How Pottery Can be Packaged in an Environmentally Friendly Way
Packaging breakable items using environmentally friendly packaging.
Traditionally plastic bubble wrap has been used to package breakable items especially if these are being sent in the post. However, there are effective ways of packaging delicate items such as handmade pottery, without the use of plastic packaging. Let’s explore how!
Innovative Packaging Products
Many new innovative packaging products are available such as loose fillers, made with biodegradable materials such as plant starch and shredded corrugated card. Paper and card packaging is also highly effective as well as being entirely recyclable and biodegradable. Many paper packaging products are also made from recycled paper.
Packaging pottery in paper and card packaging, top tips:
Use a strong box and paper filler
Packaging a delicate item in a strong box for sending in the post, is a great idea. When packing the box, paper filler can be used all around the item. Paper filler usually comes on a roll and can be ripped off, scrunched up and packed around pottery, much in the same way bubble wrap is used to cushion delicate items. It is important to completly fill the space around the delicate item so it doesn’t move around inside the box which could cause breakage. Using a smaller box as possible compared to the size of the item will help use less filler paper.
Double box
It’s also a great idea to put your first box inside another slightly larger box, again packing packing material around the first box. This means that any pressure put on the outside box during its time in the postal system will not squash the item inside. Again it’s important to pack filler paper around the primary box enough so that it doesn’t move around inside the second box.
Wrap in strong paper
The whole package can then be wrapped in strong brown paper which will keep it together and prevent it from opening, whilst the postal system.
Seal with a paper tape
Using paper tape which bonds to paper when wetted will ensure the package stays sealed until it reaches its destination. Paper tape can be made with vegetable starch-based glue so it’s vegan friendly. Using paper tape rather than plastic means that all of the packaging can be recycled and does not have to be separated first - much easier for the recipient of the parcel. The paper tape is also biodegradable if it does end up in landfill.
Vegan-friendly paper tape made with vegetable glue. This tape bonds with paper and card.
At Oxford Clay we use paper and card packaging to package our products for sending. Our product tags are printed with vegan-friendly inks and our product tags are tied with cotton string.
More ideas on making a pottery practice more eco-conscious can be found in these ebooks from Oxford Clay:
