(Santa © Heather Castles, available royalty-free at ImageZoo.com)

Yippee, it’s almost Christmas! With less than a week to go till the big day, I was doing some last minute present wrapping and thought I’d post some greener alternatives to gift wrap.

• Matchboxes are a nice alternative to buying a money card at the shops… just fold your $$$ up and slip it into the cute little box, and tie it with a ribbon… easy to hang from the tree or slip in a stocking, and a bit more substantial to open than a card. I used odd scraps of wrapping paper and just glued them with a gluestick around the box slip. And because the little boxes just slip open, they can be reused year after year for small gifts like jewellery.

• Colorful fabric, old maps, scarves, or even that oh-so-colourful junk mail makes a great alternative to buying wrapping paper new.

• If you can’t find recycled wrapping paper, buy paper without the shiny & sparkly bits as that paper are not recyclable.

• Swap using tape to wrap your presents for reusable ribbons, twine or string.

• After all the present festivities are done, save wrapping paper and ribbons to reuse next Christmas, and recycle paper that is too ripped to reuse. Reuse holiday cards by trimming them down to gift-tag size and use them for next holiday.

• Cookie and coffee tins make great containers for gifts as well… just use a little paint stripper & steel wool to remove any of the printed exterior, leaving you with a rustic silver tin to pop presents in. And after the gift giving is done, use the tins to store christmas tree bobbles & decorations.