Thoughtful Gift Giving

23 Dec

Gifts are an essential part of the holidays, yet in our world of over consumption and mass garbage pile up we need to be careful what we are gifting. To ensure your holiday cheer doesn’t become tomorrow’s landfill problem think twice before you buy. Here’s a few tips to gifting responsibly.

Best gifts are the things people will actually use often and not throw away immediately. For close family and friends think carefully about what it is they need.

Examples:

1. Motorola Roadster is a bluetooth speaker that attaches to the visor of any car, allowing handsfree calling as well as music streaming from your iphone/android. This item makes a thoughtful gift for any family member or friend who you know talk while driving way too much for comfort. And we all know plenty of those people!

2. Ceramic Coated Cookware is the new thing. Non-stick without the concerns of toxins. Unlike Teflon, ceramic doesn’t leach off into your food or become toxic if ingested. Perfect for anyone who loves to cook.

3. Baby Bullet makes home prepping fresh baby food simpler. The entire set allows you to make and store food for a few days. A great gift idea for those new moms in your life you’d like to see less stressed.

For people you don’t know well or office gifts I strongly believe in gift cards. Unless you know the exact stores this person likes, it’s best to stick to Amazon, Target or other such large stores who carry a wide variety of things that make it more universal.

If buying stocking stuffers or other trinkets try to choose items that won’t clog the dumpsters after the holidays. Food items are always a great option for this. Many specialty foods also offer eco-packaging. Packaging is often forgotten but when unwrapping things you suddenly realize trash gets filled rather quickly because of packaging.