5 Essentials to add to your eco-friendly gift guide

The summer season is heating up, so it’s time to find some essentials to add to your summer gifting guide. Whether it’s for a seasonal birthday, baby shower or an early start on the Christmas shopping, we have you covered with our eco-friendly gift guide.

Gift-giving can often be one of the most wasteful practices. From an abundance of plastic packaging to novelty items that continue to store dust before meeting their bin shaped demise, it’s safe to say that giving and receiving gifts can actually be rather harmful to the environment around us.

If you have an abundance of birthdays getting closer on your calendar, fear not. Sustainable gift-giving is on the rise. Choosing to opt for plastic-free present options, useful items that can be reused during daily life and gifts that help enforce positive change is the way forward. With over 8 million tonnes of plastic waste infiltrating our oceans each year, now has never been a more important time to start eco-gifting.

Read on to find out our 5 sustainable gift essentials that need to be added to your eco-gifting list this year for a present that packs an environmental punch.

1. WWF Adopt An Animal Scheme

(Source: Tiltify)

Adopting an endangered animal is one of the best ways to enjoy a gift while making a positive impact on the future of the environment. The WWF Adopt An Animal Scheme allows the gift giver to pay £3 per month in order to adopt and protect an endangered species of their choice. Choose from a range of animals such as penguins, elephants and tigers and watch your donation make a difference with their helpful tracking system. Better still, this gift is perfect for your eco-conscious little ones, coming with a fun activity pack full of sustainable education and of course a cuddly toy that they won’t be able to resist.

Adopt An Animal Here: WWF (From £3 p/m)

2. Selfless Beauty Set

For the skincare addicts out there, our next eco-essential is something you’ll want to add to your basket. After rising to fame on YouTube, the popular sustainable skincare enthusiast, Hyram Yarbro has worked with the eco-friendly skincare brand, Inkey List to create a new range of sustainably sourced skincare products called Selfless By Hyram.

Made up of 100% organic ingredients, products such as his Salicylic Acid & Sea Kelp Pore Clearing and Oil Control Serum and Centella & Green Tea Hydrating Gel Cleanser not only leave your skin feeling revitalised, but also contribute to environmental change. A percentage of every purchase goes towards fighting the climate and water crisis, for a more sustainable future.

Shop The Selfless Collection Here: Selfless By Hyram (From £18)

3. Eco-Glasses

(Source: Eyeglasses)

For the perfect summertime gift, why not add eco-sunglasses to your sustainable gift guide. One of the largest wasteful industries is fast fashion. Opting for vintage or upcycled gifting options not only reduces the production of fast fashion but makes an original, one of a kind gift choice.

Eco-Glasses not only handcraft their designs with 95% recycled plastic waste, but these sustainable alternatives to highstreet giants prioritise the upcycling movement. With so many colours and styles to shop, find a gift that will leave your loved one rocking the sustainable fashion trend this summer.

Shop Eco-Glasses Here: ECO-Glasses (From £67)

4. Bamboo Travel Set

(Source: Bambaw)

For the keen travellers post-covid and the corporate population slowly making their way back into the office, a Bamboo Cutlery Set could be a great practical gift option for your eco-conscious friend or loved one. Constructed with sustainably sourced bamboo, this reusable cutlery set will not only reduce your plastic waste but also leave you feeling Covid-safe when eating out in public.

Better still, bamboo actually has antibacterial properties, making it a great post-pandemic travel essential. Stored in a plastic-free cloth bag with an additional straw cleaner, this present is a lifesaver for travel fanatics and will make a great gift basket filler.

Shop The Bambaw Collection Here: Bower Collective (From £10.55)

5. Eco-Friendly Subscription Box 

(Source: Hello Fresh)

For the cooking gurus, or the maestros just starting out, a subscription to an ethical recipe box is a great present idea if you want to stay in touch with sustainability. With studies showing that restaurants contribute to up to 33 billion pounds of food waste per year, purchasing an active present such as a cooking kit will not only gift your loved one fresh and healthy food with little waste but a lifetime of cooking skills that will reduce food waste in the future.

Subscribe To Hello Fresh Here: Hello Fresh (From £29.99 p/m)