Who doesn't love a good gift basket? I used to get really jazzed about the annual Summer Sausage Basket when I was kid. Blech. I was a child of the suburbs, what can I say?
But gift baskets really do make wonderful gifts. Besides being lovely hostess gifts, they are also a great way to "flip" a friend or family member. You know, give them a chance to sample some green-y type things that they wouldn't have normally tried and perhaps bring over to the dark side.
Here are a few great example of Green Gift Baskets that would make excellent gifts for a boss, teacher, neighbor, friend or family member who needs an introduction and a little nudge into the wonderful world of green living.
With all of these baskets, consider checking out your local thrift store, Goodwill or Salvation Army for the basket. They almost always have a pretty nice (and very inexpensive) selection.
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Green Cleaning Basket
Buy a couple of clear spray bottles and save up a squeeze bottle from your hand dishwashing soap. Print up cute labels for them with green cleaning recipes printed on them. Include the bottles empty or go ahead and mix up the solutions, but either way you can include a few of the ingredients in the basket, too. A box or paper sack of borax, baking soda, a small bottle of vinegar and one or two essential oils. You can also toss in some colorful microfiber cloths and a feather duster. And it's all inexpensive and from the grocery store, but put together in a interesting and eco-friendly way. This great basket was put together by Kate of Blue Turtle Baby (check out her snazzy ad, and then her site, in my sidebar)
Green Shopping Bag
Great grocery bag sets can be found at Reusable Bags. The sets we sent out to some friends last year included 4 large insulated grocery bags made from recycled plastic bottles, 2 cotton produce bags (great for bulk grains & beans, too) and a package of Evert-Fresh plastic produce bags for the fridge. You could also put together your own set ala carte with a mix of bags and products to keep produce fresh longer. Maybe even add some preprinted grocery shopping and meal planning lists done on cute paper--they really help save money at the store. You can arrange everything nicely in one of the shopping bags.
Green Home Energy Basket
One stop shopping at your local hardware store is all that's needed to put this basket together. A package of CLFs, a smart power strip and a DIY home energy audit brochure and you've just given someone a simple way to make a few energy saving changes in their home. If you want to go the extra mile, include a dimmer and/or programmable thermostat, too.
A Green Home is a Happy Home Basket
Maybe a combo of all of the above appeals more to you. This is an idea from a reader (Thanks, Tia!) Some CFLs, an all purpose homemade green cleaner, seeds, cloth napkins, all presented in one nice reusable bag. Maybe a fold up shopping bag to keep in the car. Or instead of displaying in a shopping bag, make a small fold up bag part of the contents and arrange all the green goodies in a kitchen compost bucket. Other ideas: green hand soap like Method or Burt's Bee's, a small book on greening your home like, The Green Book.
Fair Trade Chocolate & Coffee Basket
Coffee gift baskets are an old standby. This twist on the original pairs two great tastes that taste great together. Besides their yumminess, coffee beans and cocoa beans are both grown and harvested under really horrible conditions in South America. Buying Fair Trade Coffee and Chocolate says you care about workers rights. Global Exchange can give you an idea of what's available and offers both coffee and chocolate gift baskets, but why not just put together your own. Health food stores, some grocery stores and even Starbucks carry Certified Fair Trade coffee & chocolate these days. My favorite chocolate brands are Dagoba and Green & Black's. With both the coffee and the chocolate you can choose one or two flavors in large sizes or a wide assortment of smaller sizes for a family to sample. You can even include a tin of Ah!laska Organic Cocoa (not Fair Trade, but organic) or a handmade coffee mug from a local craft fair to round out the basket. A nice hemp, bamboo or organic cotton tea towel would make a nice base.
Little Travelers Bag (for kids)
The Little Travelers are 2 Little Girls who have traveled the globe and chronicled their journeys of Japan, Bali and The British Isles on 3 DVDs. The Little Traveler Bags are filled with lovely fabric pieces and sashes from around the world for great dress up play. Pair a bag with a DVD for a really cute and very unique gift bag for a child.
Green Cold Basket
Not necessarily a Christmas Basket per se, but a cute Green Gift Set nonetheless and a perfect gift to take to a sick friend this time of year. A nice pot of local honey, fresh ginger root, a lemon or two, a neti pot, a pretty tea cup or mug, and an old-fashioned hot water bottle with a homemade cover. There are some really lovely handmade ones like this knit one or this fleece one or this one upcycled from a sweater. Or make your own.
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Check out other ideas for making your holidays green on the growing Green Holiday Series page.
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