September is the most popular birth month, according to a University of Virginia study and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data. With so many people born in September, you’re more than likely going to have to purchase a gift pretty soon – if you haven’t already. Get your debit cards ready and check out these five eco-friendly birthday gifts under $25 below.
For the coffee-lover
From a company focused on making mornings a bit greener, JOCO creates reusable, glass coffee cups that make drinking a caffeinated beverage both a fashion and environmental statement. The JOCO cup is made of non-porous glass, free of harsh chemicals and is microwave and dishwasher safe. The cup comes in 15 different colors ranging from black to lime and mint to strawberry pink. It also has three barista-approved sizes: 8 oz., 12 oz. and 16 oz.
If you want to make a thoughtful impression by giving the coffee lover in your life an affordable birthday gift, explore JOCO’s cups and its Well Said and Artist Series lines of travel cups. Prices start at $22.95.
For the artist-turned-gardener
Do you have someone in your life who loves to create art and who does a bit of gardening? Sprout World offers a unique set of pencils that give new life when they become too short to use. Non-GMO and pesticide-free, once you’re done writing or drawing you can plant the stub-of-a-pencil in soil with water and watch it grow into either basil, mint, sunflowers, lavender, sage, Forget-Me-Nots, cherry tomatoes or thyme.
A fun gift idea for kids or adults, the Sprout pencils start at $7.50. There is also a set of eight that has a variety of seedlings that costs $17.95.
For the workaholic
Embracing discovery, nutrition, movement, rest, mindfulness, connecting, resources and growth, Wellineux is a company that strives to help people live their best lives. Living your life to the fullest isn’t always easy, especially when there is work involved. Mindful Minutes by Willineux is a guide to developing and practicing mindfulness. With more than 30 techniques on easy-to-read notecards, Mindful Minutes gives instructions on building focus and mental strength in five minute or less.
Keeping calm and carrying on is one step closer with this thoughtful gift, and its inexpensive price makes it even better. Mindful Minutes costs about $12 ( listed as $15 Australian).
For the candle aficionado
Ms. Betty’s Original soy candles are the ideal gift for that special someone who loves candles and has a quick wit. Created from premium, all-natural soy and placed in reusable whiskey glasses (topped with a recycled paper dust cap), Ms. Betty’s candles are as green as they are sassy. For the sake of being family-friendly, we’ll leave the clever scent names for you to find. However, these candles come in a variety of scents ranging from oak moss and amber, to coconut and lime.
These candles are $18 and available for purchase on Etsy.
For the chocolate fiend
Unless you’re intolerant to lactose, caffeine or theobromine, chocolate is more than likely a close friend. Let’s face it: no matter if you can process all of chocolate’s ingredients, your friends or family probably can. So why not give it as a gift? With roots as the first Fairtrade chocolate brand in the United Kingdom, Divine Chocolate aims to create premium chocolate bars that positively impact the lives of cocoa farmers in Ghana.
For only $23.99, you can give the gift of chocolate with Divine’s Heart of Gold Gift Set. This set includes a rich 85 percent dark chocolate bar, a 70 percent dark chocolate with raspberries bar, a creamy white chocolate with strawberries bar and three smooth 70 percent dark chocolate snack bars.