a word about wrapping paper

{i really want to thank you - all of you - for your kind, kind words about my hanukkah posts thus far.  i know that, for most of you, this is not your holiday.  and it does go on for quite some time.  so thank you for indulging me - and in many cases for encouraging me - as i share our traditions and our celebrations in this space.}

i couldn't let this holiday pass without mentioning wrapping paper.  really, i wanted to talk about fried potatoes this morning.  but that will have to wait, because i have a lot of potatoes to fry today for our dinner tonight.  so wrapping paper it is.

i love a beautifully wrapped package.  i love to wrap it.  i love to give it.  i love to receive it.  but my appreciation for beautifully wrapped packages has evolved.

sometime in the last two years i read an article about how americans spend $2.7 billion annually on wrapping paper.  (i can't find it the actual article i read at the time, but look it up on google and you'll see the statistic quoted again and again.)  two billion seven hundred thousand dollars each year on something that goes directly into the trash.

that was it for me and my beautifully wrapped packages.  i just couldn't stomach the waste.  i used up what i had left in my wrapping-paper-stash, and then i moved on.  i moved on to newspaper, which is not at all beautiful except for the fact that it is already (hopefully) going into the recycling pile and is being re-purposed first.  and on top of the newspaper, i use grosgrain ribbon.   i've accumulated a variety of ribbons in different colors and patterns, and i love the way the bright ribbon looks against the black and white of the newspaper.

so now, i wrap all of my gifts this way.  hoping, of course, that the ribbon will be used again.  and knowing that, even if it's not, the waste involved in my wrapping is far less than it used to be.

so there.  i've said it.  if you get a package from me this holiday season, or at any time of the year, really, it will be wrapped in newspaper and adorned with grosgrain ribbon.  i hope that you'll recycle the newspaper and re-use the ribbon.  but even if you don't, i hope that you'll enjoy the gift that is wrapped up inside.

(if you've got other environmentally friendly wrapping ideas, i'd love to hear them.  most of my gifts are already wrapped for this holiday, but there are birthdays on the horizon.  and i'm always looking for something new!)

Comments

[nessie]

I love when there is ribbon involved in a package I get. I can incorporate into one of my craft projects or re-use it on someone elses gift.

I like to wrap packages in a dish cloth- that way the wrapping is also part of the gift!

[julia]

i too use newspaper- sometimes i also use old maps or magazine paper. i also always open presents super carefully and save every piece of wrapping paper that i receive and reuse that (it's actually to a ridiculous point now that i try so hard not to rip the paper so i can save it).

[teresa (maggiegracecreates)]

I have no idea how I found your blog. I was surfing and following links. I have been reading since I found you. This is my first time to comment here.

Your faith tradition and mine may be different, but my belief is that love and tolerance, respect and encouragement are virtues that transcend formal faith traditions. I feel if I bring all of these virtues to my dealing with everyone, then the entire world becomes a better, kinder, gentler place.

I love the inspirations you share. I have you programmed in Google reader, so I'll be back again and again. Have a wonderful holiday season - Merry Christmas from my house to yours.

[ani]

the company i work for uses gift bags made from scraps of fabric leftover from the making of the clothes. tie it up with a ribbon and voila...very reusable!

personally, i like to use them to hold my knitting projects.

and i've got to say, i CAN'T WAIT for your potato post. :)

[Krista]

I am loving your sharing about this season and Hannukah.
Just wanted to chime in to say that the comic section is great for wrapping children's gifts, and the crossword page for those bookish types :)
Pretty ribbons! I'm so glad you posted about this and glad you're so concious of the waste!

[Beth]

I've loved your Hanukkah posts!

I save all of the big paintings (from our big paper roll) and reuse them as wrapping paper. It makes the little guy feel good to see his art on a present, and everyone seems to love it.

[Alicia A.]

I just decided the other day that I a, going to use newspaper too! :)

My father-in-law used to work for the MO state highway dept and the out-of-date maps were my wrapping of choice. But now he's retired, and my stash of maps is gone. So it's on to newspaper!

