The annual holiday gift-giving season does not have to end with carting trash bags twice your size filled with discarded wrapping paper.

Whether you want to reduce your carbon footprint or have your presents to stand out underneath the tree, here are a few eco-friendly gift wrapping ideas to make your holiday less wasteful and more creative.

According to Recycle Works, a San Mateo environmental program, over four million tons of trash from gift-wrap and shopping bags is produced during the holiday season. In fact, half of the paper America consumes is used to wrap and decorate consumer products. Single-use paper gift wrapping is not just prodigal. It can also be expensive. And who ever said you need to use paper? Look around your house for alternative containers and spare fabric like scarves and fabrics. You would be surprised by what you can use.

1. Kraft paper – A strong bark-colored paper produced from pulp, Kraft paper has been used for years as a cheap and alternative gift-wrapping paper–a staple in eco-friendly gift-giving.

2. Shopping bags – With an influx of paper bags making their way to stores due to their strength and versatility, reusable brown bags can be a green and novel way to package gifts. At first, it is necessary to cut through the affixed edges of the bag in order to open it into a flat, usable sheet of paper. From there, you can decide which colorful images or blocks of text to decorate with. Overlapping designs using extra paper can add to both creativity and resilience if the gift will be handled roughly before it is received.

3. Embellished fabric – See that old T-shirt? That plain scarf you never really liked? Cut a square piece with just enough fabric to cover the box, with around two inches of excess. Using a pencil, trace your own design over the fabric. Now, using a Glitter Bond pen (available at Walmart, Target, and craft stores), carefully go over the design. Voila! Instant revamp. Using a hair tie, ribbon, or raffia, gather the fabric and tie a bow at the top to complete your project.

4. Dish towel gift wrap – In Japan, traditional cloths are used to wrap gifts and other items like bento boxes in an innovative style called Furoshiki. There are millions of Furoshiki styles that have developed throughout the years, but the easiest ways are the Otsukai Tsutsumi (Basic Carry Wrap) and Yatsu Musubi (The Wrap.)

• Otsukai Tsutsumi: Place a square piece of fabric so that the decorated side is face-down. The fabric should be rotated 90 degrees with one of the points facing towards your body. Place the box that will be wrapped in the middle. Next, fold the top corner of the fabric over the box; this will keep the present in place and prevent it from shifting. Fold the bottom corner of the fabric over the last fold and the box. The fold over the box should be made as tightly as possible. (Be sure not to pull too hard!) Let the bottom corner flop over the box, but do not tuck it in. Fold the left and then the right corners of the fabric across the box. Finally, tie the left and right corners fairly tightly, but leave a bit of leeway and knot the two corners together. The knot should be tight enough to prevent the present from falling out on its own but loose enough to untie it when needed.

• Yotsu Musubi: Placing the package in the middle of a diamond, tie two opposite corners together over the middle. The cloth should already be covering the items. Now, pull across the other two corners to meet together and tie. For more help and alternative styles, visit the Japanese government’s handy guide on How to use Furoshiki.

6. Map wrap – For the wanderlust in every guest, use an old map to wrap your presents.

7. Newspaper – Out of regular wrapping paper? Old newspaper can be a go-to resource for a simple yet elegant way to wrap boxed presents. A good idea would be to double up on the sheets of paper, as newspaper is traditionally thin and prone to rips. After it is covered, embellishments such as ribbons, bows, and even decorative tape can be used to further adorn the gift.