Are you looking for those extra special items to wrap up your holiday gift shopping?
Green gifts give a little more: they’re better for our health, our communities, and the environment. At the GreenUP Store, you’ll find locally made and eco-friendly gifts at a fair price.
GreenUP is a non-profit charity. When you shop at the GreenUP Store you directly support GreenUP and our environmental programs in the Peterborough area — that’s a gift that gives twice!
The following gift ideas can be found in our walk-in store at 378 Alymer Street North in downtown Peterborough, or on our new online store at shop.greenup.on.ca.
Under $25
Beery nice
If you have a jewellery lover on your list, consider picking up a pair of earrings from Keetarella.
Owner Kathryn Bahun carefully crafts her unique, beautiful, and up-cycled one-of-a-kind earrings (“beer-ings”) from fun-patterned beer cans she’s sourced right here in Peterborough.
These earrings are both beautiful and a conversation piece.
Accessory of the year
The mask is a great stocking stuffer and a very practical gift.
Like underwear, masks should be changed every day! Keep your friends and family stocked up with locally made masks from the GreenUP Store.
We carry a variety of two-layer cotton masks (in both adult and child sizes) by local makers Garden of Eden and Keetarella.
We also have batik print masks in adult and child sizes from Snug as a Bug. These are hand-made by home sewers throughout southern Ontario.
Happy feet
Warm, cozy gifts are always appreciated during the chilly season!
The boot insoles by Twoloom Alpacas are made from 100 per cent alpaca wool: a must-have for Ontario winters.
Twoloom Alpaca Insoles are a great gift for the boot-wearing sustainability buff — once they have finished their useful foot-warming life, they can be composted!
Hangin’ in
For many, a potted plant brings a little bit of summer indoors for the winter. Why not accessorize the indoor green thumb in your life with a Twisted Sister macramé plant hanger?
Handcrafted locally, these items are made from unbleached cotton, twisted and knotted to create a sturdy support for 6″ to 8″ pots.
In mustard yellow, smoky grey, seafoam teal, or natural cream, these little beauties are ideal for dressing up a window or freeing up space for your big holiday puzzle.
Cutlery on the go
The To-Go Ware reusable utensil set has a sturdy bamboo fork, knife, spoon, and chopstick set — all neatly held together in a convenient pouch made of recycled water bottles.
This stocking stuffer or gift wrap garnish provides a sustainable and healthy alternative to single-use plastic cutlery.
That’s cheeky
Cheeks Ahoy Unpaper Towels are great for wiping hands and faces, as well as washing and drying dishes and mopping up spills.
Lovingly crafted in Peterborough, these washable and reusable fabric cloths are a great alternative to paper towels. They reduce household waste and save you money.
A set of eight can easily replace paper napkins, paper towels, and even facial tissue.
Under $10
Suds ‘n’ soaps
The GreenUP Store carries many handmade soaps crafted locally by master soap-makers, Sherrie LaMasurier of Simply Natural Canada, Katie Legere of Free2Be Wellness and SarahAnn of Charcoal & Rose Petals.
Featuring sustainable and locally-sourced ingredients, these soaps use minimal or recyclable packaging.
The GreenUP Store carries many other personal care products too, like face serums, shaving soap, and natural deodorants.
Sweets for your sweet
OtonaBEE Apiary honey is the perfect gift for your sweet someone.
At the GreenUP Store, we carry liquid and creamed, clover and buckwheat honey in jars to fit any stocking size.
OtonaBEE honey is 100 per cent pure, just as the bees make it!
Under $5
The acorn doesn’t fall far from the tree
Ecomum felted acorns are made locally by Jeanine Crow and her daughter.
Each fall, the pair go out in search of acorn tops to attach to felted balls of wool. These are the sweetest little holiday tree ornaments!
Ecomum also produces a variety of textiles, including baby bibs, blankets, and napkins in fun and contemporary patterns.
Stainless steel slurp
Looking to help a friend or family member kick the plastic straw habit?
Let them test the waters, so to speak, with a single, package-free stainless-steel straw.
Take it one step further by pairing it with a straw-cleaning brush for $2.
Maple goodness
What’s more Canadian (and delicious) than a bottle of maple syrup?
The GreenUP Store carries Golden Treasure maple syrup. This sugar shack has been in operation since 1994, growing to over 16,000 taps on 300 acres of northern Ontario maple bush.
At $5, these beautiful bottles shaped like maple leaves are perfect stocking stuffers.
We also have 250-ml bottles for $9 and 500-ml bottles for $17.
More great gift ideas are on our website at www.greenup.on.ca along with tips and resources to help you make sustainable gift choices.
You can also purchase GreenUP gift certificates in-person or on our website. Gift certificates can be used at both the GreenUP Store and the Ecology Park Nursery.
Giving thanks
During this difficult time, our thoughts turn gratefully to everyone who is coming together to support our community and the environment. Be well, stay safe, and thank you from everyone here at GreenUP
