Green Living

The Best Vintage Christmas Ornaments on Etsy

published on November 10, 2021 by Angela Hamilton
updated on November 5, 2021

Anyone else obsessed with vintage Christmas ornaments? I already own more than I need for my little {pink} tree thanks to my local thrift shops, but I can’t help but comb my favorite Etsy shops for new-old-finds each year. I’ve saved what feels like a zillion shops with ornaments and decor the past few weeks, and thought it would be fun to share them with those on the hunt for festive and sustainable adornments of their own! Find my top collections below linked with our Etsy affiliate links (which I appreciate the opportunity to use so much, because I love promoting Etsy stores!).

Side note: Be sure to peruse the rest of the shops behind each listing, as most of them have essentially turned into vintage holiday goldmines this time of year!

the prettiest vintage ornaments on etsy

Christmas Tree Top Glass Ornaments via OldBox (sold individually)

Vintage Czech blown mercury glass miniature bell Christmas ornaments via BohemianStarsLtd

Custom set vintage Christmas hand-painted glass ornaments via Grannysbox

Gold vintage Christmas ornaments via Danslamalleameme

50 1960s glass ornaments via vintagestoreworld

50 Christmas glass indent ornaments via ChristmasBoxStore

Sparkly silver and pastel ornaments via DaniBeeVintage

Vintage blue Shiny Brite glass balls via findandseekvtg

Blue and coral 1950 vintage Shiny Brite ornaments via DonnaDanielsDecor (like any vintage holiday collector, I have to have me some Shiny Brites!)

8 indented mercury glass vintage Christmas ornaments via Kleymannscloset

What do you think? Should I keep adding more as I find them? 100% happy to keep on collecting these fabulous Etsy shops for your scrolling pleasure. If you plan to gift any to loved ones this season, don’t forget to check out our guide to sustainable gift wrap and how to level up your holiday gifts!

Where To Buy Eco Friendly Gift Wrap

published on November 5, 2021 by Angela Hamilton

Once of my favorite ways to level up holiday gifts is with beautiful wrapping paper. Ribbons, bows, tags, you name the accessory and I love to pop it on. I want my gift box to be a gift in itself! So you can imagine my disappointment upon learning that most wrapping paper and gift embellishments aren’t up to my sustainability standards. In fact, you probably saw a couple years ago when articles started circulating claiming that wrapping paper isn’t recyclable. (The truth is, it depends where you live, and usually just wrapping paper with foil, glitter, or other non-paper components. My rule: if it’s not shiny, recycle it!)

Of course, what makes gift wrap eco friendly isn’t just its ability to be recycled. Like any other consumer good, it depends on its base materials and how it was produced. At the very least, I like to stick to supporting small businesses when it comes to buying gift wrap—they’ll offer the original designs I’m looking to add to my thoughtful packages, anyway.

eco friendly wrapping paper

Take Etsy for example. This eco friendly gift wrap was designed by a small business, Lomond Paper Co, and printed on recyclable FSC certified paper. It’s so cute!

happywrap‘s Lotka paper (made from the bark of the Lokta shrub found in the Himalayas) is fair trade and naturally dyed.

has the sweetest winter designs.

happywrap reminds me how much I love going non-traditional on holidays.

Mulberry paper is another wonderful resource for eco friendly gift wrap, like these purple rolls from Saaper.

Scotland Based Cascayde offers up everything from eco friendly Christmas crackers to recycled ribbon and more. Love their innovation!

Sustainable gift wrap company unwrp offers super colorful and fun designs on wrapping paper, fabric wrap, and accessories. Their wrapping paper is FSC certified and fully recyclable, and their fabric wrap is even better: they’re actually gorgeous scarves meant to be reused as accessories!

I found this botanical wrap from Bombus and am patiently waiting for an occasion next spring!

mintpopco eco friendly tissue paper is 100% recycled and comes in lots of lovely colors.

creates beautiful, intricate designs and prints them on recycled paper using vegetable inks.

Just need to have a *little* sparkle on your gift wrap? LittleGreenPapershop produces this pretty star gift wrap that’s 100% biodegradable!

