This Planet Detroit gift guide was sourced exclusively by our readers!
The holiday season can be the most wonderful time of year. It can also be the most wasteful. From Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day, our wrapping materials, disposable party supplies, food scraps and other tossables create an additional 25% of waste each year.
But when you’re already stressed, making sure you’ve got a present for everyone on your list — not to mention the decorating, cleaning, cooking and traveling — tracking down sustainable gifts can add to your mental load.
We’re here to help.
Planet Detroit called on our community to gather holiday gift ideas that are sustainably produced or promote an eco-friendly lifestyle. And wow, did you respond. Scroll below for some of our favorite suggestions.
Fill your cup with handmade refillable from Walking Lightly
Pick up a handmade Pedrolino ceramic soap pump for $60 at Walking Lightly, a zero-waste store and refillery in Ferndale. The dispenser is crafted by Michigan-based ceramicist Debbie Carlos and comes recommended by owner Tessa Benziger. They ship solid sustainable items across the U.S., but locals can add on any of the refillable soaps or other personal care and home cleaning products the shop offers.
BONUS: If you shop there on December 8, Walking Lightly will donate 10% of your purchase toward Planet Detroit, so stop by and check out their other locally crafted or sustainable items, like these guided journals ($32) or 20-minute beeswax meditation candles ($30).
Hear more about the Walking Lightly from owner Tessa Benziger during our live webinar “Consumerism, Waste & the Holidays” on Dec. 2 at 1:30 p.m. Register now.
Planet Detroiter Chris Copacia also suggested checking out Refill Emporium, a refillery in St. Clair. (Thanks, Chris!)
Consider a countertop composting bin (and maybe some worms?)
Whether they’re an experienced composter or just getting started, a countertop compost bin is an easy way to collect food scraps. The folks at New Yorker Mag reviewed several options that range from $23 to $80.
The latter option calls for worms, which would run you an additional $28 from Uncle Jim’s Worm Farm.
Support a historic landmark with wheel-thrown rocks cup from Pewabic
If you’re looking for some artistry with your ceramics—and a lot of history—Detroit’s east side boasts one of the oldest continuous operating potteries in the country. Pewabic was founded in 1903 and still today features “vessel throwers” handcrafting individual vases, bowls and other items from clay.
You’ll notice it in the price tag — their rocks cup sells for $45 — but Pewabic’s Amanda Rogers said it’s designed to last a lifetime.
“We strive to make heirloom-quality ceramics that will last for generations in hopes that everyday moments like drinking your coffee or tea, or grabbing your favorite utensils while you cook are a bit more meaningful and grounded,” she wrote to Planet Detroit.
The studio was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1991.
Embrace reuse with reusable utensils (& other grub gear)
A bamboo utensil set is a staple in Planet Detroiter Kelly Wilson’s bag. She said she was gifted a set from Free the Ocean a few years ago, and now she packs them with her lunch and brings them to picnics or potlucks.
“I’ve even started taking it with me to conferences and other events where single-use plastics might be used,” Kelly wrote to Planet Detroit. “It’s been a good conversation starter too!”
Pewabic also sells a teak set in its store.
Other readers suggested cloth napkins or wipes or beeswax wraps.
Fill a bag at Arts & Scraps
The reused materials store and workshop lets you gather as much fabric, wood scraps and other recycled items as you can fit in a bag for $8. Smaller bags sell for $4.50. Either size can spark a child’s creativity for a fun family art-ivity (or possibly a moment of peace for the adults).
Hear more about Arts & Scraps from executive director Ang Adamiak during our live webinar “Consumerism, Waste & the Holidays” on Dec. 2 at 1:30 p.m. Register now.
Give the gift of ownership with Detroit People’s Food Co-Op membership
For a larger gift, give the gift of ownership with a $200 membership to this newly opened Black-led grocery store that pledges to bring “locally grown produce, groceries, baked goods, meats, fish, dairy, frozen foods, health and beauty items, beer and wine” to the Detroit community.
