Five great sustainable gift ideas for Fathers Day

Yes I know I’m cutting it a little fine this year as Father’s Day is only a few days away this weekend but nonetheless here I am to hopefully inspire any last minute shoppers if you do celebrate the day by gift giving!

Fingers crossed the weather will be good on the day if you’re out and about for a walk, a trip to the beergarden, or just enjoying a bit of an alfresco lunch at home, but seeing as how we’re feeling the effects of the climate crisis currently here in the UK with this relentless heat it will hopefully be at the top of many people’s minds to adopt a more sustainable way of living. The fact that we haven’t really had any meaningful rain in the southwest for weeks doesn’t bode well for the summer as we’re not even halfway through June.

So Father’s Day and sustainability go hand in hand inside my head. Sustainable living and parenthood are tied together by the hopefully inherent desire to leave the world a better place than you found it for future generations.

It’s because of this that sustainable gifts have an element of uniqueness and thoughtfulness to them. It’s often true that Dad’s can be somewhat tricky to buy for, especially if you want to avoid the usual tropes of golf balls and socks! Saying that though socks do appear on this list but they’re not just any socks. So let’s crack on with my top five list!

Eco-friendly grooming products.

Unless your recipient is like me and has opted for a beard then they’ll no doubt be in contact with a razor and other shaving accoutrement throughout the average week. A plastic-free safety razor makes for such a lovely sustainable gift and one that will last for years and years, and would cost very little to keep on using. There’s an element of a learning curve switching from your regular plastic cartridge style razor to a safety one, but every customer who I’ve spoken to after buying and trying one says it’s the best shave they’ve ever had, high praise indeed!

Maybe you don’t want to go for the actual razor, but there’s a few lovely accessories to think about, from shaving bars that are plastic free and made from non-harmful ingredients. Vegan shaving brushes that look great and also help create a thick lather. Or maybe you’d rather leave the shaving but go for other selfcare items, natural deodorants, incredible smelling solid shower gels, and many more ideas. I don’t think that it’s just me who thinks that plastic free sustainable items have an inherent beauty and quality to them.

Reusable cups and bottles.

A mainstay of sustainable living these days, and a gift that will last for years and years. The most important thing here is to make sure they don’t already have one that they love so you don’t add to any cupboard clutter. Reducing plastic goes hand in hand with reducing consumption in general.

There’s some amazing options available to suit most looks. Plain, patterned, glass, steel, thermal, hopefully you’ll be able to find the perfect bottle or cup which will come in super handy during the ever increasing temperatures here in the UK.

Sustainable fashion and accessories.

We all knew that socks were going to feature at some point in this list, but not just any socks, bamboo socks that feel amazing, help keep your feet cool in this heat. My current favourite brand is Swole Panda. You can either shop direct with them or if you are local to Taunton the wonderful Alpha Clothing on St James street has a lot of the range in stock.

Sunglasses are another great call if you were able to go for a more expensive gift. Waterhaul make some lovely options from reclaimed ocean plastic, and there’s plenty of brands now making frames out of bamboo. I’ve had a pair from a company called ‘Fesh For Pandas’ for a few years and they’re still going strong, but I sadly can’t find their website anymore or details of where they’ve gone.

Organic and vegan snacks.

If your Dad is like my Dad he’ll be a bit partial to eating dates as a snack, and there’s many other great options too. Fruit and nut mixes, dried mango strips, all hopefully available from your local refill shop, like mine! You can check out refill.org.uk to find out where your nearest one is.

Alternatively if they have a bit more of a sweet tooth maybe some plant-based chocolate will do the trick and hit the spot! In the shop I stock a delicious range of chocolate bars made from oat milk from a great UK brand called H!P, and they just released a yummy crunchy orange flavour bar which is very tricky to make last!

Gift an experience.

Not all gifts need to be physical. Sometimes the best present we can give to someone is time. See if they want to go for a walk, grab a train to the seaside if there’s a beach nearby. Pick up a pair of cinema tickets and watch the latest Spiderman. Or stay in and have a movie night, pop some popcorn and watch their favourite movie, or one that you have great memories of sharing growing up.

So there we go, whether it’s a safety razor or a bar of plant-based chcocolate, a walk in the countryside or a new pair of bamboo socks there’s plenty of scope to give a sustainable gift this Father’s Day. Often the supermarkets have the upperhand over small independent shops when it comes to convenience, but they don’t always stack up when it comes to sustainability, or uniqueness and longevity.

I’d love to hear in the comments if you have any green gift ideas for this weekend, and I hope that I’ve inspired you to think sustainably!