I’m going to share this story with you, only because I am sure that my 70-year-old grandmother does not read blogs. So, I always know when my grandmother has been to a wedding or banquet of some sort, because our house will have a lot of flowers. She will always feel entitled to taking home the host’s floral decorations at the end of the night, because she believes they paid good money for it, and they can’t possibly have a use for it after anyway. One time she came to visit my school residence, and she brought all these roses to decorate my room. My friends that visited after were convinced that I was keeping a secret beau, even when I was single and not dating at the time.

So the point of that story, was to tell you how much people in general (like my grandmother) like flowers and plants. Everyone prefers a little life in their space, if not a companion then in the form of a pet or a plant. On top of being eco-friendly, it’s a good idea to give your guests a memorable gift that grows :) I’m an advocate of environmentally-conscious design (I know it sounds cliche, but really everyone should be!) and therefore I’m really excited to be sharing these gift ideas with you.

UK Designer, Jamie Wieck has a business card, A Bloomin’ Designer, that is creative and delightful to receive. This design has received a lot of attention on the internet, for being so simple and so clever. Just a plain paper pocket, and some seeds inside, can leave a smile on your guests’ faces.

Another brilliant idea that I came across, was these packed succulents from Sol X Sol, Japan. They carry all sorts of gift kits, with DIY instructions to plant them later. The packaging and instructions are also really simple. They almost feel like little cupcakes in those containers.

And lastly, one of my favourite ideas is plantable paper, which means seeds were placed into the pulp when making the paper, so that after you’re done with it, you can just add water and a plant will grow out of the paper fibres. The idea is really catching on, but I don’t really know who thought of it. I first saw it from Pangea Organics‘ packaging in 2006 (probably because it was designed by IDEO, and I follow what this company does) and then I started seeing greeting cards with plantable paper from The Paper Place and Pistachio in Toronto. From Etsy, I really like these ones by Round Robin Press because they are also letterpress :) which makes me extra happy.

So if you are looking for some green gift ideas, you can consider giving a real plant that will last and grow :)

{photos from Jamie Wieck, Sol x Sol and Round Robin Press}