Green Christmas Guide: Eco-friendly Wrapping Paper Options

With the holiday season just around the corner, now is the perfect time to go green. Christmas generally means lots of shopping, running around, and decorating, as well as spending time with friends and family. With buying gifts comes rolls and rolls of wrapping paper, as well as bows and ribbons. After all, the perfect present comes with the perfect wrapping paper and a bright bow. However, what many people don't realize is that Christmas can be very detrimental to the environment in numerous ways. But one way you can greatly reduce your impact on the environment and carbon footprint this holiday season is with your gift-wrapping. Here are some great tips to go green when preparing your gifts for Christmas morning.

Save the Paper

We all know what Christmas morning is like. The kids gather around the tree and then shred through presents like it's their last time getting gifts. One thing you can do to go green this holiday with gifts is to carefully wrap presents so that they can be opened at the taped seams and then carefully folded and used again next year. While it may take away from Christmas morning, just simply explain to your kids that saving wrapping paper helps the Earth. While a little talk Christmas morning will still be the same and you'll end up going green and saving money in the long run.

Improvise with Your Own Paper

If you want to go completely green then you can ditch the wrapping paper all together. A great alternative to typical wrapping paper is newspaper. Newspaper can be a good idea since many people buy it anyway and then recycle it. So if you decide to go this route, just hold on to your newspaper as Christmas approaches and you'll surely have enough paper to wrap all your presents for both friends and family.

Try Bags

Holiday bags can beat typical wrapping paper easily. For one they last a lot longer and aren't prone to being ripped or torn by the kids during Christmas morning. Decorative gift bags may be a little pricier, but they'll withstand numerous Christmases. In addition, they can be folded and stored in a larger plastic container for next year's use. In addition, try to use decorative tissue paper that can also be reused the next year.

Use Less Paper

One thing you can easily do is just use less paper in general and save the rolls of paper you don't use for next year. There are several ways to do this too. First, only wrap the biggest or best presents. Scatter the other, smaller presents around under the tree with nametags on them for friends and family. This way the biggest and best presents can still be a great surprise.

Buy Eco-friendly Paper

While the concept of paper is never really eco-friendly, there is green wrapping paper out there. A lot of stores are starting to market green paper that looks like any other kind of wrapping paper and even has colorful holiday prints. The difference is that the green paper is post-consumer recycled paper and cuts down way fewer trees than your typical wrapping paper. And if you buy green wrapping paper and use all the above tips too you'll have a very eco-friendly Christmas.