Eco-Friendly Holiday Gifts

This holiday season is just a couple weeks away and as you're just parting ways with the tryptophan, now is probably a good time to start thinking about those holiday gifts if you haven't already. We've made a selection of some of our favorite gifts for the loved ones in your life. Take a look at the categories below and find the eco-friendly holiday gift for your naughty and nice friends. Check our Green Holiday Gift Guide Center.

Top 8 Green Tips

1. Gifts for Diyers

There are some who’d much rather receive the supplies to make their own present. We’re talking about the people who always have a project underway in the house and thoroughly enjoy renovation. Don’t buy them another screwdriver or another pair of work gloves, these folks already have that covered. Instead, invest in an item that you might hesitate to give anyone else for fear of those dreaded words “assembly required”.

If you’re buying for someone really important and need to make a statement, you may want to shell out the cash to get them started on solar power. On a smaller, more common scale you can look to things like light fixtures (to replace the ones that came with the previous tenants and have always been an eyesore), a new ceiling fan for that person who was complaining about the heat this summer, or a water-efficient showerhead, like the Panda Rain Eco-Friendly Showerhead.

SEE MORE GREEN GIFTS FOR DIYERS

2. Gifts for the Tech Guru/ Avid Reader

Our Star Trek obsessed, gadget geek friends are usually difficult to surprise when it comes to new innovations in consumer electronics. Now that mobile devices are capable of doing everything short of making a grilled cheese sandwich (and we hear that Apple is working on that), the options at your disposal offer an embarrassment of riches. Yet finding something that the gadget guru in your life doesn't already have might not be a simple task. Now add to that the fact that you want to (a) avoid taking out a mortgage to pay for this gift (because...well...yeah...) and (b) spread some eco-love in your gadgety gift. Never fear, Greenzer is beaming up a selection of some of our favorites of the kind. The Amazon Kindle: Ahh, the days of paperless books are upon us in a massive way. Some traditionalists may scoff at the idea of ebooks but if you've ever seen a Kindle up close, you'll agree that the similarity of the screen to the appearance of actual paper is quite impressive. If only they could get it to feel the same way...

What makes this greener? Well, without having done a full life cycle analysis, we can assume that (a) it takes less to transport a Kindle from the manufacturer to the end-user than it does to do the same for the approximately 200 books and numerous newspapers that the Kindle can store; (b) No trees harmed in the making of electronic paper; (c) No ink necessary. The environmental downsides: (a) you need to power the servers that the books are downloadable from; (b) manufacturing and shipping the device (c) recharging it; (d) proper disposal. Consider that 35% of books printed for consumers are never read. Pulp and paper production, which is increasingly sourced in Asia, is the 3rd largest industrial polluter for air, water and land in the U.S. and Canada, according to Conservatree. If you look to the future, it seems easier to get renewable sources of energy to power ebooks on our computers or Kindle and similar devices than it would be to get rid of the pollution related to pulp and paper production. Some of the other advantages of ebooks (whether you read them on a Kindle or your laptop): they're cheaper than regular books, typically by about 30%; they're instantly downloadable so your giftee's literary whims can be appeased at a moment's notice; a lot lighter than carrying 200 books and several newspapers. While the debate is still out and some critical data regarding the manufacturing process.

SEE MORE GREEN GIFTS FOR TECH GURU / AVID READER

3. Gifts for Gardeners

Although they may not be spending much time in the garden over the holiday season, fans of working in the dirt can look forward to using garden-related gifts you give in the months to come. And since these are people who have green on the brain already, eco-friendly gifts are a perfect fit.

Start your gift search from the ground up (the same way the gardeners do it); do they need a new pair of soil-safe shoes? How about a clog made from hemp or natural rubber. Have they been enduring attacks from mosquitoes? Try a natural insect repellant so they can avoid the toxicity of DEET. Are they perpetually rosy-cheeked from a little too much sun? Try a lightweight hat with a wide brim, like the Patagonia Surf Brim. And if you’re buying for an avid gardener-to be, get them started with the Green Toys Recycled Plastic Indoor Gardening Kit.

SEE MORE GREEN GIFTS FOR GARDENERS

4. Gifts for Slope Addicts

For some people skiing and snowboarding are casual winter activities, for others, these are topics you can’t mess around with. When it comes to these aficionados, you’ll be lucky to even see them during the holiday season if there’s powder on the slopes. For gift-buying, however, they’re easy enough—just think all things snow-friendly.

