With Mother's Day fast approaching, many of us want to gift our mum's beautiful thoughtful gifts but are mindful of the impact on the environment. Luckily, we have a huge selection of eco-friendly sustainable and ethical gifts that your mum will love - whether you shop with us or another eco-friendly shop we have loads of great suggestions.
What makes a gift eco-friendly?
The word eco-friendly is used a lot nowadays, and it can be hard to tell if an item really is eco-friendly or not. Here are a few tips on what to look out for:
What is the gift made out of? What materials are used?
Is the material sustainable, fast-growing or renewable? Materials like bamboo and grasses are great renewable alternatives to many non-sustainable materials. Materials may be recycled or reclaimed - a great way of reducing our impact is to use non-virgin materials - look for items made from recycled glass, reclaimed wood or recycled plastics and cotton. Other products may use materials that would otherwise be waste products- check out our coconut bowls for example. Organic materials are free from harmful chemicals and many materials have certifications that can help you determine that they are sustainably sourced.
Is it reusable or refillable?
Other great gifts are products that can support your mum's journey to a more sustainable eco-friendly living journey. Reusable items from cotton pads to reusable containers, straws, travel cutlery, coffee cups and more make brilliant gifts for those looking to be a bit eco-friendlier. Try and avoid single-use items especially those that aren't easily recyclable.
What packaging does the gift come in?
Check the packaging the company uses. I'm sure we've all made those purchases where we open up a box and think - is all that plastic packaging really necessary? Do the items get sent in reams of plastic or does the company make a conscious choice to use eco-friendly and plastic-free or recycled packaging? At Honeste, we use plastic-free packaging that is 100% recycled - brown cardboard boxes/envelopes and either 100% recycled brown-paper, shredded paper or recycled compostable nuggets. Our stamp is made from natural vegan non-toxic ink and even the actual stamp is sourced from an eco-friendly stamp maker! For an even eco-friendlier option you can tick that you would like to use our re-used packaging option where we will re-use supplier packaging if available - not so pretty but even eco-friendlier (and your mum will still love what is inside).
Is it ethically sourced?
Look for where the company sources its materials from. Many of our items are fair trade; we have suppliers that are certified 1% for the planet members or members of tree planting schemes. Is the wood FSC certified to ensure it is sustainably sourced or from sustainably managed forests? Cotton may be organic or part of the Better Cotton Initiative etc.
Does the company support conservation or sustainable initiatives?
You may find that when you purchase from a company; they in turn support charities, for-good causes and conservation efforts. From tree planting to charitable money donations and sponsorships. At Honeste we commit to a minimum of 10% of profits being donated to charity (for more information please click here); with our main charity partner being The World Land Trust.
Eco-friendly Mother's Day Gift Guide
Below are our favourite eco-friendly, sustainable, green and ethical gifts for all budgets that your mum will love.
Eco-Friendly Recycled Mother's Day Cards
Send your mum a beautiful eco-friendly Mother's Day card. What makes a card eco-friendly? For us, all our cards are made with 100% recycled card that is acid-free. You can choose between white card and natural non-dyed brown card; they come with matching 100% recycled envelopes and are send in natural brown 100% recycled packaging. Not only that but print to order to eliminate waste and use extra-large XL ink cartridges where we can to reduce cartridges. Once our cartridges are used, we donate them to the Recycling Factory to raise funds for Whale and Dolphin conservation (read more about that here). And of course, all our cards donate 10% of profits to charity. Try to avoid cards that have adornments on them that cannot be recycled, check seed-paper cards use non-toxic inks and try to avoid those wrapped in cellophane.
Eco-Friendly Gift Boxes
Who doesn't love a gift box! Nowadays you can find eco-boxes filled with items such as at home spa-treatments and beauty products to household everyday reusables such as cotton pads, toothbrushes, cleaning items etc. At Honeste we currently have two gift boxes on offer (though watch this space!). Ours are a little different, we wanted to put together our favourite items to make a unique box that everyone will love. Our boxes contain an organic coconut bowl and organic reclaimed wooden spoon set, an organic reusable bamboo straw, our new vegan all-natural soy-wax refillable eco-friendly candle and a personalised eco-friendly recycled Mother's Day card.
Eco-Friendly Gifts for the Garden
Does your mum love the garden? Now that Spring is around the corner, it is the perfect time to get green-fingered gifts! From items such as eco-friendly fair-trade and ethical birdhouses to reclaimed driftwood bee and bug hotels that support pollination and encourage and help wildlife thrive. Seeds, grow-your-own kits and plants are also great options.
Gifts for an eco-friendlier lifestyle
Is your mum on a journey to sustainability? It can sometimes feel like an endless journey; help your mum along her journey with a reusable alternative gift. Our suggestions include:
The eco-friendly sustainable bamboo lunchbox: our personal favourite is our Mandala engraved lunchbox (we do all the engraving ourselves and our engraver is run on 100% renewable energy).
We also love our organic coconut bowls and reclaimed organic wooden spoons - these are made from beautiful materials that otherwise would be turned to scrap and simply burnt - what a waste! They are perfect for cereal, overnight oats, smoothie bowls, poke and buddha bowls as well as stews and desserts.
Does your mum love tea or coffee? In the UK in 2019 we used a staggering 7 million disposable coffee cups every single day - many of which cannot even be recycled! Check out or bamboo coffee cup for a great alternative.
Or how about reusable straws - this might not sound so exciting - but take a look at our designs - quite possibly the most beautiful straw sets in the world.
Additional suggestions for great reusable are: A DIY gift pack including reusable cotton pads, refillable natural skincare and make-up, reusable tea bags and sustainably sourced fairtrade loose leaf teas, or an eco-friendly living book packed with tips on how to live a little more sustainably.
Eco-Friendly Gifts for the home
Now we are spending more and more time at home, we want to make it feel even more special, cosy and calming. We have a huge range of eco-friendly homeware and decor that make brilliant gifts. Here are some great options: A terrarium: not only do these look beautiful but they are good for you - helping filter and clean the air in our homes. Our terrariums are not only fair trade but is also made from recycled glass!
Artwork: how about a beautiful print for your mum. All our prints are printed on FSC certified photo-paper and printed to order with our ink cartridges being donated to raise funds for Whale and Dolphin Conservation.
Candle Holder or Vase: We love candle holders and vases - not only are they multi-purpose, but you get to enjoy them time and time again. Every time you have a new tealight or add some flowers to a vase, it reignites your love for that item and the person who gifted it. Our candle holders and vases are fairtrade and made from 100% recycled glass.
More mother's day gift ideas
Above is a small selection of the mother's day gifts we offer - check out our full range here. For exclusive offers, product launch news and eco-friendly living guides sign up for our newsletter - you can unsubscribe at any time.
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