Sunday, November 29, 2009

'Tis the season...

...for JustSaying to remind you about our favorite simple ideas to help make the holidays more green than red. Save money. Save carbon emissions. Win win!

  • Get a real tree. Not only will your home smell like lovely pine without any artificial sprays or candles, but you are contributing to a business that is actually great for the planet. I know, I know: Instinct dictates that cutting down trees = bad. But that isn't the case in the business of Christmas. Of course, purchasing the tree - roots and all - to be replanted after the holidays is the absolute greenest of the green. But getting a recently cut tree is still better than artificial. Christmas tree farms are a big business. 56 million trees each year that, without demand, wouldn't be planted and grown for 5-16 carbon dioxide-absorbing years before their sale. Read all about it in last years post, purchase the pine, people. (By golly gosh, those are some cute sisters in that picture!)

  • Make your own gift tags from last years Christmas cards. Or email me to receive a bag full of them for free in exchange for donating your old cards. JustSaying did this last year but on a much smaller scale. Tags were given to friends and family and we were working with less than a hundred discarded cards. Since then, volunteers have popped up to help make the tags and tons of cards have been donated to the re-use/re-purposing cause.

  • Consider purchasing gifts through organizations like the World Wildlife Fund. Not only will you be donating to an important cause, you'll get on the mailing lists for similar organizations that send out holiday-themed return address labels and wrapping paper made from recycled materials (and a request for a small donation).

  • About online shopping. Amazon is one of my favorites because of their eco-friendly frustration-free packaging. If you can't find what you are looking for on there, be sure and sign up for an account on your favorite sites so that you can save items in your cart until all your purchasing is complete and can be sent in a single shipment. Save yourself the shipping fees and save the packing materials and shipping miles.

Please feel free to share any green holiday tips of your own in the comment section.

4 comments:

becky said...

Loved my gift tags!
I will be sure to donate all my holiday cards to you after the holidays...for next year!! :)

Deborah said...

Or... if you find that you, being an Apple, saved your cards from last year. ;-)

Anonymous said...

Hey... I do have my cards from last year! Will pass them on. LM

Deborah said...

Thanks LM. Maybe I can get them tomorrow night?