There’s gear you can get at all levels, too. If you’re looking for something on the lower end of the price scale, think gloves and hats. Many of Patagonia’s offerings are made from recycled materials with sustainability serving as a guiding factor and hemp features in a variety of cold weather caps, like the Rainbow Beanie by Ecolution. For a little higher cost, you can outfit the snow-lover you know in ski/snowboarding pants or a toasty warm jacket. And if you’re ready to really contribute to mountain equipment, you can purchase a snowboard made from sustainable materials, like the bamboo versions from Arbor or snowboard boots with recycled content, like the Select TLS Snowboard Boot from Nitro.

SEE MORE GREEN GIFTS FOR SLOPE ADDICTS

5. Gifts for Golfers

If it’s a golfer you're gift-hunting for (or in this case “fore”), now is a great time to introduce them to green—the environmental concept, that is, not the place they love to spend their time. You can ease them into eco-consciousness with an organic cotton or recycled material golf shirt, like the Short Sleeve Polo Shirt and Vitaliti Jersey Polo, both from Patagonia. The Solar Nylon Betty Hat by Mountain Hardwear will stave off the sun and the glare-reducing color on the underside of the brim will help the wearer keep an eye on the prize—that elusive hole. Or you could help the golfer in your life cut down on his consumption of bottle drinks and give him a reusable stainless steel water bottle. And if you want a little something that will bring the links home, try the Golf Ball Bottle Stoppers from Uncommon Goods made from recycled golf balls. Just don’t let anyone take a driver to the half empty bottle of Merlot you’ve been saving.

SEE MORE GREEN GIFTS FOR GOLFERS

6. Gifts for Gadget-Geeks

We all know at least one gadget geek, someone who can install any type of electronic device you buy and has the proper tool for accomplishing the task. While it can be difficult to buy anything to wow these individuals, with their knowledge of all electronic goods, those not even on sale, there are plenty of good—and green—tech toys to please the gadget guru of your life. Since it’s down right impossible to get the best newest toy for this individual before he gets it himself, try getting him something that will accommodate all the gadgets he’s got.

To satisfy a gadget-guru’s need for the latest tech and help them go eco-friendly with their fascination, you can buy a solar charger that will fully power their existing goods without making a dent in their utility bill— The Solio Classic Universal Hybrid Charger can charge a wide range of devices and even be plugged in on a cloudy day. Or you can help them bring their laptops on the go with a solar Laptop Backpack, like the Voltaic Systems Solar Converter Charcoal - Laptop Backpacks.

SEE MORE GREEN GIFTS FOR GADGET GEEKS

7. Gifts for Trend Setters

Finding something for your fashion forward friend or family member can be fun—these are people who are open to exploring and pioneering new apparel options and they’ll give almost anything a go. But if you do not consider yourself a fashionista, it can be very difficult finding something for their trend-defying style. And if you don’t know their size, you might as well get them gift certificates.

Eccentric and unique accessories made from recycled goods and renewable materials are a great way to add to the catalog of your fashion-forward loved one without worrying about if it's going to fit or not. A Recycled Record Cuff Bracelet made from used vinyl records can both appeal for a male or female fashionista with a rock and roll edge. Molecular Cufflinks modeled after serotonin molecules and made with recycled materials will appeal to any trend setting guy on your gift list.

Of course, when in doubt about what to get the fashionable woman of your life, you can always turn to purses, which don’t require you to know their size and are bound to go with something they own. We like the Balanced Design Henna Tote and the Designer Super Cyclone, made from license plates.

SEE MORE GREEN GIFTS FOR THE FEMALE TREND SETTERS

8. Gifts for First-Time Parents

For the first-time parents, the holidays are an exciting time to expose their newborn to all the traditions and festivities of the season. What they’d like and need most of all, probably, is a little more sleep at night, but since it’s unlikely that you can give them that, here are plenty of more achievable options.

They may be surprised by just how many things one child needs and will gladly receive anything you get; sippy cups are always useful (also when keeping unwanted chemicals away), we also found Born Free Sippy Cup, which are BPA-free, very useful. A bib is another great option for first time parents. Expose these newborns to the green movement with one of our favorites - the California Baby All Natural Diaper Care Tote.

If you’re buying for health conscious parents who are into natural food, consider the Fresh Baby So Easy Baby Food Kit to help them get started on homemade baby food—not only will it help them start a habit of serving healthy, homemade food for their little babies, it can save them money.

If you’d like to present the first-timers with a gift that’s about them and not their newborn, however, consider something that offers a little relaxation and calm like a pairing of a soy candle and lavender and vanilla body wash.

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