I met Francesca, the author of Ethical Unicorn in London a few months back and she's an inspiring person. She's super passionate about the eco + ethical movement and has focused any spare time she has hero-ing companies and products which are being the change us gals wish to see in the world. She wrote an awesome Sustainable Switch post on bubble gum which I fits perfectly with this series! Be sure to check out Francesca's blog, Ethical Unicorn or follow her on Instagram HERE. Below are her words:
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It’s beginning
to look a lot like Christmas… Well, not where I am actually. The sun is shining
and in between shows I’m at the beach. But regardless of where you are or what
you celebrate, we can’t deny that the holidays are fast approaching. Over the
month of December I’ll be talking all things ethical gifts, but it’s time to
get prepared for that one element that’s often an afterthought – wrapping
paper.
So instead of a
last minute thing, let’s really think about how we wrap our gifts. As The
Guardian pointed out way back in 2010, ‘Laid end to
end, the wrapping paper chucked away each year in the UK would stretch around
the equator nine times. Single use of a resource like this is quite
horrible. All paper has three major environmental flashpoints: the harvesting
of the trees, processing of wood fibre into pulp, and disposal of the product.
Recycling is not the win it might seem – in most authorities its collection and
processing puts extra pressure on MRFs (Materials Recycling Facilities) and it
has little recoverable value. Today’s wrapping papers are a composite
of synthetic inks, plastic film, chlorine and metal-based foils and glitters.
There is also a bit of tree. The US World Resources Institute recently analysed
the fibre of 32 consumer paper products, including wrapping papers, finding
fibres from some of the most endangered trees in three of them.’
Literally everything in that quote is gross. Plastic film, chlorine and synthetic ink? Hard pass. You could always go wrapping free if you wanted, but if you’re still keen for some fancy presentation, here are my top picks for a less wasteful wrap:
Literally everything in that quote is gross. Plastic film, chlorine and synthetic ink? Hard pass. You could always go wrapping free if you wanted, but if you’re still keen for some fancy presentation, here are my top picks for a less wasteful wrap:
Fabric
Like wrapping
paper, you can find fabric in a variety of colours and styles. You can
repurpose fabric from your home that you’re not using any more (think
sheets, tablecloths, pillow cases etc), pick up a load of the stuff at good
thrift stores or find material offcuts online. Fabric is everywhere! Instead of
tape you can secure with a pin, tie in a knot, or tie with string. Once
it’s opened, all of these items can be saved again for next year. One time
investment = wrapping for life. If you’re having trouble finding pre-loved
fabric, companies like LilyWrap and ecoChici have got
you covered.
Newspaper/Paper
Bags
Despite the age
of the internet, we’re still surrounded by paper all the time. So why buy
special new paper when we could just utilise what we already have? Save up
newspaper for the festive season, or carefully save paper bags when you get
them, to utilise later for wrapping.
Recycled
Wrapping Paper
If you
absolutely insist on buying paper, there are companies out there with a much
greener way of doing things, often using post-consumer recycled waste and
chemical free processes. Companies like Wrappily, Nashville Wraps, Blank Inside and Re-Wrapped provide
gift wrap made from recycled paper, and printed using vegetable and soy based
inks.
Tape and
Twine
For those final
touches to neatly wrap your package, you can find greener alternatives to keep
your gift tidy. For tape – Japanese Washi tape is made from the gampi
tree, bamboo, hemp, rice, or wheat, and is both reusable and
biodegradable. You can buy from Cute Tape or Wishy Washy. For twine – Whisker Graphics and Hemptique sell twine
made from cotton, bamboo or hemp (however neither claim their cotton is GOTS
certified, so maybe go with the other materials).
So those are my favourites, I’ve been wrapping with newspaper for years now and it’s always worked a treat for me. Do you have any other eco suggestions? Let me know!
Until next time,
stay magic y’all.
Head over to see more of Fran's fantastic work at www.ethicalunicorn.com