'Green' is the new GIFT!

Everybody's going GREEN this year, and no wonder! We've all had lots of good examples about why we need to save the Earth instead of spending all our time, energy and dollars consuming everything in sight. Well, if you can do some environmental good while you're gifting this year, why not do it?

Make this the year that you commit to giving only gifts that can be consumed or recycled! Okay, I hear you saying 'No way! I'm not the mother nature, earth shoe type.' Well, listen on, my multi-tasking friends.

- This year instead of wine glasses, give a bottle of wine or a vintage Champagne. Drink a toast and then recycle the bottle!

- Instead of those high-end steak knives, how about some Choice filet mignons? A gourmet treat and nothing left over to go in the landfill!

- Does your giftee have company over the holidays? How about a loaf of your best home made cranberry orange bread, wrapped in a useable-over-and-over-again cute kitchen towel.

You get the idea.
But consumable gifting doesn't just have to be eating and drinking:

- Give a growing gift. Instead of sending a cut flower arrangement, send some living, breathing plants or blooming bulbs. (I love paper whites; when they come up they smell like Spring is just around the corner.)

- And lest I sound a little too basic, find out what your giftee REALLY needs. If her old umbrella is already three sheets to the wind, find a gorgeous one she can use every time the drops start falling. It's good to give if it's a needed replacement for something that gets frequent use.

I've been thinking about it this way. If it can be eaten, used up, passed on, or recycled - it's a good gift! Hey, it may be only one small step, but as the saying goes, little things mean a lot!