In the spirit of #NothingNewNovember, I thought I’d share some of the second hand gifts I’m planning to give in December as these are the only things I plan to buy throughout this month.
To start with, I’ve bought some second hand earrings.
I bought these five pairs for £5.50 from my local charity shop. Here they are, drying after a bath in cold-water sterilising fluid. I chose to clean them in the cold-water solution because I didn’t know whether the beads were glass or not, and if they were, whether they would be able to tolerate boiling water without cracking.
My plan is to pierce holes in some pretty card to display these on, and then package them in some origami envelopes made from pretty, festice paper.
My eldest child actually taught me how to make the envelopes, but the image above is a really clear tutorial that came up in a quick search.
Last year, I spent around £40 on new earrings for family members, so at a quarter of the price I’m delighted with them, even without the eco-friendly aspect.
This is one of the many occassions that sustainability and affordability go hand-in-hand. What are your favourite money-saving, earth-friendly gift ideas – I’d love to hear about them!
Trail of Breadcrumbs 
The earrings are a lovely idea and will look so pretty in their bespoke packages. I’m looking forward to see what else you choose to do. I like to search for secondhand books – World of Books and Oxfam are fab – then wrap in brown paper, either printed if I’m feeling brave (I’m not an artist!) or tied with a pretty bit of scrap yarn and maybe a crocheted motif. Decorated re-used glass jars filled with bits and pieces to suit the recipient are a great thing to plan and make – homemade cookie dough, flower seeds saved from the garden, small balls of coloured yarn, etc . . . your imagination is the limit. These days instead of gifts we tend to give ‘promises,’ usually to do something special when we’re together, even if it’s just going on a walk or sharing a picnic. It all beats the horrors of Black Friday and Christmas consumerism, that’s for sure. 🙂
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