STEPS TO SUSTAINABILITY
This page is for ideas to make your shoebox more sustainable. We want to send gifts that are beautiful and useful. We don’t want to be sending items that will end up in landfill or be thrown away easily. Unfortunately by taking items out of packaging it can instantly make a gift look second hand or pre-used when it is infact new. We hope to be able to find alternatives that make the gift even more lovely and that the person who receives it will know that thought has been taken in sending it. This is an evolving page so please come back and look at it on a regular basis.
Tip #2 Sewing Kits are a great idea, anything that will preserve clothing by mending or creating new items from old are a yes from us.
Tip #3 Sweets & Chocolates in a lovely glass jar
Yes you can keep them in their packaging OR you can find a lovely glass jar (think Jam or Marmalade) and you can put your sweets inside. You can then find a lovely piece of fabric (preloved) or pretty string and tie it around the jar. Then if you want to you could decorate it in some way. We know our leaflets say EU origin so please cut this information out of the original packaging and put it inside the jar (just incase). Heres a blog post of someone that has filled a jar with sweets and it just needs to be tweaked to make is sustainable. https://kalynbrooke.com/house-and-home/diy-projects/easy-diy-candy-jar-gift/
Tip #4 Shampoo Bars
These have come along way and are actually nice to use on your hair now. They also save a large amount of plastic from being sent in your shoebox. These were recommended to us by a supporter who found them in Poundland which is a surprise as they are normally quite expensive. They really are the way forward in the bid to reduce plastic but only if you are able to get some affordable ones. Otherwise a shampoo bottle which is recylable is your next best bet.