Doesn’t it make your eye twitch to see the mounds of plastic ribbons going into the trash on Christmas morning? Or make you uncomfortable to wonder just how they make wrapping paper so shiny and colorful, who made it, and where?
In fact, much of that glossy stuff isn’t recyclable. The glittery and metallic papers contain plastics, so they need to go into the trash. Some municipalities don’t accept any wrapping paper, and tissue paper is often already made from recycled content, meaning it can’t be recycled again.
But gift wrapping gives us the same challenge as dressing fashionably. It’s a means of expressing ourselves, and in this case, our love and care for other people. You want it to look sophisticated and beautiful, just without all the waste, exploitation, and environmental impact. That is not always the easiest thing to pull off.
So I decided to really dig into…