The Christmas season is a time full of choices. Dark chocolate or white? Latte or cappuccino? On the rocks or straight up?

For some the decision comes down to the color green —meaning money — and responsible ecological choices in the gift giving department.

The monetary choices include consideration to regift or not to regift. For the eco minded: which gifts to give and how to give them with the least impact on the environment.

According to Stanford University, Americans throw away 25 percent more trash between Thanksgiving and New Year's than any other time of year. The result is about 1 million extra tons of trash each week.

For Kimberly Donovan and her son Noah, making the right choices in the wrapping utilizes creativity and makes a positive impact on the environment.

"I don't buy wrapping paper or gift wrap trimming," said Donovan of Slippery Rock Township, Lawrence County. "Not only are they expensive, but they will end up in a landfill. What is most important is the gift you give," she said.

Donovan and her son have made gift boxes from materials like old wallpaper samples, calendar pictures and other used papers.

"I always reuse gift bags and wrapping paper," she said. "I pretty them up and cover the wear marks with pictures from old greeting cards," she said, explaining her greeting cards are also reused as gift tags. Her greeting cards have also become gift card boxes after learning the craft from a friend.

Sue Morrow of Butler began making boxes from greeting cards last year when she picked up a paper on it.

"I saw this flier and it told how to do it so I went home and got started," said Morrow, who estimates she has made more than 200 boxes. "It is fun to do and keeps you busy," she explained.

"I can't bear to throw the cards away so this is one way they can get a second life," she said. It was Morrow who taught the craft to Noah and his mother, who also creates gift bags.

"Making gift bags from fabric scraps is very easy to do by sewing three sides and using a ribbon to tie," Donovan explained.

If Donovan is giving a gift in a shirt box, a gift bag isn't necessary. Instead, she glues a few greeting cards onto the box and then ties it all with a ribbon.

"We save wrapping paper, tissue paper, gift bags, boxes, ribbon, gift tags and cards and put it all in a box — and when it comes wrapping time, (we) figure out what will work for that package or item," she said.

"Granted, the packages are not as elegant or perfect looking but they are definitely more creative and imaginative," said Donovan.

The Donovans also use this philosophy when shopping for presents. "We often give consumables or things that we make. Gift cards, tickets to events are all things that reduce clutter and are gentle on the environment," said Donovan, who also noted these items are small and take less wrapping than bigger items.

Giving Back

Ever since the term "regifting" was made popular by a "Seinfeld" television episode in 1995, what once was done in private has become a way of life, and not a bad way to save money.

Regifting is when the giver recycles a gift they have received by passing it on to someone else. Hopefully not the original giver.

"I don't think it's considered a re-gift, but for my birthday, my friend Serena found a CD on the floor at work and gave it to me. I could tell something was fishy because it was a band I never heard of before," said Becky Merchant of Zelienople, who was not offended and understands the regifting phenomenon well.

"Usually people regift when they are crunched for time," she said. "A friend's birthday is coming up and they gave you something last year for yours, so you feel obligated.

"That is when you say to your roommate or family, 'What do you have that you don't want anymore that looks new?'"

"If you're lucky, you may actually find something useful for the person. But nine times out of 10, that person will end up with a reject gift and pass it on to the next sucker," she said.

Merchant said she once searched through her perfume collection, picking out the fullest bottle and topping it off with water for a last minute gift.

Serena Serafin, also of Zelienople, said she comes from a long line of regifters. Now outed, her practice will be less covert, but Serafin said she has always been an honest regifter.

"Many times I buy something for myself and don't use it. After a few months go by and it remains untouched, I figure it would make a decent present. Plus, it's a lot easier recycling it to someone else rather than returning it to a store."

"The goal of regifting is to get away with the sly transfer of unwanted goods," she explained. "But if someone catches on, I usually tell them, if they are a part of my immediate family at least," she confessed.

As a regifter, Serafin said she is savvy at knowing when she's been regifted. "My entire birthday this year was regifted from my mom," she said.

"I can always tell because the presents are strange and I usually wouldn't want them, such as scented soaps and shirts that aren't even close to my size."

Serafin said she regifts just about anything as a way to save money and avoid clutter.

"Underwear or something with my name on it, I wouldn't regift, but other than that — everything else is fair game," she said.

Serafin claims she hasn't ever regifted to the original gifter, but others have. Their tales are told on a Web site dedicate to the practice of regifting at http://regiftable.com.

The white elephant exchanges may become extinct in light of regifting growing in shameless popularity.

Christmas cards and wrapping paper are among the holiday disposables that can often be used more efficiently.Here are some suggestions:<b>Christmas Cards</b>• Bookmarks — Create unique bookmarks with pictures cut from old greeting cards.• Gift Tags — Be prepared with homemade gift tags for next Christmas.• Place Mats — Decorate place mats to give as gifts or decorate your table.• Storage Box — Use folding techniques to create boxes for gift cards.• Postcards — Fronts as postcards and write your holiday message on the back• Scrapbooking — Cut out the shapes or verse and use for scrapbooking• Sewing Cards — Hole punch all front of card children use red or green yarn to weave around the card• Ornaments — trim around photos and trace them with glitter glue punch a hole and hang on tree.<b>Wrapping paper</b>• Cardboard Tubes — Stuff your small gifts in empty paper towel rolls and mailing tubes.• Lunch Bags — Fold down top of lunch bag. Punch two holes and tie with ribbon.• Kid's Art — Children's artwork to wrap packages for grandparents and other relatives who will consider wrapping as cherished as the gift.• Recycled Maps — Out dated or obsolete Maps are large enough for big gifts.• Recycled Balloons — Deflated mylar balloons can be used to wrap up small packages.• Media — Sunday comics, magazines• Reuse — Gift bags, gift wrap, bows and ribbons• Music — Wrap CDs or music items in old sheet music.• Top it off — Use silk flowers or reusable hair ribbons instead of plastic bows to top off a gift.• Popcorn — Pack fragile items in real popping corn, which can be reused to feed the birds.——————Don't forget to recycle your tree. Butler County has Christmas tree recycling through January 31. It is located at the Morton Avenue Ext. across from the entrance to Sunnyview. Donations must be completely free of all decorations, tinsel and flocking. For more details, call 724-284-5035.