The Holidays are right around the corner and the busy shopping season is here. If you’re looking to shop more eco-friendly this year, or looking for gifts that support fair trade/ fair wage, we’re here to help. We love to support small and independently owned businesses and have put together an incredible list of gift ideas. Best of all, most of the items on this guide are made in the USA. This guide will give helpful tips for finding high-quality and eco-friendly products near you and tips for shopping online. We’ve also included a list of great brands you can order from online. Join us in supporting other small businesses this holiday season.
Shopping Tips for Finding Eco-Friendly Gifts-
Shop local first-
Shopping online is easy. It also creates a huge amount of waste and consumes unnecessary resources. Whenever you can, shop local. The products have already been shipped to the local store to get right to your neighborhood! Local businesses are struggling now more than ever. Business owners work hard to stay in business and are having to work harder and harder every day. You can vote with your dollar by shopping locally instead of with a corporate box store or “you-know-who” online.
Finding unique and eco-friendly products is often much easier in locally owned boutique stores as well. Small business owners are often much more inclined to sell these types of products. If enough customers ask for a product, local businesses are more likely to provide them as well. So if your favorite local shop doesn’t sell what you want to see, ask them to!
If you’re not used to shopping locally, here are a few tips-
- Your local organic grocery store, farmer’s market, herbal apothecary, or food co-op are a great place to ask for suggestions on places to shop. Sometimes they’ll even have a coupon book for local like-minded businesses or a bulletin board you can pursue.
- Do a web search for “organic + your town,” “eco-friendly + your town,” “boutique + your town,” and/or “locally owned + your town” to find stores.
- Head to your city center or main street and just start wandering to see what you can find!
- Check out a small business directory or guide for your area.
- Ask the local chamber of commerce for ideas.
- If you can’t find what you’re looking for within your town, visit a nearby bigger city or at least shop within your state. This helps to save fossil fuel and resources.
Shop Etsy:
Shop on Etsy and narrow down the results to your local area. First touch base with the shop owner to see if you can arrange an in-person pickup. You can also ask them for no packaging this way. It can be a great way to meet someone new in your community as well!
Make online shopping less corporate:
If you must shop online, try to keep the “big guy” out of it as much as possible. Large online retailers are notorious for using way too much packaging and not optimizing their shipping to reduce fuel consumption.
If you find something you like on a site like Amazon or Ebay, see if the seller has their own website. Most companies that are for sale on these bigger platforms also have their own site. They make more money when you order directly from them because they avoid all of the seller fees on other sites. You can also reach out to the seller when you order directly from their website to request minimal or reusable packaging. Sometimes they’ll even match the free shipping offers found on corporate sites.
Tip– don’t forget to sign up for their newsletters, that’s usually the best way to find out about sales and coupon codes! And ask about customer loyalty programs or rewards points 🙂
Eco Gift Guide for Everyone on Your List
In as much as possible, we’ve selected items for this list that are safe, eco-friendly, chemical-free, built to last, zero-waste, fair wage/fair trade and organic as much as possible. A growing number of people have chemical sensitivities making this a helpful list for them as well. Almost everything on this list is fair trade or made in the USA, it’s all chemical-free & non-toxic, many of the items on this list are also lifetime guarantee!
Self-care & bath product gift ideas-
Handmade toiletries are always a favorite gift. Moondance Botanicals is based in the Denver area and is a woman-owned business. They hand make everything they sell and have delightful seasonal products as well.
Apple Valley Naturals Soaps carries shampoo bars, body bars, and dozens of other body care products. A woman-owned business based in Minnesota, they have delightful scents and sell products with as minimal packaging as possible.
Candles are a classic gift. You can never have too many of them. The Beeswax Co makes beautiful beeswax candles handmade in Texas. They come in all kinds of sizes (and even fun shapes), smell delightful, and burn strong for hours.
Essential oils also make a great gift Barefut oils are low cost without compromising quality. For Christmas gifts consider blends like We Three Kings, Christmas Blend or Winter Wonderland.
