Make your holiday gifts stand out with unique, homemade wrapping! Traditional wrapping paper is a big waste of resources—and most of it can’t be recycled. But you can create a merry mood with materials close at hand. Using fabric or tea towels, magazines or newspaper makes for one-of-a-kind giftwrap. Make your own personalized patterns on sheets of tissue paper. Or build a gift box out of an old album cover!

And that handmade holiday spirit doesn’t stop with the wrapping. There are plenty of ways to make the season shine without all that clutter. Instead of buying more stuff, this year try creating homemade gifts for the people you care about. Your family and friends will be thrilled by the personal touch!

Some holiday recycling reminders:

• Place clean and dry tissue paper and cardboard in the blue cart
• Dispose of polystyrene and foam in the black cart
• Commercial gift wrap, and shiny, laminated, or textured bows and ribbons go in the black cart (or pack up and re-use them next year!)