If you love soft hues over traditional holiday colors, Alfreda & Alice Illustration has you covered.

And for those of you looking past the holidays, prints their designs on 100% recycled paper!

where to buy eco friendly gift wrap

There are so many beautiful paper designers and producers out there, it’s not very hard to find eco friendly gift wrap. But there’s definitely challenges such as ordering online, where you may not be able to source it locally and thus contribute to the environmental impact of shipping. In the end we all have to weigh our options and priorities. I want my gift wrap to be recyclable. But I also want it to be special, and sourcing from an independent designer or small business is my favorite way to do it. Even if none of the options above are the right fit, I hope this inspires you to dive a little deeper into which holiday waste is recyclable in your area (here’s King County, Seattle’s take), and see which local businesses have the resources you need to give thoughtful gifts!

Is Recycling Actually Making A Difference?

published on November 3, 2021 by Mindy Chung

We’re all familiar with the little blue bin we see in classrooms and offices—the three arrows that we’ve been taught is a symbol of reducing consumption guilt. But while we all want recycling to be this fix-all for the ever-growing list of problems that come hand in hand with a planet struggling to keep up with our growing population, you have to wonder—how much of a difference is it actually making?

We’ve also heard about how individual efforts pale in the comparison to the potential impact of big corporations, but does that mean we should just give up on recycling? Is recycling just wishful thinking at this point? And while some communities have gotten creative about how they approach sustainability and recycling, like Thailand’s efforts to replace plastic packaging with banana leaves, it’s hard not to feel like we’re swatting at rhinos with paper towels as the global climate crisis grows.

does recycling matter?

Let’s look at the facts. According to the EPA, the average American created about 4.9 pounds of waste per day in 2018. This waste includes bottles, boxes, food, furniture, and more. Of the total 292.4 million tons (!) of waste produced, only 69 million tons were recycled. That’s less than 25% of all waste.

Branching into different categories of recyclables, only about 9% of all plastic gets recycled. That means the other 91% is slowly breaking into microplastics in landfills, which can, and have, leaked into our ecosystems, and even infiltrated our food chain. And while 9% may still seem better than nothing, the unfortunate reality with plastic is that its recycling process often involves downcycling—which just lessens its usefulness each cycle until it’s too thin to be used.

more recycling stats

Now, paper paints a brighter picture. (I mean, as bright as it can get). As terrible as cutting trees is, paper recycling is far more prevalent—about 68% of all paper and cardboard is recycled!

Glass and metal are also recycled at much higher rates than plastic—over 30% for both—but overall the recycling game leaves a lot to be desired.

And while all these numbers are bleak, I think one message stands out—we have to work together to make real change. Not just with recycling but advocating for businesses to implement more eco-friendly packaging. Petitioning governments to fight harder for green initiatives. Actively fight to inch ourselves away from ecological destruction.

I’m sorry to say that despite seeing the problem, addressing the problem, and knowing how we could theoretically fix the problem, I don’t have a clear-cut answer for whether recycling is worth it. Yes, individual recycling seems futile, and doesn’t even create a blip on the grander scheme of things. But to give up just because you don’t see you own actions making change seems like it would do more harm than good. And I’m not saying recycle just to make yourself feel good about yourself—I’m saying explore what you can do more of.

Shop sustainably. Buy goods meant to last or sourced ethically. Use your power as a consumer to force corporations to shift their business models. Money talks louder than words when it comes to big companies and their waste production. We’ve seen a surge in smaller sustainable businesses in the last decade because that’s what newer generations want.

That’s how we’ll make lasting changes.

At the end of the day, it boils down to if you’d rather be a glass half-empty, or a glass half-full kind of person. I think that as a society we are painfully aware of how ineffectual our efforts to reduce our carbon footprint feels sometimes. But that doesn’t mean we should stop. The debate about the impact of recycling is just that—a debate. Until we can come up with a solid plan to replace consumer recycling, innovate a new way to reduce waste, there’s nothing wrong with just trying to do your part.

