The holidays are approaching and there are many things we can do to reduce our environmental impact during this potentially wasteful time of year. Whether you’re staying close to home or traveling to see family and friends. Here are some ideas for a mindful holiday season.

Have you heard of Furoshiki? This YouTube video shows two of the traditional Japanese Furoshiki techniques accompanied by some smooth jazz. There is a technique for almost all shapes and sizes. Our Bandannas make a beautiful reusable alternative to wrapping paper. Plus, friends and family are left with a bonus gift instead of a full recycle bin.

But not all gifts need to come in a box. Giving the gift of an experience is an excellent way to eliminate unnecessary waste. One of our favourites, is going on a winter picnic. It’s is the kind of experience that creates memories that last a lifetime. We like to bring a hearty snack, cozy clothes, thermos of our favourite hot mulled apple cider and an extra enamel tumbler, because sharing is caring and it’s the season for it. We hope your holiday season is filled with kindness and joy.

Buying things on the internet can be a bit daunting sometimes. Will the fit be right or will it ship in a timely fashion are some of the things that might go through your head. But when you open the package up to find that it’s mostly empty space or full of packing peanuts (despite the fleeting nostalgia they invoke in us) we’re a little crushed (and not in the gleeful popping way of bubble wrap). We don’t know if it was the permanency of those little morsels or the cost of all that “empty“ space that inspired us to do it better.

Our softgoods like bandannas, T-shirts and pocket squares all come in compostable packaging.

Our candles, tumblers and gift sets all ship in recyclable boxes with kraft paper tape and stuffing. To top it all off our candles come in a reusable cotton bag to keep them safe on their journey through the postal system.

Soft goods only cost $5 (up to 100 grams) to ship and hard goods (tumblers, candles and gift sets) start at $15. For the time being our online shipping calculator is constrained to Canada and the USA. For international orders, please email info@wildlifegoods.com for a quote.

Someone told us “the devil is in the details”. Whether its all those times you put off starting a new project or all the little pieces of packaging that came with your new XYZ. Put these all together over your lifetime and they add up to a mountain. Whether its a mountain of half cocked ideas or a mountain of garbage, all mountains are climbable.

We hand pour each of our scents in small batches in our Vancouver, BC studio because it’s worth the effort. Our choice to pour in these enamel tumblers is an effort to leave you with a vessel you can (and want to) reuse. Each scent is inspired by one of the four seasons that we enjoy so much. Each season has something for everyone and we hope you enjoy our impression of them.

We use minimal and recyclable packaging when possible because our planet is worth it. The cork dust covers are unfinished so they’re 100% compostable, but we hope you use it as a coaster first. Also, if you’re not interested in keeping your tumblers forever we will happily reuse them in exchange for a discount on your next candle. Email us at info@wildlifegoods.com for more details.