Everybody loves unwrapping a gift and the surprise element that comes with it. Beyond teasing our curiosity, wrapping a gift is an opportunity to give it that extra zest of love and care by making the package beautiful.
A scientific study from Southern Methodist University (USA) observed that gift wrapping a gift has a positive influence in creating positive ownership of the gift. Not only that but because being presented with a wrapped gift usually cues a joyous moment, presenting a wrapped gift triggers some form of Pavlovian response and stimulates those same emotions.
No More Cellophane Wrap or PVC Shrink Wrap.
Unfortunately, the conventional techniques of gift wrapping are unsustainable, often using disposable, toxic and non-biodegradable materials. Whether it's the carbon disulfide-produced Cellophane wrap, non-biodegradable PVC shrink wrap, or the relatively better paper wraps, it's simply wasteful. All these wrappers would end up in landfill and would have a harmful impact on the environment.
Did you know... only 9% of the plastic is recycled in Canada. It means over 2.7 million tonnes of plastic waste is pile up in landfills and in our natural environment.
A non-toxic alternative would be unbleached and uninked paper wraps… But it is a wasted opportunity (pun intended). Choosing a reusable wrap considerably reduces the ecological footprint.
The Furoshiki cloth wrapping technique offers just that: the opportunity to wrap a gif beautifully and sustainably, using a reusable piece of cloth. Furoshiki is the ancient Japanese art of wrapping an object with a cloth. It originated in 710 B.C and receiving its modern name in the Muromachi period (1136 – 1573) due to its frequent use in the Bathhouses. The name translates from “Furo” (bath) and “Shiki” (to spread), as the cloth was used to wrap the user’s kimono while taking a bath, making his clothes unmistakable with anybody else’s. As the user would come out of the bath, he/she would spread the cloth on the floor to stand on it 3. The Furoshiki wrapping technique is used for a multitude of functions, such as decoration, transportation of Bento boxes, … and of course, gift wrapping with that extra flare.
At Zeronto we pledge to not use plastic and we choose our wrapping fabrics to be made of biodegradable materials such as cotton and linen. We choose organic fabrics whenever possible, as the pesticides used in growing cotton crops are the biggest environmental downside and impact of the material manufacturing. These fabrics are printed using water-based inks, which are also more eco-friendly.
The result: an eco-friendly and elegantly wrapped gift, using a fun printed cloth, guaranteed to bring joy to the gift-receiving mamma over and over again, in each of its many uses throughout its lifetime.