Sustainable Lifestyle Gift Guide: Neutral Artisan Home Decor

published on November 1, 2021 by Angela Hamilton
updated on October 27, 2021

I am a color lover through and through, but I lived in Los Angeles long enough to appreciate a well-designed minimalist home with neutral decor (take this Venice Beach bungalow, for example), especially if it’s got a few desert touches. While we’ve focused a lot on conscious maximalism, I do love the warmth and texture that neutrals (done right) can bring. Some of my favorite ethical home decor shops offer unique artisan finds for lovers of white-tan-beige layers, so our first sustainable lifestyle gift guide of the season came together rather effortlessly…

Two of my favorite starting points for sourcing a cozy minimalist look like this are Australia’s artisan decor brand Pampa (who has a US site now) and sustainable lifestyle boutique Housework, both offering beautiful neutrals in the warmest of ways. And don’t forget a the key to this look: a hint of wood or terracotta as a psuedo “pop of color” and lots of smooth surfaces (like candles or clay vessels) mixed with texture (from fringe to rattan to jute) throughout. Click the links above to follow the rest of the sources!

Do you know anyone who loves the look of a neutral artisan inspired home?

5 Eco Friendly Ways To Level Up Your Holiday Gifts

published on October 29, 2021 by Angela Hamilton

All through November we’ll share our favorite sustainable gift ideas, but what about the packages they come in? You might know by now how wasteful gift wrap can be, but rest assured: wrapping your holiday gifts in paper bags is not the only option. I’ve always loved to get creative with DIY gift wrap, so over the years I’ve learned a few great ways to elevate my holiday gifts, no matter what’s inside.

Make your own envelope liners with recycled paper

Giving gift cards to your favorite local boutiques or restaurants is one of the most sustainable gift ideas, not to mention a wonderful way to support small business. But thoughtful as they may be, gift cards aren’t exactly the most exciting gift to open. Jazz them up by making your own holiday card and envelopes. Or, reuse an envelope you already have and make a fancy liner by reusing a pretty piece of scrapbook paper (or similar). You simply cut it to size and paste it into the envelope. It’s a seriously easy way to make cards unique and special.

Add dried flowers to your gift boxes

I’ve been known to save every last bit of ribbon I have, even when the piece seems too small to be useful. But they can totally come in handy for accessorizing your gift wrap, like putting together a cute little dried flower bouquet! The dried flowers pictured above are from a variety of sources I collected over the previous months. I know one came from a strawflower bouquet from Pike Place Market, and I’m pretty sure I plucked that fern from a neighborhood shrub and used it in a fall centerpiece before it made its way to gift wrap. There’s no need for big un-recyclable bows or tons of environmentally harmful glitter when you can create something as naturally beautiful as this!

Make your own gift tags

I’ve always loved making my own gift tags from the scraps that remain after my holiday card making sessions. Crafting can often leave you with scraps of paper under 3″ in size, which means it is too small to recycle, so why not give it another life as a cute tag? If you’re good at hand-lettering or calligraphy, you can make a tag that looks just as pretty as store-bought ones. I usually go through my craft stash to embellish each one in a one-of-a-kind design, which eliminates the need to buy anything extra for this little project.

Choose gift wrap that can be recycled or composted

Most traditional gift wrap contains elements that keep it from being recyclable, like glitter and foil etc. I don’t know all of the rules on this, honestly, and recycling programs vary in cities everywhere, so you’ll want to check with your local service. I personally don’t buy new wrapping paper often just because there’s enough of it going around during the holidays, and whenever I receive a gift I am 100% that person carefully stripping off the tape, folding it up, and putting it aside for its next occasion.

But I have a few tricks when I do want or need to buy more. For one, I love to check my local Creative Reuse shop (as well as thrift stores) for unused gift wrap that has been donated. I’ve gotten some lovely gift bags and embellishments from Seattle ReCreative in the past. Secondly, I love the look and feel of handmade paper (photographed above). It’s so special. Not far from ReCreative, there is a shop called Of The Earth that offers handmade & recycled paper, seed paper, and hand dyed ribbons. Paper Source also offers a selection of imported handmade papers using different plant fibers that make them sustainable to produce and easy to dispose of. Here’s a sheet of Shibori paper made of Lokta indigenous to Nepal.

