Keeping It Green This Christmas!

Loving Christmas as much as I do, I don’t believe I’ve ever thought about how eco-friendly my Christmas tree is. When I began to look at all the decorations I have accumulated over the years, I realized that many of them were hand crafted, others were picked up on my travels, some were treasured gifts and many have been recycled and reused over many years—some as much as fifty or sixty years old. It’s such a pleasure every year to unpack all the boxes and try to remember where each one came from.

Some of the Santa’s I’ve collected were picked up from garage sales and who knows how many homes they have “lived” in and how many Christmases they have seen! I’m just happy to have them in my home.

I’m of the opinion that you can never have too many Christmas decorations. So this year, I began searching for some eco-friendly ones to add to my collection. Here are my favorite finds.

Rodales.com has a lovely selection of felted ornaments from Arcadian homes. These traditional deigns are crafted by artisans of 100% wool. The handmade process creates individual variations making each piece truly unique. Arcadia Home is a member of 1% For the Planet. Prices range from $21 – $46

Link to buy: http://www.rodales.com/felted-wool-dove-ornament/E002845001.html?cid=pr_eco18_rodales_doveornament_nov14

Link to buy: http://www.rodales.com/felted-wool-mistletoe-ornament/E002843001.html?cid=pr_eco18_Rodales_mistletoeorn_nov14

Link to buy: http://www.rodales.com/diy-owl-ornament-felting-kit/E001642001.html?cid=pr_eco18_rodales_owlornament_nov14

NativeCast.com features a super cute “Holiday Pocket”. This hanging pocket ornament utilizes upcycled denim jeans and NativeCast’s very special concrete coated cypress planks and sisal twine. The vertical planting pocket is specially designed to hang on holiday trees and wreathes. The ornament comes complete with living tillandsis air plant. The pocket is 3” x 3” and can be purchased from their website at $15.00

Link to buy: http://www.nativecast.com/shop/planters/pocket-ornament

SwellForever.com
This lovely site features classic heirloom gifts with a personalized twist and all made in the USA. A personal favorite of mine are the collection of glass humming birds. These hand blown lamp glass ornaments, Forever Birds™ come in exclusive colors and they make a gorgeous addition to any tree for the holidays as well asa wonderful gift.  Forever Birds™ hang on a dainty ribbon and come thoughtfully packaged with an option to personalize a keepsake card with your own special message to the recipient. A portion of proceeds contribute to the Swell Forever Adoption Fund. They came be purchased from their website at $25 each.

Link to buy: http://swellforever.com/collections/forever-birds

Article22.com
This is a brand that designs items made out of recycled Vietnam War bombs and weapon material. Each piece supports artisan livelihoods, village development, and demining in Laos. Artisans are also paid four times the local market rate and an additional 10% of total profits is given to support village development.

At the current rate of removal, it will take an estimated 800 years to clear all unexploded ordnance. With each Peacebomb sold, ARTICLE 22 and the artisans of Ban Naphia support their families, community, and country, helping make land safe. The peacebomb ornaments, come in a peace sign, spoon and dove shape and retail for $22 each

Link to buy: http://article22.com

I hope that you are inspired by these and many other wonderful eco-friendly Christmas decorations that are available. Have a wonderful holiday season and keep it green!