Winter 2010: I’m Dreaming of a Green Christmas

I’m Dreaming of a Green Christmasâ€¦ with every card I don’t write.

Are you dreaming of a Green Christmas, too? This winter, Mrs. Green’s World asked to hear your tips and ideas on how to keep things green for the holiday season. A secret for keeping the decorations lavish but the energy bill under control? A great gift you love to give that can please both your mother-in-law and Mother Nature? Any changes you’ve made to regular holiday traditions to make things still feel festive while being sustainable? Mrs. Green wanted to hear them all and to have everyone vote for their favorite tips!

The contest ended on December 15th, 2010 with over 2,500 votes submitted.

The final poll results can be viewed at the bottom of this page.

CLICK HERE to view all the submissions to this contest.

Here are the Top Three Tips, as voted for by visitors to Mrs. Green’s World:

First Place:

“I’ll be serving vegetables grown in our own garden.”

Michelle Bonati

Champaign, IL

Second Place:

“Instead of using a live Christmas Tree, this year I plan on using an Agave Flower stalk as a tree instead. I have made a swap with my neighbor — I did some yard work for her in exchange for her agave stalk. I plan on decorating it in a southwest theme with birds nests and native paper mache birds. If I store it correctly I plan on reusing it year after year.”

Cherry Rosenberg

Tucson, AZ

Third Place:

“I love putting together my own gift baskets of local foods to surprise my Southern relatives. This year I went to Desert Harvesters’ Annual Mesquite Milling Fiesta. I didn’t have any mesquite pods to mill, but I did find the ingrediants for my gift basket this year: a bag of Skeleton Creek’s mesquite flour that’s sustainably wild-harvested in the Sonoran Desert; a bottle of prickly pear syrup that’s made by Iskashitaa (a nonprofit organization that helps refugees and gleans fruit from local trees); and a jar of organic blueberry jam made by We B’ Jamin Farm in Tucson. I’m including a recipe from Desert Havesters for mesquite pancakes. I always save wrapping supplies to reuse, so I’m sending this collection in a used gift bag with a gift card made from a used holiday card.”

Pamela Portwood
Tucson, AZ

FInal Results

"I'll be serving vegetables grown in our own garden." - Michelle Bonati (25%, 633 Votes)
"This yearÂ I plan on using an Agave Flower stalk as a tree[...].Â I have made a swap with my neighbor - I did some yard work for her in exchange for her agave stalk."- Cherry Rosenberg(22%, 571 Votes)

"I love putting together my own gift baskets of local foods to surprise my Southern relatives. - Pamela Portwood (17%, 433 Votes)

"Instead of buying new wrapping paper, cards, decorations, etc get together with friends or coworkers and tradeÂ items leftover from last year." - Amy Bivins (9%, 227 Votes)

"I am making reusable snack bags and sandwich wraps to give as gifts this holiday. Using super cute fabrics by Amy Butler." - Anne Skubis (4%, 110 Votes)

"We decorate a large artificial tree every year and then always purchase a small live tree and plant it in the yard in the spring." - Jennifer Flora (4%, 107 Votes)

"I save the Sunday comics all year and use it for Christmas wrapping paper. (Commercial gift wrap can't go into Tucson's recycling bins.) " - Mindy Jones (4%, 99 Votes)

"This holiday season, my husband and I are cooking with all fruits and vegetables produced by a local farmer." - Doreen Korba (4%, 93 Votes)

"I take my Christmas cards each year and make next year name tags for our gifts. Punch a hole in them and take a silk string to attach them to the Christmas gift." - Pam Taylor (3%, 86 Votes)

"Change all light strings and decorations to LCD bulbs. They use much less power then the old kind. They also have a life of about 50,000 hours." - Russell W. Degner (3%, 80 Votes)

"Replace old string lights with LED solar powered or Energy Star qualified plug-in which consume 80-90% less energy and last 10-20x longer. - Joyce J. Kelly (2%, 43 Votes)

"Instead of small gifts to co-workers, I have donated money to Seva for the Gift of Sight to someone living without sight." - Ann Pardo (1%, 17 Votes)

"Instead of wrapped gifts, [my adult children] will each receive airline gift cards towards their air fare, ensuring [...] quality time together. - Bonnie Gonzales (1%, 15 Votes)

"For each item we get, we donate a gently used item that we no longer use to Goodwill so someone else can get some use out of it." - Nicole Young (1%, 14 Votes)

"I like to use old linen hand towels or colorful scarves/bandanas as gift wrap. It's fun to browse for inexpensive ones in the antiques stores." - Ann Marsh-Marten (0%, 8 Votes)

"I am giving a reusable stainless waterbottle to all my friends to help reduce plastic waste in the new year." - Sarah Kauss (0%, 8 Votes)

"Using less packaging with gifts, reusing wrapping paper; using decorations from nature, and recycling our Christmas tree." - Amy Herschell (0%, 7 Votes)

"Instead of a gift, donate $ to a charity in that persons name. Great to donate to a local hospice, or food bank." - Katherine Roberts (0%, 5 Votes)

"Send Christmas cards via e-mail rather than snail mail (cheaper AND greener)." - Renae Rolley (0%, 3 Votes)

"Using an artificial tree?" - Heather Wall (0%, 3 Votes)

"My husband, my 12-year-old and I will be donating our time (and some gently used clothing, toys and household items) to several local shelters." - Tracey Owens (0%, 2 Votes)

"My favorite part [of having a local grown Christmas tree] is taking it down after we have enjoyed it and feeding it to our neighbor's goats." - Kim Swasey (0%, 2 Votes)

"Why not give a new green gift for that HORSE LOVER on your list- horsemanship and wildlife stewardship lessons! - Netzin Steklis (0%, 1 Votes)

"Giving out Supermarket Tours at Whole Foods Market since I am a Registered Dietitian and Certified in Holistic Health. Use your talents as gifts." - Christa Smedile (0%, 1 Votes)

"Instead of buying, wrapping and giving gifts to my girlfriends, I am donating $$ in their name to the food bank and giving them a card saying so." - Elizabeth Wyer (0%, 1 Votes)

"Every year I save gift bags, wrapping paper, and Christmas cards given to my family and I either reuse them for gifts, or crafts for the kids." - Julie Ramsey (0%, 0 Votes)

"Wrapping gifts in lovely pieces of cloth from items you know longer wear, but are sentimental." - Loti Gest (0%, 0 Votes)

"Wrap presents in newspaper and let grandcildren/children decorate with crayons, magic markers or paint; glule wtih glitter, left over ribbon pieces, etc" - Betsy Bolding (0%, 0 Votes)

"I'm reaching out to hire one of the unemployed to help me insulate my house (so Santa doesn't have to land on my fire.) - Dan Maher (0%, 0 Votes)