I am loving your Hanukkah posts, Emily. They're beautiful, and heartfelt and educational to many of us.

[Stacey]

Love that someone else out there is doing Hanukkah posts.

As for environmentally friendly wrapping, mainly we do the newspaper thing but if there is someone who I know likes fabric I'll take a piece that has been settling at the bottom of the pile for a while.

[blair]

Our school has a big wrapping paper sale every year and this year I boycotted (silently), but let everyone know that we use recycleable butcher paper and decorate the outside with markers ourselves, and hope that it gets recycled. I just didn't feel right buying all that paper. I love your idea of newspaper and may incorporate that into our holiday wrapping as well.

[cloth.paper.string]

okay, i too must admit i'm eagerly awaiting the potatoes...

as for wrapping, i'm all about reusing the wrapping materials that i receive -- using the other side of paper or wrapping things in rumpled tissue paper, sprucing them up with ribbon or a few wraps of yarn.

[leslie]

i bought one roll of paper to support our school (in the past i have bought several) and decided i wanted newspaper with a red bow for Christmas gifts. i love the idea of the black/white and red too.....
reuse, reuse, reuse!

love the photos of your ribbon.

and really thank YOU for educating me on hanukkah.

[Grace]

I love your grosgrain ribbon. Wow, I love it so. And I am so like you on the beautifully wrapped packages. The funny thing is, I have never even liked wrapping paper. Now I am going to feel less guilty for not liking it. I am going to look for alternatives now. We don't get the newspaper, but that's a good idea.

[kristin]

how have i been gone so long? thanks for the color and light you offer.

my plan this year is to use the free end rolls from our local newspaper...with thrift shop ribbon... : )

[amandajean]

last november I gave my entire wrapping paper stash to my sister and replaced it with one roll of kraft paper. it really saves on the space (my main motivator) and I decorate it according to the recipeint. I love the idea of using newspaper and ribbons.

[katiecl]

My mom made many many fabric bags of various sizes years ago. They have been used over and over and will continue to be. It feels good to re-use them, and it also is very convenient!

I love the ribbon pictures!

[erin]

when fatty was a general contractor, he wrapped all his gifts in old blueprints...it was great.

i am personally a big fan of butcher paper - the kids can decorate it for their friends and i can dress it up with a nice ribbon and maybe a flower, too. perfect.

[Amy]

The problem is that I keep receiving gift bags from others and then I feel like I have to reuse those and then I get more back the next year and we just keep exchanging them. And so I use those instead of finishing up the last 4 rolls of christmas wrapping paper that I've had for 8 years.

Is that a problem -- well, anyway - that's my story. I also like presents wrapped in old maps - maps from national geographics or old road maps, etc. etc. Or tiny packages wrapped in pretty pages from magazines.

Can't wait for the latkes post. Mouth is watering just from your mention of them before. Hmmm - I have 3 potatoes just sitting there....

[Dawn]

We use the brown paper bags that we get at grocery stores like Trader Joes or Whole Foods...sometimes they are even decorated for the holidays for us but mostly we just turn them inside out and decorate the brown paper ourselves...they also look nice with just beautiful ribbon.

[leslie]

hmmm. i have to rethink my newspaper wrapping. my fingers were black after wrapping gifts yesterday. one or two gifts to wrap are fine....but multiples? not so much! :)

[Kathryn]

A few years ago I made several simple Damask cloth bags of various sizes in holiday colors. Each one has its own appropriate length of decorative cording with which to tie it off stored inside. Wrapping is a snap, & we use them over & over.

[Tracy]

I am totally with you on recycling or repurposing something to wrap in.

I do alot of wrapping in brown paper bags, which will also just get recycled or repurposed in another way. I have used parchment paper in the past, and I keep using up tissue paper that has accumulated over the years. And then I try to embellish the gift with a pretty tag or ribbon or something.