Herbs, tinctures, natural soaps, oh my! Butterfly Express is a go-to destination for homeopathic remedies, herbs, tinctures and much more. They also have several educational resources that the natural-living enthusiast in your life would love bundled up with some remedies.
Gift ideas for the foodie on your list-
Reusable food storage containers Help your loved ones ditch the plastic and grab them containers from Wean Green. Freezer safe with leak-proof lids, these things are virtually impossible to break and will hold up to heavy use.
Pair the containers with a Hot Logic. Put containers in full of food, plug it in and have a hot meal ready quickly without the harm of a microwave. You can even plug it into your car with an adaptor and have a waste-free hot meal on the go.
Reusable & zero waste gifts-
Hanky Books. These unique “books” are organic hankies sewn together in book format. They are handmade in the US by a woman-owned business and come in loads of patterns to appeal to kids and adults alike. This is definitely a stocking stuffer you want to make sure to grab.
Reusable cloth napkins, lunch bags, and snack/sandwich bags. Fluf makes the perfect organic cotton items for packing a lunch and reusable napkins to use at home. The napkins are nice and thick, the perfect size and wash up nicely. The bags are lined and easy to clean out.
AusPen refillable dry erase markers. No more throwing out old dried up markers, simply refill them. Their starter kit would make an awesome teacher gift, gift for homeschoolers or gift for a business person trying to reduce their waste.
Skoy dish scrubbing cloths. European made, woman-owned business committed to sustainability. These things last for months on end, clean even the hardest spots, and wash up beautifully.
Flat Diapers. If you’re done with the diaper days, keep reading. Flats are popular for cleaning around the house! They are basically super-absorbent, soft cleaning cloths. A lot of people embroider on them for gifts, These flats from Green Mountain Diapers are organic cotton and so nice and soft. Consider the half-size for gifts too!
A wet-bag. These have countless uses beyond what you’re used to for cloth diapers. They’re great for your dirty cloth napkins or family cloth, laundry, wet swimsuits, and more. Check out Thirsties brand, made in Colorado.
Clothing and accessory gift ideas-
Organic cotton clothing is significantly softer and lasts longer than conventional cotton. Check out these brands:
Kasper Organics is a small woman-owned business who is extremely mindful of helping those with Multiple Chemical Sensitivities. Check them out for clothes, bedding, towels, and more.
The Natural Clothing Company is another woman-owned business who have a carefully cultivated line of clothing. They’re based in Washington state and have a huge selection including outerwear, casual and dress clothes, and tons of socks.
PACT apparel is a quickly growing brand that you can find at some Whole Foods locations as well. They have organic cotton fair-trade clothes for the whole family and have recently upped their children’s sizes through size 12. They also have sheets and towels.
Looking for dress clothes? Hope & Henry carries organic cotton kids, and adult, dress clothes. Their adorable children’s dress clothing include bow ties, hats, and vests. Matching adult clothing is available for several items as well.
Flowfold has purses, backpacks, and wallets. They’re USA-made, have a minimalist design, come with a lifetime guarantee and are extremely well made. Built to last and hold up to heavy-duty use.
Check out the incredibly unique, sustainable and allergy-friendly jewelry from Enso rings. They’re beautiful silicone rings at under $30 each for most. These would be a great stocking stuffer.
Inspired By Finn sells gemstone, hazelwood, and amber jewelry handmade in the US. You’ll find beautiful pieces for the whole family as well as pocket pieces. They also do an excellent job providing information about the properties and benefits of each material used.
Eco gifts for kids-
Where would we be without including a few gift ideas for kids?
Stuffed animals are a gift that always goes over well. Bears for Humanity makes organic cotton, fair trade stuffed animals handmade by at-risk mothers in California. For every bear sold a bear is donated to a child living in poverty in the US.
Maple Landmark based in Vermont has beautiful and sustainably-sourced wooden toys. Kids especially love the wooden trains that are compatible with their favorite train sets.
Smiling Tree Toys has blocks, games, puzzles, and much more. They’re all handmade from wood in the US and are heirloom-quality. They’ve got gifts for all ages as well as beautiful ornaments and educational toys.
