Father's Day Gift ideas from Etsy

With Father's Day just around the corner it is time to start thinking about what we want to get the special Dad's, Grandfather's, & other important men in our life. Here are 5 gift ideas that will honor the men and still be a little more earth friendly because they are all  handmade from some fabulous Etsy crafters...

1. A handmade card... What dad wouldn't love to receive such a unique card. Add in a letter telling him how special he is to you to really give him a gift he will treasure. Make this gift even more special by embracing your crafty side and making a card yourself!

Fathers Day Painted Egg Card by LittleOkins

2. Something to drink from....... from a handmade pottery coffee mug to a personalized beer stein  any dad would love drinking from such a special cup. Pair the cup with his favorite grind or brew for a gift he will love.

 

Rustic Dad Mug  by MaidofClay

Etched Pint Glass by ScissorMill

3. Personalized iPhone Case.... Your dad will love to answer his phone when he gets chance to see his loved ones everytime his phone rings. Make this gift extra special by adding an iTunes store gift certificate so he can add his favorite tunes to his phone.

Personalized iPhone Case by ToGildTheLily

4. Gourmet Grilling Herbs & Branding Iron..... Is your dad a BBQ guru? If so he will love to receive some herbs and spices to make his reciepes come to life. Add in a branding iron with his initials to eve eryone will know which steaks (or veggies)  he cooked. To make this gift extra special add in a certificate to whole foods where he can get some fantastic free range meat or organic veggies to throw on the grill.

Naturally Grown BBQ herbs by spiceoflifeak

Branding Iron Letter N by ReedsBlacksmithShop

5. Natural Soaps & Lotions.... If your dad is the type that would appreciate his own products just for him in the bath then here is a set created just for men that he would love.  From soap to aftershave he will have everything he needs to look his best.

Fathers Day Jet Setter Kit by SamsNatural

Fathers Day Blue Collar Kit by SamsNatural 

Nascar... not eco friendly, but it is Dad friendly... so how to make an non-ecofriendly event "friendly"

So Yesterday was Father's day. This year for fathers day my mom got my Father tickets to NASCAR!! Wow.. and like just about every red-blooded American male my father was thrilled. For him what could be better than watching cars race at high speeds and lots of collisions.... For me, however, NASCAR does not hold that same thrill and exictement. Not to mention the gallons and gallons of petroleum that are used so a bunch of men can drive in circles at high speeds for several hours =( Not very nice to mother nature. This however was for my father, so I resigned if I was going to go to watch a NASCAR race I was going to make every thing else about the day as Eco-friendly as possible. So I wanted to share with you 5 things that I did to try and make the best of a NASCAR fathers day =)

#1 Carpool: by picking up my sister and then meeting the rest of the family to all carpool together we were able to save gas and reduce our carbon emissions =) A good first step!

#2 BYOB H2O: By bringing our own water (in a reusable water bottle!) we were able to save $$ by not purchasing 5 dollar bottles there, but also not create waste from those empty plastic bottles. =)

#3 BYOB food: Our family also made our sandwiches ahead of time from yummy organic ingredients that we had at home. We also brought fresh fruit to munch on that I had bought on Saturday from the Farmer's Market. =) By bringing our own organic foods, not only did we eat healthier and have more delicious foods than was being sold at the racetrack, but we were able to reduce the waste that we created by packaging our food in reusable containers!

#4 Walk: Instead of taking a shuttle to the other side of the racetrack to get to our seats we walked. Good for the heart & planet earth. Also reduces the need for gym excursions =)

#5 Up-cycled fathers Day present: Getting presents that people love and that are sustainable has to be one of the most difficult tasks for me. I want people to like their present and not feel like I am trying to force my belief in a sustainable lifestyle onto them. This year however I found the perfect gift for my dad! He collects reptile figurines so at a Whole Earth Festival I saw these awesome statues made from old bike chains! Perfect, recycled and sure to please Dad! The guy who makes these has many different kinds of statues so if this is the kind of thing you think your Father, brother, boyfriend, or anyone really would like go check out his site.... metal souls. I also used recycled paper to wrap Dad's present. Dad was really pleased with his new lizard =)