Holiday cards and gift wrap are a couple of the biggest things that fill up landfills from the holidays, but they don't have to. Here are some ideas to reduce both holiday card and gift wrap use or impact on the environment.

Holiday Cards

There are many options out there now for recycled holiday cards and it is usually pretty easy to find them. If you check out the back of the box it should give you an idea of the recycled content of the cards. Don't forget that after you are done with cards for the holiday to recycle them to complete the loop.

Gift Wrap

If you want to really reduce your impact due to gift wrap, you can wrap presents with old newspaper. When the gifts have been opened, you can then recycle the paper as you normally would. You can still decorate the gifts with recycled ribbon, natural pine branches and berries or other natural items.

If you still want the look of pretty papers, look for 100% recycled content paper. When the gifts have been opened, don't forget to recycle the paper. You can still decorate the gifts with natural items: pine cones, berries, pine branches, etc., to give them a festive look.