Shopping is open to the public, but members get to vote or even run for the board of directors, which can authorize payments to members during profitable years.
You can also opt to pay in monthly installments of $20.
Plant-dyed scrunchies from Rosemarine Textiles
This Detroit textiles studio uses plant materials to transform cloth into vibrant hues of red, yellow, sage and indigo. They sell pillows, table linens and hair accessories—their $30 silk scrunchies are listed as a best seller. But you can get the newly arrived organic cotton socks for $24.
Dive into more sustainable fashion
Founded in an apartment in Lafayette Park, Object Apparel also uses plants to dye its clothing, underwear and kids’ attire, which it says is made from organically grown fabric. And a few Planet Detroiters wrote in mentioning Mama Coo’s Boutique, a secondhand clothing store that sells a range of other unique items.
If you want to support our own Environmental and Public Health Reporter Isabelle Tavares, pair your gift of lasting fashion with an issue of Clearline Magazine, an environmental and sustainable textile publication. Isabelle serves as editor and is the one who suggested we include Object Apparel. She also recommended checking out the ArtClvb app to find local artists for one-of-a-kind gifts.
Give the gift of fresh locally grown food with a CSA box
Another bigger option, but mentioned a couple times by Planet Detroiters: A Community Supported Agriculture subscription can help your loved one skip a trip to the grocery store and avoid single-use packaging all while supporting local agriculture. A CSA box provides regular shares of locally grown and seasonal produce.
Recipients will have to wait until harvest time in late spring or early summer to receive their bounty, you can buy a subscription to gift them months of fresh fruits and vegetables.
Learn more at Keep Growing Detroit, City Commons or the Michigan CSA Network.
If you’re looking for something a little more “right now,” one reader suggested checking out Detroit-based produce delivery boxes from GoodPluck.
Focus on previously loved items
One Planet Detroiter shared the idea of checking Facebook for a Buy Nothing group in your community, where people offer up items for free, no money exchanged. People are welcome to post if they’re looking for a particular item, they said.
Dig dragonfruit (in heirloom seed form)
Sticking with the growing theme, Rachel Diem proposed visiting MIGardener for some heirloom seeds, meaning they haven’t been crossbred or modified. Each package costs around $2 to $4 and there are more than 750 varieties to choose from.
The shop just rolled out its 2025 catalog, including the newly added Martino’s Roma Tomato, Thai Chili Pepper, and you guessed it, dragonfruit. Its yellow dragonfruit seeds sold out quickly but white dragonfruit seeds are still available, so you may want to move fast on this one!
Embrace experiences
Some of our readers suggested skipping the tangible entirely and embracing the experiential. Here are a few activities to give with a gift card:
- Iyengar Yoga Detroit Collective in Hamtramck (recommended by Erin Shwago)
- A class at the Kitchen by Cooking with Que, “where vegans and meat eaters could coexist”
- A trip through your own city’s past with Detroit History Tours
- A special access tour through the Guardian Building
One Planet Detroit subscriber suggested making an advent calendar but with activities, such as a holiday scavenger hunt for kids.
Reader tip: Print a photo of the location or activity and wrap it in a box with a random object to weigh it down and keep them guessing.
Don’t go wrong with donations
Many Planet Detroiters suggested the gift of giving. Reader Dianne Patrick suggested Inside Out Literary Arts, Black to the Land Coalition, and Motown Museum.
You can also donate to Planet Detroit or give a gift donation in the name of a loved one.
But while donating to a nonprofit is meaningful, it can still leave you feeling empty-handed when it comes time to exchange gifts. Planet Detroiter Judith Sheldon suggested creating a handmade card detailing the impact of your contribution in their honor.
Want to take it a step further? Judith recommended setting up a post-holidays volunteer opportunity. “All they have to do is appear to enjoy meaningful volunteer labor that always generates such satisfaction, as well as laughs,” she said.