypropylene cellophane which is cheaper to make and while it CAN generally be recycled (council permitting) it is a plastic-based product.
·Tissue paper is also a tricky one. Technically, it is recyclable if it doesn’t contain foil, glitter, sparkles or confetti. However, it is a very thin and flimsy material and most local facilities struggle to sort the material properly and because it is considered a low-grade material even if they can sort it, it is often hard for recyclers or materials recovery facilities to find buyers who are willing to pay for it. The good news is that if it is PLAIN tissue paper it can be added to your home compost.
So, while a product may be labelled as recyclable, for me, it comes back to the question – If I dispose of it in my recycling bin, can I GUARANTEE that it is actually being recycled?
Seriously it’s easier to just ditch the wrapping paper!
Now, I get that it would kind of ruin the surprise on Christmas morning if the presents were just sitting there under the tree for all to see, so I’m not suggesting that we don’t wrap our presents…I’m simply suggesting that we choose better choice and get a little thoughtful and a little creative with our wrapping.
Why not give some of these better choice ideas a go...
Reuse any wrapping paper, gift bags or boxes that you have received throughout the year
Use children’s artwork - Grandma will love the extra gift!
If you have old or damaged books (music, text or novels) newspapers, or maps use the pages to wrap gifts. This is also a great way to personalise gifts for each person if you can find a paragraph, music piece or place that matches your loved one.
Make the wrapping part of the gift by using a tea towel, beach towel, throw rug, scarf or sarong to wrap the gift in or pop your gift into a reusable shopping bag and tie with a bow. Google ‘wrapping with fabric’ and you’ll find heaps of You Tube tutorials to help you wrap any shaped present with style!
Use the colourful paper your toilet rolls come wrapped in.
Have a crafting morning and sew fabric scraps into different sized gift bags that you can reuse year after year after year. If you’re not a sewer you can purchase ready-made fabric gift bags. Pop the gift inside, tie the bag up with some reusable ribbon or compostable string and you're done!
It’s all about making small changes that will have a big and positive impact and can you imagine the impact it would have if everyone stopped buying wrapping paper? Just for starters I’m thinking less trees cut down, less landfill waste, less money spent… 😀
Info and statistic sources: care.org.au, greenhubonline.com, waster.com.au, goforzero.com, thinkingsustainably.com