Conscious Gift Giving Guide
Updated: Nov 28, 2019
"As a big middle finger to the colonizers..."
The holidays are an overwhelming time for me because of the pressure of gift-giving and how incredibly wasteful it can be.
As a big middle finger to the colonizers, what do you say we help small businesses! Remember folks, YOUR DOLLAR IS YOUR VOTE. Not only does it support the passion and vision of a small business owner, but putting extra care into your gifts will go a long way for the person on the receiving end!
Let's also address how detrimental the holidays are to our environment.
Peak travel season and delivery trucks working round the clock lead to increased CO2 emissions, not to mention Americans throw away about 25% more trash between Thanksgiving and New Year's Eve. While we can't stop the holidays, we can all take a few extra simple steps to offset our carbon footprint. Here are some of my favorite conscious gifts ideas that are sustainable and economical.
Experiences
Go anti-matter and purchase experiences over material objects!
-An intro class for something they've always wanted to try.
-A week of yoga at their favorite studio.
-Healing, massage, or reading.
-Lunch at a local restaurant, everyone loves eating! -Concert or Plane Tickets
-Museum Passes
Perfect for - The minimalist or world traveler who's blowing up your IG feed with beautiful places.
SeaSavers
https://seasavers.co/discount/MAMA10
Yes, saving the Earth is sexy! SeaSavers is on a mission to be the solution to our single-use plastic crisis by offering beautiful and durable Pyrex hand-blown glass straws. Each one is not only dishwasher safe, but comes with a fully sustainable cork carrying case and cleaning brush.
Zephyr uses his shortie every day with his morning smoothie and while sippin' on Topo Chicos with his papa.
For this Black Friday, Seasavers have a BOGO deal and Conscious Mother friends can receive another 10% off using the code MAMA10
Perfect for - Your sexiest, Mother Earth-loving, mermaid.
Berkey Water Filter
https://www.berkeyfilters.com/collections/berkey-sale
Water, sustainer of all life on the planet. Yet 21 million Americans drink water that violates U.S health standards.
I started using a Berkey Water Filter while I was pregnant. To have a healthy baby, I wanted to ensure I was always putting the right things in my body, including the water I drink. Berkeys remove 200+ contaminants, including fluoride (an additional fluoride filter required). The filters have a lifespan of 6000 gallons and are an expensive gift at $249 for the smaller Travel Size. Choosing a Berkey over single-use plastic saves almost 1000 water bottles from hitting the landfill!
Perfect for - The health nut, who swear by Bulletproof way of life, or anyone who's got a dependency on nasty plastic bottles.
Wolf Pachacuti
The only candles you should have burning are made of sustainable beeswax, which are completely natural, is antibacterial, edible, and non-toxic. Best of all it's a carbon-neutral candle! Beeswax also burns cleaner and fills the room with honey and flower nectar. YUM!
I love my box of mini ceremonial tapers, which are sturdy and last about 1.5hr. I use them for ceremonies and healings. In additional to Wolf's commitment to high quality, what I love most is the beautiful artwork that adorns all of their products.
Perfect for - anyone.
Make Your Gifts
My favorite way of gift-giving is creating from the heart! A well-intended greeting card, a home-cooked meal, a perfectly wrapped crystal pendant, or art can genuinely make someone's day.
If you have older kids, let them take part in the fun!
Perfect for - Grandma, Great Grandma, and Auntie.
A few more extra ways for a mindful holiday:
-Cut down on buying new gift wrap. Recycle old clothing or junk mail. We keep a stash of bags from gifts we receive and re-gift them.
-Say no to plastic! Instead of styrofoam peanuts and bubble wrap, crumple up junk mail, newspaper, or old clothing.
-Digital Cards
-Digital Gifts; ebooks, music streaming subscriptions, or memberships to skill-learning websites like, skillshare.com, Udemy, or Lynda.