It’s that time of year again – when, in my opinion, half the world goes mad buying as much as they can possibly lay their hands on and the other half worries about it, wondering how it’s all going to end. Members of the latter group, you won’t be surprised to hear, are often viewed as party poopers - or at least as if they’re unwell, like one day last week when a neighbour shook her head sadly at me, as I told about the shocking waste of paper (approx. 32 square miles each year) that gets ripped frenziedly off Christmas presents and thrown away like some kind of mass tree trashing ritual each year. Are you feeling alright she asked as she patted my arm – whatever - here are some nifty Christmas tricks to help us on our way…
The Christmas Post-Card
Save the fronts of cards and re-use as shown here (to get you started I see Oxfam has taken on this idea and you can now buy them, ready printed. Do the same for birthday cards too!
Taking paper out of the equation!
For some years now we’ve been slowly moving toward a paper free Christmas by wrapping our presents in material. It started after I’d made some seasonal pillow cases for our children when they were young and had material left over, which I then used to make into small draw string bags for popping small items into. It’s grown from there and I now keep an eye out all year round for pretty oddments like this old scarf.
Use ribbon, string, even the material itself for tying up if there’s enough of it.
There’s nothing nicer too than receiving a gift wrapped in material you’ve previously used and tracing its journey, which happened to me recently, when a friend turned up with a parcel that looked incredibly familiar… given to her by a mutual friend I’d originally given it too, she’d taken on the idea and hey presto…
Pine Cone Decorations
Here’s what you need. Simply tie or glue the string to the cone and decorate with ribbon.
Finally for those who don’t do trees!
Do have a merry Christmas!
