Save Time, Save Money, Save the Planet

When packaging and shipping items, whether for business or to ship holiday or special occasion gifts, don't spend more on the packaging and shipping than you spent on the gift, or pay more than the item is worth! There are tons of ways to get good quality packing and shipping supplies, and spend little or even no money. And when you reuse what you already have, it is great for the environment too!

Boxes:
One of the very best places to get boxes is at the Wal-Mart Supercenter around the time they are stocking the shelves, normally between the hours 8pm and 10 pm. You can get large boxes or even the very smallest ones from the shipments of gum and mints. These are particularly handy for small items, from votives, to bars of soap. I have been told that you can also get great boxes at Dollar General Stores and grocery stores. There are any number of good places that you can get them. Most places will be more than happy to give them to you.

Wrapping and Packing Materials:

Wrapping-
There are steps to follow to make sure that your items to be shipped are well protected, and you can buy materials suited to that purpose. But, why would you want to spend your hard-earned cash, buying materials when you probably have the best materials already on hand.

The first thing you should do is wrap the item or items that you are shipping. There are lots of things you can use to wrap and cushion your items. Try to refrain from using newspaper to wrap things; it tends to leave the yucky black ink behind. (See more about that below).

If you have just a few things, grab some paper towels and wrap a couple of them around the item and secure it with tape. Or if you recently received a gift with tissue paper wrapping, then save that and use it for wrapping small items. A small white trash bag will work great too, wind it around and around the item and again secure it with tape.

But if you do not have the above, or if you have a lot of things to wrap and ship, I have found that the very best wrapping material is something that I get a lot of, about once a week, or sometimes even more often; plastic bags from the grocery store. These things will work great! You can wrap anything with these. And if you are like me, you get more of them than you can ever use. If you do get too many, instead of taking them back to the store and tossing them in THEIR recycle bin, give them to a small business owner who can use them for shipping. They will be getting reused and you never know, maybe the business owner will be grateful and give you some freebies or discounts!

Save and reuse the bubble wrap that you got in a shipment of your own. A lot of companies use it and if you recently ordered something fragile by mail, then save the bubble wrap and use it for your own shipping.

Packing-
Now you have to pack everything to keep it safe. Try to envision what the box will go thru in its journey to its destination and plan for that. It WILL get tossed around, kicked, thrown, you name it. So you need to pack it well.

Again if you ordered something fragile recently, not only was it probably wrapped in bubble wrap, chances are the box was filled with packing peanuts or foam pieces. Don't throw those away. They are bad for the environment because they do not biodegrade. So use them for your shipments, or give them away to someone who can. You are doing your part for the planet and saving a bundle in the process either for yourself, or for some small business owner, who again, may just be grateful enough to give you some great freebies!

Another way to get great packing material is to invest in a shredder. Now this might be more economic for business, but if you can find a used one or get one on sale, then you should, even for home use. When you are not using it to ship gifts etc. then use it to shred things that have important information on them, before tossing them in the trash. Shred things such as old bank statements (you need to keep them for at least 6 years before you decide to toss them), credit card statements, pre-approved credit offers, or even books of checks if you close the account and need to dispose of leftovers. I was looking thru an office supply sale flyer and found a small personal shredder for just $14. So you will not be out much, no matter what you use it for. If you plan to shred for packing material then you can use just about anything. Again you can use newspapers(more below), or you can use junk mail, the kid's old school papers, and the list goes on and on. All this makes great packing material for just about anything.

Newspapers do make great packing material, but they do tend to leave that black ink behind on everything. Save it to fill the box after you have wrapped each item that you intend to ship. Wad it up into tight balls and pack them tightly into each corner and around the items you are shipping. They provide great cushion. But use something else for wrapping the items themselves.

Save the wrapping paper that you were given on a gift. Small amounts are great for wrapping items and large amounts work great as packing. Again pack balls of the paper tightly into the corners of your box, or around the items that you have already wrapped to provide cushion.

If you want to REALLY go economical and planet friendly then use popcorn! Yes, I said POPCORN! It is just as good a material as packing peanuts, it doesn't cost much, and it is 100% biodegradable! Of course, you want to get the "real" kind that you have to have a popper for, you want to air pop it (no butter oil or salt!), and you have to pop a lot of it. But it IS a great alternative to foam peanuts. Once your recipient has opened the box, then they can scatter the corn on the lawn to give the birds a great wintertime (or anytime) treat! The popped kernels can also be strung on thread and hung on a Christmas tree! If you don't want to just throw it in the box, then fill small plastic, zip top bags with it, and tuck those in around your items.

Shipping:
Once you have filled the box, then you need to close it up. Invest in a good packing tape, clear is the best. You can seal up your box, and use it to affix your label. If you are pressed for time, then weigh your package at home, use the USPS or UPS website to purchase postage and have your shipments picked up by your mail or UPS carrier. These services are free to use, and by having them come to you, they save you a lot of time!

Reusing, recycling, and finding ways to cut your money spent on packaging supplies is not only economical, but by reusing what you already have you are doing your part to help the planet! So the next time your mailbox is overflowing with junk mail, don’t despair! Stack it up, and use it the next time you need some great wrapping and packing supplies!

About the Author: Kandi Traxel is a WAHM and the owner of Misty Valley Botanicals-Bath & Body Products. http://mvbotanicals.com