Etsy Love: Yellow Bird Yellow Beard

With the holidays quickly approaching, my mouth has already began watering for Thanksgiving feasts and Christmas cookies, but at the same time I can't help but feel my stomach churn over the upcoming season's wasteful decorations. In my house, we achieve a festively decorated look each year with found and recycled items, and use the same garland of LED Christmas lights that we've had for years. Plenty of Etsy shop crafters have the same notion, making gorgeous decorations out of recycled materials. So with this in mind, I plan on spotlighting eco-friendly holiday alternatives for the next few weeks, starting with the recycled paper and lovingly handmade creations I found on Yellow Bird Yellow Beard.


An earth-friendly decorative garland made from recycled take-out bags is the perfect accent for a Thanksgiving day with an earthy, vintage feel (I'm seeing a mantel place full of vintage glass bottles filled with grains and kernels of corn, lots of warm unscented soy candles burning and burlap placemats.....but that's just me!).


Although not made from recycled paper, this red and green garland puts me in the Christmas spirit in a way no plastic decoration ever will.


Plush Heart HO HO HO Christmas Tree Ornament.


For those local to the Southern California location of shop owner Janee Lookerse, this Recycled Book Pages Wreath is a modern alternative to a store-bought pine branch version that will simply be tossed in the trash come New Years Day.


And for handmade babies toys better than anything you would find in the sea of big box baby stores - like this adorable fabric giraffe - please check out Janee's second Etsy venture YBYB Toy Shop.