1. Make a List and Check It Twice:

Before you get caught up in the holiday shopping tornado, plan your attack. Make a list of killer gifts that are not just thoughtful but also Eco-conscious. Have you ever gone food shopping without a list? You know you end up buying tons of stuff you don’t need, but if you keep to a list you’re going to save money and buy only what you use.

2. Support Local Hustles:

Forget the big-box madness. Hit up the local markets, craft fairs, and boutiques. Supporting local businesses helps your community, fellow local humans and shrinks your carbon footprint. Double win! If there’s nothing that interests you locally, check out sellers on Etsy or online small businesses – you still may be shipping items to you but at least you’re supporting small businesses and getting really unique gifts.

3. Choose Products That Are the Real MVPs:

Opt for gifts made from sustainable materials. Think organic, think reusable, think stuff that won’t end up haunting landfills for centuries. Your gifts should be as long-lasting as your Aunt Karen’s fruitcake (but way more desirable). This is where you may spend more money but it will save you money in the long run. Buy quality items that will last.

4. Get Crafty with DIY Magic:

Unleash your inner crafting wizard. DIY gifts are not just about saving cash; they’re about creating something unique and lowering the environmental impact. Plus, it’s a legit excuse to get glitter everywhere. This year I had leftover material from a project that I had no use for so I created throw pillows for my kids. They loved them, and since I’m not a pro and there were seams – my kids said the “imperfections made it more perfect”. My oldest daughter took a knitting class in college (I know, I know, it sounds like the new underwater basket-weaving but she loved it) and now made everyone’s scarves and hats for the holidays. Check out my red penis scarf – it’s my favorite gift!

5. Experiences Over Things:

Gift memories, not just things. Concert tickets, museums, spa days, or a virtual escape room – experiences beat material possessions any day of the week. My daughter cannot tell you what doll or game I bought her for the holidays 5 years ago, but she remembers the ice skating lessons we got for her. We even got the whole family involved that year when her grandma bought her a new pair of ice skates. We celebrated our other daughter’s birthday with a Broadway show and a day in NYC. Less stuff, more memories. It’s the way to go.

6. Wrap It Up, Green Style:

Ditch the boring wrapping paper and get imaginative. Use recycled paper, fabric scraps, or repurpose old newspapers or maps. And hey, reusable gift wraps like scarves or tote bags? Double the gift, zero the waste.

7. Eco-Friendly Holiday Cards:

Send e-cards or pick cards made from recycled materials. Or, how about going digital and sending a video message? Because why waste paper when you can be a video star? My favorite holidays gifts from my kids were when they wrote me letters – years later when I need a little pick-me-up I still read them.

Those are my Lucky 7 Eco-friendly suggestions. Stay tuned because I don’t live on Mars and know that you’re going to buy some stuff for the holidays so watch out for my holiday shopping guide coming to a computer screen near you. Together, we CAN celebrate the season without trashing the planet. Cheers to a dirty, clean holiday season! 🌍🎁 #DirtyCleanHolidays #SustainableCelebrations #LivingCleanAndDirty

The post Dirty Santa, Clean Earth: Navigating Eco-Friendly Holidays Like a Pro appeared first on Living Clean and Dirty.

Heated Blanket: I’m sick and tired of my entire family complaining how I turn down the heat at night. I’m trying to conserve energy, save a boat load of money and I’m menopausal so I have my own internal heating system and it’s all over the map. My hubby likes it warm so he raises the heat when I’m sleeping and I wake up dripping in sweat like I ran a marathon in my sleep. Everyone in my house is getting their own heated blanket except me of course. Thanks hormones!

Vegan, Zero Waste Non-Toxic Bath Bombs and Scrubs: Sure, I could try to make these myself but I’d rather find another eco-freak who makes them better like the ones I bought from Life Around 2 Angles. I love giving luxurious bath stuff as gifts because no one ever splurges on this for themselves and it’s the perfect gift because no matter how old you are, when you drop one of the those bad boys into the water and it’s starts fuzzing up and turning green you squeal like a kid taking her (or his) first bubble bath.

Books: Before you groan, I’m not buying them War & Peace or The Iliad. My oldest is now into witchcraft, pagan religions and all things Wicca. So instead of rolling my eyes, I’m embracing it and buying her books and tarot cards. Now let’s hope she doesn’t do a bunch of spells on me where I vomit bugs. UGH I hate bugs.

Crystals: Another thing my “Wicked Daughter of the West” loves is crystals. She cleans them, says prayers over them, wears them and even slips them into my purse “to protect me”. Hey in the world of Covid I could use some extra good juju. I just did a bunch of shopping on this site and even found something more to my own tastes. So raise your hand if you just bought yourself a candle you absolutely didn’t need. (I’m raising my hand).

Tea Gift Set: After a long afternoon of paganism, who doesn’t love to sit down to a relaxing cup of tea? It seems more authentic for her to use loose tea so I found this heavenly celestial tea strainer that she’s gonna love (she always telling me about constellations and Uranus – insert laugh) and a bunch of different teas to try.

MakeUp: Both girls have different skin tones from me yet they keep using my stuff. Or we go to the drugstore and all they want is that toxic crap that’s tested on animals and is filled with chemicals I can’t pronounce. Not only do I care about their lovely faces, but I care about mine too. I’ve switched to using Seint which is color matched perfectly to your own skin tone and made from clean ingredients. Made in the USA, cruelty-free, reasonably priced and free shipping…always.

Mascara: What Seint doesn’t sell is mascara. I’ve tried all the clean ones (check out my Top 5) but I’ve found a new one I LOVE. Again, both my girls use my mascara (ewwww) so I got them each their own from Thrive Causemetics.

