Year Without Giftwrap/ January Report by Team Leader Efrat Kussell

The first month of my post-wrapping lifestyle has been relatively carefree. I gave my first reused-wrapping present in mid-January. The wrapping job (a garish but highly-production valued shopping bag with sometissue paper I had saved from a previous purchase) was treated with the same disregard that most people treat the casings to the gifts they open - tossed aside to view the contents (in this case, a delightful cookbook stand).

The greatest effect my post-wrapping lifestyle change has had on my day-to-day activities is what a packrat I've become. I have a huge paper bag in my room that is slowly getting filled with any scraps of paper or ribbon that I think might be useful in future wrapping endeavors. It might not seem like much, but once officially deplete my store of gift bags (in about 3 presents from now) I will be forced to come up with some more creative wrapping solutions. I have also become a lot more cognizant of the amount of paper and packaging that is wasted on a regular basis everywhere I go. Don't get me wrong - I love shopping and will continue to buy things. However, I will try to limit the amount of extra packaging that comes around all the things I buy. That's what the Level 1 commitment is all about...

The February Report From Your Teamleader, Efrat Kussell

This month brought my first real gift-wrapping challenge - the bridal shower present. I had two goals in mind for this challenge: Presenting the gift in an appropriately fancy way while upstaging the other wrapping jobs in its midst. The age-old tradition of opening gifts at bridal showers seemed like the perfect platform for spreading the word about the ex-consumer project, especially Level One ex-consumerism. My gift was a recipe binder book. I found an absolutely amazing towel to wrap it in. This is not just any towel - it's a designer towel by Cath Kidson (www.cathkidston.co.uk). The colors were bright. The design was lively and bold. I didn't even use tape! (I did, however, use a ribbon that the lady at the store where I bought both gifts gave me. I am still trying to decide whether taking the ribbon was morally right in terms of the project. I had forgotten my ribbon at home and was about to hit the road to New York. I figured it would be more wasteful to spend the gas to get all the way back to my house than to accept 1 piece of unpurchased ribbon.)

At the party, my giftwrapping job certainly held its own among the high-end papers that enveloped a range of girly domestic presents. The key to the wrapping's success was its bright colors and high quality fabric. I do not recommend wrapping a bridal shower present in any old dishtowel. If the post-wrapping job is to compete with opulent paper and elaborate ribbons, it has to look even more beautiful than the shiniest, glossiest paper. When it was my present's turn to be opened, I made a big announcement to all the women at the shower about the ex consumer project. To my surprise, most of the women at the shower didn't think I was crazy for undertaking such a challenge. I received more
good-for-you's than incredulous snickers from the crowd.

The blushing future bride was also in support of my wrapping. In her thank you note she writes: "The Cath Kidston dishtowel is great, too - I'm definitely a fan of the no-gift-wrap challenge!" I encourage anyone undertaking the no new giftwrap in 2006 challenge to spread the word about what we're doing at any present opening event. Keep wrapping with one hand tied behind your back!