You’ll see plenty of buying guides in the next month. We encourage you to shop thoughtfully, considering where things come from and how they get to you. We do not get any benefit from you shopping from this list. These are simply ideas we have and products we use and like. If you’re a local business with sustainable gifts, email us and we might add you to this list!

Above all, we hope your holidays (however you define them) are full of all the things you value—friends, family, food, and fun.

The Gift of Time
One of the best gifts you can give—yourself. If you have an elderly parent, relative, neighbor or friend, they don’t want more STUFF. They would love it if you came over more often to play a board game or to chat over tea. Or perhaps to help clean out their garage, to rake and compost their leaves, or to plant their garden for them in the springtime. Or maybe there’s a young family on the block with kids who would love to learn to bake, or make a bird house or grow tomatoes. When you give the gift of yourself, it is two gifts—one for them, and one for you!

Secondhand Books
Used books have a kind of mystique to them that people love! If it’s secondhand, it’s intriguing to wonder where the book has traveled, who originally bought it and with what purpose. If it’s from your own collection, add a note about what it means to you. We especially encourage circular economies like this — buy from a local used bookstore, or if this isn’t possible, Amazon sells used versions of all books. We should also note that most used bookstores have gift cards as well!

Soap Nuts & Dryer Balls
Interesting names…. great products! Soap nuts are natural and reusable laundry soap. They really do work. Dryer balls, made from 100% wool, replace dryer sheets (which are coated with chemicals and are typically made from plastic microfibers.) A few drops of essential oil (all-natural, high quality) will allow the dryer balls to act as a fabric refresher too, if that’s important to you!

Support Local Farms
Want to support local food production? Whitehall Farms, in Clifton, sells CSA shares and local products at its on-site market. We also highly suggest you visit!

Reusable Produce Bags
Reusable produce bags are a good way to decrease plastic bag usage from your weekly shopping trips. As you well know, we aren’t big fans of plastic.

The Gift of Good Health
Fairfax County Rec Centers have many locations near you and they would love for you to give a gift certificate for a membership or classes.

Meal Subscriptions
Although we’re highly skeptical of meal subscriptions, Sunbasket rises above the rest. Sunbasket has many food options, their meals are certified organic and they pack all items in 100% sustainable packaging that is recyclable and/or compostable. If you have a friend or a sibling who just works/commutes TOO MUCH and you worry that they aren’t eating well, consider a Sunbasket membership.

Mighty Nest
For $12 a month, you can get a new sustainable, environmentally conscientious product to try. Items in the past have included beeswax wrap to replace plastic wrap, silicone toppers (again to replace plastic wrap), reusable sandwich bags, all-natural laundry soap, stainless steel bento boxes, refillable dental floss in a glass tube and more. All items come with minimal paper packaging and no plastic. They also have a good selection of healthy home products to help get you to zero waste.

Seabags
Seabags is a company out of Maine that makes bags and totes that are made from old sailboat sails. They have a shop in Annapolis if you want to go see them in person. The bucket bags are a favorite and are perfect project bags for knitting, or lunch, or shower caddy!