Shower Speaker: My girls love music and although I like silence while showering and my hubby likes to shower in the dark (no idea why), my girls want to sing. This wireless shower speaker means I no longer have to worry about their phones getting wet and I can stop keeping uncooked rice in trays to dry them out.

Light Décor: (a teenage version of a night light): No matter how old you get you like to sleep with some sort of night light. But when you’re a teenager it’s called neon décor (it’s still a nightlight).

The Comfy: This is one of those times I rolled my eyes at my daughter who HAD TO HAVE THIS. I got it and then I never gave it to her. OMG this is just about the best sweatshirt/blanket thing I’ve ever worn and perfect for this winter of staying home and never getting out of PJs.

Games: I never played Dungeons & Dragons but I’ve got a kid who is obsessed and gets on Facetime and plays with her friends. If this keeps her connected to her friends and they’re doing something other than talking about Sex, Drugs or (God help us) Country Music, then I’m all for it.

Head Phones: We hate all the wireless stuff. We tend to avoid it when we have another option, so we wire up when we can. I also don’t let my kids wear ear buds. That’s right! “Worst Mom EVER!” alert. OH THE HORROR. Now I’m not an otolaryngologist (I’m not that kind of doctor), but again, I’m gonna be overly cautious. My husband constantly complains about ringing in his ears. I tell him that’s called an alarm and it’s time to get up, but he’s convinced it’s from a misspent youth of absurdly loud rock music and concerts (he says Def Leppard, but I’ve seen pictures of his childhood room with Debbie Gibson posters). We didn’t have ear buds back then, but they sure do make it easy to crank the volume. Oh, what a blessing technology is. Sadly, my kids’ taste in music tends to be “eclectic,” so headphones in my house are still a necessity.

Ring Light: If your kid TikToks like mine this is gonna be the most awesome, most practical, and definitely most used gift of all time!

Pillow: If socks and underwear are the “plain vanilla ice cream” of gifts, then the last gift on my list is “Nicholas Cage eating a bowl of plain vanilla ice cream” meaning it’s the lamest of the lame with extra lame sauce on the side. This one is my favorite and that’s why I saved the best for last. “They” say you should replace your pillow every 1 to 2 years but I think I’m sleeping on a pillow that I’ve had since Knight Rider was on Thursday nights at 8pm. There’s a local cat shelter that scatters pillows everywhere because the cats love to hang out on them so it’s time I donate my favorite smooshy pillow to a good cause and buy us all new pillows. I tried this one out by accident when I hopped into my friend’s bed and leaned back against this cloud of awesomeness and the best part – you can remove and add stuffing to get it exactly the way YOU want it. Pillows for everyone, the gift that will hopefully give you a good night’s sleep.  See…Best Gift Ever!

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The post The Only Holiday Gift Guide You’ll Ever Need appeared first on Living Clean and Dirty.

Somewhere during “not hot” season we cram Thanksgiving, Hanukkah, Christmas and Kwanzaa into about five weeks. I can only speak for those of the Hebrew persuasion, but I’m guessing the other holidays come with their own family drama, stress and at least one awkward conversation nobody wanted to have.

Thanksgiving always makes me laugh. We spend an entire day talking about how grateful we are for everything we already have, then less than twenty-four hours later we’re elbowing strangers in a store trying to buy more stuff we probably don’t need. We’ve all seen it over the years. Cabbage Patch Kids. Tickle Me Elmo. Razor Scooters. Fingerlings.

I know because I spent December of 2017 calling every toy store within driving distance asking, “Hi…do you have any Fingerlings left?” To which my husband, being my husband, immediately informed me it’s never too late for a good fingerling. I hate how much I laughed at that.

The point is, we’re a society of gift givers, but the older I get the more I think we’re shopping for the wrong things. Most gifts fall into one of two categories. They’re either completely forgettable, or they’re so awful the recipient starts wondering if you even know them at all.

Some of my favorite gifts over the years haven’t been things at all. They’ve been experiences. A Broadway show. A concert. A weekend away. A cooking class. An afternoon wandering through a museum. The “stuff” eventually ends up in a closet, a garage sale or a landfill. The memories somehow stick around.

So in the spirit of giving I’m going to give you my 20 (for 2020) ideas of Gifts of Experience for family and friends, young and old, that aren’t just for the Wintry season.  These gift ideas can be given all year round and not just for special occasions, but sometimes just because giving somebody a bad-ass gift just makes you awesome.

1) Tickets to a Show (Comedy, Theatre, Symphony, Opera)
2) Tickets to a Professional Sports Event
3) Passes to a Local Amusement Park or Local Water Park
4) Music Lessons
5) Art Lessons
6) Sports Lessons
7) Equipment for Sports: Skis, Basketball, Baseball, Helmets, Skates
8) Museum Membership
9) Zoo Membership
10) Aquarium Membership
11) Tickets to a Holiday Light Show
12) Movie Gift Cards
13) National and State Park Pass
14) A Weekend Trip Away/Vacation
15) Concert Tickets
16) Laser Tag/Escape Room/Mini Golf/Bounce Place/Indoor Skydiving
17) Pottery Painting Event/Paint Your Own Pallet Board Night
18) Family Photo Shoot
19) Baking/Cooking Class
20) Dance Lessons

Will everyone remember every gift they got this year? Probably not. But they’ll remember laughing their way through an escape room, singing at the top of their lungs at a concert or spending a Saturday learning how to make homemade pasta. Those are the kinds of gifts that last.

Here’s wishing you a happy, healthy New Year, as little family drama as possible and a whole lot more memories than Amazon boxes.

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