3 Inexpensive and Eco-Friendly Packaging Ideas

Running your own shop means that you can design your business around your own personal values. For many shop owners, that includes using environmentally friendly materials for both the products and their packaging. Alexis Clare of Whipped Up Wonderful, a Dallas, Texas-based shop, has always been concerned about the eco-friendliness of her bath bombs and other products. She researches each of her items’ ingredients, like sweet almond oil and Witch Hazel, and makes sure they are biodegradable and sustainably harvested. She takes a similar approach to her packaging.

A lot of printed materials and packing materials aren’t eco-friendly, but it can also be hard to stand out in a crowd of recycled cardboard boxes. Shop owners with environmental concerns avoid using traditional plastic tape, unnaturally dyed or glossy paper for business cards, and styrofoam or plastic filler in their boxes for shipping. Some creative shop owners have found inventive ways to go green with their packaging materials — and stay on-brand. Read on for their tips on creating sustainable packaging that reflects your unique business.

Ready to recycle

Alexis packages her bath products with eco-friendly materials like kraft paper and raffia ribbon. Photo by Whipped Up Wonderful

Consistency, for Alexis, is key: It’s all about branding. “I always make sure I wrap everything in a uniform way,” she says. Her logo features a blue watercolor bathtub, and her packaging is an homage to that. “All my packaging on my gift boxes are kraft brown, but I accent them with my aqua raffia ribbon.” For gift boxes with multiple bath bombs, Alexis fills the boxes with shredded kraft paper. “You still want your packaging to look really visually appealing,” she says. “When your customer opens the box, you want them to go, ‘Look at this beautiful gift I have!’” In addition to using biodegradable shrink-wrap and recycled paper labels, Whipped Up Wonderful’s packaging includes notes about what to compost and what to recycle.

Nature’s packaging

Wood shavings make a beautiful filler for Robert and Gwynne Kidd. Photo by KitchenCarvings

Robert and Gwynne Kidd, a married couple who make wooden cooking utensils for their shop KitchenCarvings, based in Center, Colorado, have found a creative way to fill their boxes with scrap materials. First, they make their own triangular boxes out of used cardboard for their items. Then, they pack their products with wood shavings, which perfectly complement the rustic charm of their carved wooden spoons and spatulas. And the wood for the products is also gathered in a very sustainable way: “I go up into the woods and get some dead Aspen logs which litter the forest floor,” Robert says. “Or I get scraps of pine and red cedar from the scrap pile at the lumber yard.” Buyers have responded so well to his package filling that he sometimes sells the shavings separately. “Customers have even written poems and put them on their blog or sent me pictures of craft projects they’ve made from them,” Robert explains.

Turning scraps into branding

Paper scraps and other found materials help create an aesthetic in gift wrapping and packaging. Photo by The Society of National Industry

Business partners Katey Rissi and Chris Campbell specialize in paper products — like their ethereal lanterns — in their Seattle, Washington, shop The Society of National Industry. They use biodegradable, custom-sized cardboard boxes for their products, but what really stands out is their scraps. Katey and Chris use recycled materials to create a colorful aesthetic that feels cohesive with their branding and products. “A lot of our paint processes involve stenciling and just bulk spraying of pigment, so that makes a really beautiful composition on the scrap paper that we have,” Katey says. They use that scrap material to write thank-you notes and fill their shipping boxes. For gift wrapping, they forage for old maps and magazines and top it off with a red cedar sprig from their home outside of Seattle. “It makes an aesthetic that is unique to us, and anybody who would be using their scrap would have their look that’s specific to their aesthetic,” Katey says. When your packaging uses materials from your creating process, the packaging immediately feels more personal.

For more tips from sellers on how to find and research sustainable materials, read 4 Tips for Sourcing Materials Responsibly.

How do you use recycled or recyclable items in your packaging? Let us know in the comments below.