For all the little and big kids who are out of crafts and uninspired, organising mums wondering: ‘what should we give for Father's Day this year?’ And families with attics, sheds and garages full of single-use items, no worries: here is the list of the cutest sustainable Father's Day gifts.
This is how to celebrate a sustainable Father's Day
Aftershave or tools. And a bookmark crafted at school. That's what my father could do with on Father's Day in the 1990s. How nice for all fathers that nowadays there are many more original and also sustainable gifts to be found. Gifts that really help a father for many years. Below you will find a combination of thegreenlist.nl-favourites complemented by Father's Day gift ideas from followers. And what beautiful things there are among them! If this doesn't make fathers happy...
Boost the garden with bokashi
Chances are you really know how to surprise the gardening dad with bokashi. What is it? Bokashi is a Japanese technique for making a hugely nutrient-rich substance for your garden. You do this by fermenting your own kitchen and garden waste airtight in a special Bokashi bucket. You mix your chopped natural waste with a special bokashi starter, consisting of fermented wheat bran. After a week of fermentation, you can then drain off ‘juice’, which, diluted with water, you give to your plants. You put the solid material through the soil in the garden or in flower pots. It sounds a bit dirty, but because of the airtight bucket, you won't smell anything and no bugs will get on it. Something for green dads who like to experiment.
Environmentally friendly and healthy frying
Culinary dads probably don't make you happier than with beautiful and durable kitchen utensils. A good eco-friendly and healthy pan is then an excellent choice. It will give you years of pleasure, and in some cases even your whole life. But which one do you choose? Cast iron or stainless steel? Ceramic or enamel? Do you really want to gift your dad a good and green pan, then read along with this extensive search for the ideal pan.
Green shaving products from Werfzeep
For dads who want to look freshly shaven on a daily - or weekly - basis, there are lots of great sustainable shaving products these days. Yard soap makes handmade, organic soap that smells incredibly good. This is a great place to go for shaving dads. How about a vegan shaving brush (i.e. without badger hair!) and handmade earthenware shaving bowl filled with shaving soap? Also loose blocks of shaving soap are on sale here.
Smart water use with a sustainable rain barrel
Another gift tip for the gardening dad: a rain barrel. Very sustainable, because you waste (less) drinking water to water the plants. Moreover, rainwater is better for your plants because it contains less calcium and no chlorine. And it is completely free! Rain barrels come in all shapes, sizes and prices, made of plastic or wood. For dads who like a real eye-catcher in the garden, choose this rain barrel from Raintap or the sustainable brand Elho. Both of Dutch design and largely made from recycled plastic. Raintap has a handy tap on top and this is how you rinse your dirty hands clean. With rainwater of course, although there is also an option for an extra drinking water tap.
Oyster mushroom grow kit, rain barrel made from recycled materials and beer brewing kit from Brew Monkey are three sustainable gift ideas for Father's Day.
Give a nice pair of durable sunglasses
A father who already has everything? Or who doesn't know it well? You give those a pair of durable sunglasses. Sunglasses always come in handy and with hundreds of colours and shapes, there is something for every dad. The Dutch company Dick Moby makes sunglasses with a conscious approach. Their glasses are made of biodegradable and recycled materials. With so many shapes, colours and lenses, there really is something for every dad. Also Five2One-Eyewear offers Dutch design, with surprisingly affordable sunglasses made from litter. Each pair of glasses is made from five PET bottles, hence the name.
Grow your own oyster mushrooms
Do-it-yourself but not a fan of DIY? For these dads, choose an oyster mushroom grow kit from Fryslân Fungies. With this, your dad simply grows his own mushrooms on the kitchen counter. Coffee grounds and a bag of spawn go into the bucket, add a little moisture (regularly) and after a while the oyster mushrooms grow out through the walls. And then you can do it again, as you harvest two to three times. With the code GREENLIST10 Get 10% discount on a grow kit. Want to know more? Read the comprehensive review of this sustainable grow kit here.
Brewing your own IPA or Tripel
You can do even more yourself with this beer brewing kit from Brew Monkey. There is a basic package containing the tools, such as a fermentation bucket, tap and water lock, and the ingredients. You choose a package for light or dark beer, with a low or high alcohol content. Dads can then get to work themselves with the instruction and after a few weeks there will be about five litres of home-brewed beer. A dream for many dads, no doubt! If your dad is converted, he can also order separate ingredient packs afterwards, as the tools are reusable.
Homegrown beverages
A nice bottle of booze will appeal to most dads. Even nicer is a bottle of liquor from his own country, or even region! If you google a bit, chances are there is a distillery in your area. There you can often buy something on the spot (have a nice day out!), but liquor stores and online liquor shops are also selling more and more Dutch offerings. How about Dik & Schil Orangecello, made from - collected by cargo bike - orange peels from the Amsterdam hospitality industry. Or Bus Whisky, from one of the most sustainable whisky distilleries in the world, just in North Brabant. For dads for whom nothing is too crazy, choose Dutch Tulip Vodka from Clusius, made from organic tulip bulbs.
Idea for a sustainable gift for Father's Day: AM V vegan cookies and sustainable socks from Qnoop.
Even more sustainable Father's Day gifts
- Order them on time - because no mail on Sundays - and your dad will get delicious AM V vegan cookies on his doormat.
- Dads who like to be in the kitchen are bound to make you happy with tasty and good cooking oil. See which oil is the most sustainable here
- Or with a nice green cookbook, such as The Green Barbecue or Man.Eat.Plant.
- Few things to bring to the office? Give this handy MOYU zero waste notebook with erasable pages gift. Tip: with the discount code 10GREENLIST Get 10% discount on your MOYU purchase!
- Sustainable boxer shorts, you see them more and more. Great brands are Bamboo Basics, ARMEDANGELS, Saint Basics or A-dam.
- Already prepared for a cold winter and low thermostat with durable slippers. Check out the cutest sustainable slippers and slippers here
- Beautiful and cheerful socks from sustainable brands such as Dutch Qnoop or the Belgian Zokk'n.
- Put together a package of beers. Choose nice local beers, Rainbeer, made with rainwater or this Wasted beers, made from old bread, by people distanced from the labour market.
The most sustainable Father's Day gift: spend time together
Of course, a gift does not have to be handed over wrapped at all. Doing something together is still the best gift for many fathers. Adventurous dads will enjoy an afternoon of canoeing, supping, laser gaming, bouldering or discovering exciting cuisine with a cooking workshop. Culturally savvy dads will probably make you happy with a museum visit or a ticket to a concert or festival. And with the bon vivant - which probably includes all dads - go for a sustainable lunch; from fancy to veggie hot dogs and burgers.
Also a sustainable Father's Day gift tip?
Do you have any great gift ideas for dads that are still missing from this list? Via the contact and follow buttons at the bottom of this page, you can get in touch. And maybe you will find your sustainable Father's Day gift in the list soon!
More sustainable gift ideas from thegreenlist.nl
- Double durability: zero waste packing tips.
- For mothers: The list of the cutest Mother's Day gifts.
- For newborns: the list of the cutest maternity gifts.
- For colleagues: the list of the nicest gifts for a colleague.
- For a toddler: the list of the cutest gifts for a one-year-old.
Photo credits: main image: Angela de Vlaming, Qnoop & Cottonbro (Pexels), other: courtesy of the companies mentioned (see caption).
