With the need to cut down on the use of plastic bags, one of my current favorite ideas is to give good looking reusable shopping bags as gifts. They’re very practical yet something many people don’t own yet. They can be plain or have a bit more style to them.

Most people will want several if they’re going to use them. One is just rarely enough, unless the person lives alone.

A potential benefit to this gift is that it can also help the recipient save a bit of money. Some stores take a few cents off your total per bag of your own that you use. It’s a small incentive, in addition to suddenly being free of those pesky plastic bags, but still an incentive.

If the person you give them to seems to doubt their ability to remember their bags, suggest they just stay in the trunk of the car. That way the bags do at least make it to the store. It takes time to build new habits. Some women even prefer the super compact ones that can be kept inside a purse.

There’s a lot more than just reusable shopping bags available, however. You can get reusable wraps for sandwiches and other reusable lunch supplies, drink bottles, gift bags and more. Just about anything that encourages people to reuse the container rather than use a disposable one every time is a good idea.

And as I’ve mentioned before, reusable bags can be great gift bags, especially if you’re doing a sort of environmental theme in a gift.