The holiday season is a time for over-consumption and buying gifts with a limited life expectancy. What if this year you focus on sustainable and made in France gift ideas? Here’s 6 gift ideas for an ethical and 100% French made Christmas.
A Sesponsible Christmas: ethical and made in France gifts that preserve local craftsmanship
Maison Izard: collection of Pyrenean sweaters
If I tell you Pyrenean? With Christmas approaching, chances are you’re thinking more of a blue box filled with chocolates than a collection of woollen products. If you like big, cozy sweaters, the Izard house will make you happy. They make theirs from Pyrenean wool. This wool is collected in the whole Pyrenean massif, then spun, woven, or knitted in factories labelled “Entreprise du Patrimoine Vivant” in the Tarn Region. The brand offers sweaters, but also hats and socks. Their material, warm in addition to being soft, is also comfortable and breathable. A nice way to preserve the ancestral work of the Pyrenean wool. https://www.maisonizard.com
Parfums Godet
Parfum Godet: know-how at the service of craftsmanship (https://parfumsgodet.com/fr)
When you think of Christmas gifts, you think of the eternal bottle of perfume for mom or grandma. This time, turn to the brand Parfums Godet. The company is committed to preserving traditional know-how and favours a direct producer to consumer business model. The bottles are handmade by master glassmakers. Godet works with French suppliers specialized in each step of production. From planting to harvesting, Parfums Godet follows ancestral processes that respect the environment.
Upcycling: 100% French-made gift ideas for an ethical Christmas
Friendly Frenchy: glasses made of shells
Friendly Frenchy, a Breton brand founded in 2016, has made more than 3,000 pairs of sunglasses since its creation. These are made from waste produced by the food industry: mussels, scallops, or even oysters. Wishing to diversify, the brand has recently presented a new collection made with grape seeds.
https://www.friendlyfrenchy.fr/fr
Club Jose
Club Jose: back to childhood
Let’s head to Nantes for this second upcycling-based brand. Created in 2017, the Club Jose hunts for vintage fabrics, or old bed linen, from which it makes its pieces. The product range mainly focuses on men’s underwear, but also hair accessories and clutches, with fabric scraps, on which we can find all the characters of our childhood (Tintin, Mickey, Pokémon, etc.).
https://www.club-jose.com
Homemade recycling: to please without ruining yourself
If you care for environmental protection, you are probably conscientious about sorting your waste. Have you ever thought about upcycling and creating your own designs? With the amount of waste, we dispose of every day, the creative possibilities are endless. If you’re on a tight budget this year, but still want to treat your loved ones, here are two easy upcycling ideas. Recycled candles and glass jars: By reusing your finished glass yogurt cups, leftover wax from old candles, and adding a few drops of essential oil of your choice, you can make candles for less. Just add a scrap of ribbon and your gift is ready to be given… or kept for yourself!
Friendly Frenchy
Tin can cutlery trays:
Grab your finished cans and spray paint them in whatever colour you like. Attach the cans to a scrap piece of board. Your frame can then be mounted on the wall and used to store cutlery.
The Christmas holidays are a great time to introduce your loved ones to sustainable brands. Take the opportunity to make them aware of ethical shopping and the preservation of French know-how. It may also be an opportunity for you to discover creative talents in the service of upcycling.