Add a vintage ornament to gift bags

Another one of my favorite eco friendly ways to elevate gift boxes or bags is to attach a beautiful ornament. Clearly I love to give presents on presents. I love finding old ornaments at thrift shops for my collection. A lot of times they’re sold in those little baggies, so I’m pretty much guaranteed to have more than I need (for about $3). I’m usually only gifting for family and close friends, so it’s fun to choose which ornaments or decorations I think each person will love and actually want to display the following year.

Okay, so now that we’ve hyped up the gifts enough… better make sure what’s inside is just as sweet! Stay tuned for our gift guide series to inspire you this season.

Where To Shop Sustainably in Portland, Oregon

published on October 25, 2021 by Angela Hamilton

Last year when we posted about our favorite places to shop small in Seattle, I meant to publish a Portland, OR version as well, but never got around to it! I actually might be just as familiar with places to shop sustainably in Portland as here in WA, because as a three hour drive it’s always been one of my favorite weekend trips for shopping vintage. You know how it’s more fun to shop when traveling? Anyway, the list has been growing and I need to finally post before it gets lost in next month’s gift guides (which will undoubtedly include favorites from the boutiques below). Here are just a handful of conscious, handmade, and vintage boutiques to shop small and sustainably in Portland. View the descriptions below each photo for their own bios and website/Instagram links:

Shop DANO

“Founded by Portland based artist and designer Melissa Grandkoski, DANO brings together plant-powered apothecary, thoughtfully produced wares from independent makers, and hand-selected vintage clothing curated to inspire and support a conscious and radiant lifestyle for self and space.” @shopdano

Seven Sisters

“Seven Sisters is both a Portland based shop and creative studio and produces our own line of products locally, by hand. Visit at 811 E. Burnside Street.” @sevensisterspdx

Yo Store

“The Yo! Store is a Womens, Kids and Lifestyle shop based in Portland, Oregon. Founded in 2016, we strive to offer modern, colorful and quality goods sourced from small independent makers worldwide. Everything we sell on the shop floor has been tried and tested by us or our kids.” @theyostore

I’ve visited and purchased from Eco Vibe many times over the years, and we link to them a lot as a great resource for eco friendly goods.

“Established in 2010, ECOVIBE is the collaboration of the combined visions of Leonard and Andrea Allen, aka “Len and Dre” and is family-owned and operated. ECOVIBE began as an apparel boutique but has evolved over the years to become a complete lifestyle brand with a focus on home décor, houseplants, plant pottery, kitchenware, apparel accessories, candles, and gifts. Our merchandise mix includes both decorative and functional décor for the home and personal lifestyle, and all of our products are hand-selected based on their sustainable and aesthetic values.” @ecovibestyle

Artifact: Creative Recycle (photo by @reluvclub)

“Artifact: Creative Recycle is a secondhand store that sells design driven men’s and women’s vintage and modern clothing, accessories, and shoes, as well as used furniture, art, and decor.” @artifactpdx

Kindred Homestead Supply

“Kindred Homestead Supply is a low-waste, bulk refillery for home + personal care located in Vancouver, WA. You bring the containers, we’ll provide the goods. It’s that simple!” @kindred.homestead.supply

Gone West

“Gone West PDX is a tiny gift shop supporting women makers, locally made products and goodies made with passion.” @gonewestpdx

Altar (& other great Portland boutiques available at storefront Cargo Emporium)

“Altar carries an array of special, handmade objects—all made by artists in America.” @shop_altar @cargoinc

Beam & Anchor

“Our homes are our sanctuaries. We believe our souls resonate with the objects we surround ourselves with. We humbly offer a curated selection of beautiful, well made, thoughtfully designed products to add depth, texture and meaning to your lives and your home.” @beamandanchor

Tender Loving Empire

“Tender Loving Empire is a handmade gift shop + record label curating goods + music from hundreds of independent artists.” Multiple locations. @tenderlovingempire

Where do you shop sustainably in Portland? Go ahead and list your favorites, and we’ll edit this guide!