Today, I want to talk about the most pertinent topic on everyone’s mind – the holidays.
Whether you observe an end-of-year holiday or not, it is very likely that your spending has gone up, and the trash associated with it. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that the amount of trash people produce goes upwards of 25% just over the holidays! Some of you, with the best intentions aim to recycle holiday items, but we all should know by now, very little that goes in your recycling bin can and will be recycled – just ending up in landfills overseas. I hope you keep reading because there may be things you’re doing that you didn’t think were earth-unfriendly but with just a few small tweaks, even you can bring in the new year on a greener note!
Holidays share of waste and my goal is to minimise as much as possible. My personal goal each year is to have a waste-free Christmas. I think this year our family’s experience is imperfect but it’s a start. So how did we do it?
I’ve raked through the Interwebs and talked to a few eco-experts to get some ideas.
Gifts & Gift Wrap
I am a sucker for beautifully wrapped gifts. However, it was only this year that it occurred to me that a lot of gift wrap is not recyclable. This article from the BBC explains that gift tags and paper often contain foil and glitter elements, which automatically make it impossible to recycle. A lot of fancy wrapping papers also contain plastic pieces and when its laminated into the plastic (the shiny look and feel) it’s a guarantee it will end up in the dump. Because of this, many recycling plants won’t take wrapping paper and, according to one study, about 108 million rolls get thrown away. When the bits of tape are left on, that is problematic too.
Before I go any further and sound like the Grinch, you should know I am a very artsy person, so here are some ways I’ve gotten around it:
- Use brown paper bags and get yourself some creative holiday stamps to decorate the bag and wrap gifts per usual.
- Go retro and use newspaper, music sheets, or fabrics such as hand towels or pillow cases (this is an especially fun one because it serves as a second gift!)
- Buy eco-friendly wrapping paper or fabrics. A few I like are: Etsy Happy Wrap, Re-wrapped, Paperchase and Brightstem. A lot of these can be found on Amazon too.
- Use twine or paper tape to seal your gifts
If you need some further inspiration, Glamour Magazine put some great pictures together.
** TIP – when sorting out your paper, keep a separate bag and rip off the chunks with tape and recycle the rest to make your local recycler’s life a bit easier!
This year, I have also opted to gift some of my closest friends and family members experiences rather than things. Research out of the University of Toronto, published in the Journal of Consumer Research, concludes that experiential gifts forge stronger relationships than things. This is especially salient with kids, when toys are quickly forgotten. Think of the emotional responses and memories you’ve made from great experience – the fear and awe of a safari trip, the high of a concert or pure bliss from a delicious meal. This will leave a longer lasting memory (and less of a carbon footprint!) than a material item. If you’re thinking of purchasing an experience for someone, here are some tips:
- Purchase through a local service provider and ask about flexibility of dates/times so that your recipient can use it when its most convenient for them
- Consider his/her hobbies; show how well you know and love by someone by supporting their interests or even a side hustle!
- Know a bit about their spending/transport habits – don’t pick something too far away, or that requires additional logistical considerations. Easier you can make it, the more it will be enjoyed.
This is probably easier with adults than with kids, but our family is making it a goal to give the gift of experience and things in the most environmentally friendly way possible .
Lastly, I just wanted to put a short spot out there for home-made gifts and gifts made by local artisans. The older I get, the more I appreciate them. I will not use this post to go over types in detail, as there are just SO many online and a simple search will get you there. However, I’ve ventured into making my own coffee scrub (seriously works, I made formula #5) and soaps. I don’t think there’s a better way to show someone you care than making something especially for them. If you purchase from small businesses and local artisans, you’re helping your community and forging better relationships. This year, I put out a call to friends and family on Facebook asking them to let me know if their personal business/side hustle (jewellery making, clothing, personal training, massages etc), I made it a goal to at least get 25% of my gifts local. I know many of you will be tempted to use your Amazon Prime count in the final hours (don’t worry I’ve been there too!) but as love is blind, as are we to the environmental cost of ecommerce. 165 billion packages are shipped each year (at least 5 billion through Prime), equating to over 1 billion trees. It’s one of many environmental issues we have and we need to take responsibility for reducing the impact packaging has on the environment.
Holiday Parties
Are you hosting a get-together this year? If so, there is a lot to consider. If it’s a small gathering, you may use your regular dishware and cutlery which is ideal. However, if you have a large party, you may itch to use disposable materials.
It’s better not to, but if you do, here are some options if you need it:
- Little Cherry Eco-Friendly party plates and cutlery
- Pretty Little Party Shop has just about everything you need!
- Loliware edible cups are amazing, it’s like a fruit roll-up!
- Eco-Friendly Straws for your cocktails
Also, what food are you serving at your party? Without spending too much time here talking about the myriad of issues around unsustainable livestock/farming practices, the most obvious suggestion here is to buy from a local farm/butcher committed to sustainable practices. I am impartial to seafood, but I am struggling to eat it knowing that fishing gear is making up 46% of the waste pile of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.
I love farmers markets with a great passion. A quick Google search for farmers markets in your area should get you to some great options. Of course, once you find one and go, don’t forget your reusable bags!
Also, when your guests arrive, make sure to set up at least refuge bags – one for trash and one for recycling. Your garbage man/woman will thank you.
Decorations
This is probably the hardest one to tackle. It seems like just about every holiday decoration item is made of crap that will last centuries beyond us, and not in a good way!
For starters, here’s my no-no list for decorations:
- Tinsel – this is completely and utterly non-recyclable, so please don’t do it. RecycleNow has outlined a few items here for further consideration.
- Plastic/Glittery Ornaments (Tree and stand-alone) – just dont do it. They break easily and nothing can be done with them
- Pre-made Party Poppers – this one was hard to let go. I love these things; but the little gifts inside them, almost no one keeps. They are wasteful as is the popper itself, which is typically made of non-recyclable material. Note there are a lot of DIY options online that use balloons and other non-reusable materials that just seem like a complete waste (you’ll end up spending more time to just create more waste?). Check out this eco-friendly DIYer. If you do it, hold the glitter and confetti please!
My home is minimalist in design and decor. I’ve just put lots of branches, pine cones, candles and holly around the place to spruce it up, but I can’t afford much more than that and that’s a good thing. You don’t need to literally deck the halls to celebrate the holidays.
Now let’s talk about trees! The debate on which type of tree is the most eco-friendly is an often-discussed topic this time of the year. In most of my research online, people argue that a potted tree is the best choice. You treat your tree like a regular plant and you move it to your garden after the holidays or donate to a local park (if they take them) or send them a recycling center to turn into mulch.
In London where we live, there seems to be a lot of tree cycling services, which provide mulching service right after holidays. I would have loved to buy a real tree this year, but we have a small flat with little space, so what to do?
For starters, I used to think artificial trees were the best option, after all I could use them year after year. To some extent this is a good thing (we should all keep reusing) but we do eventually discard such trees. Additionally, when its artificial pines flake off, they go straight to the trash. These trees are made of chemicals like PVC and sometimes lead. They are not recyclable and end up in landfills where they sit for years.
So what are some greener ideas for Christmas trees? Here’s a shortlist of some alternatives that are green, super chic and non-traditional (if you want to go that route!)
- Hanging Christmas Bulb Tree This is a super cool, ultra modern take on a tree. It floats and its beautiful. Only con if you get new ornaments, not sure how you’d add them to it (you may have to make a new one each year to incorporate new ornaments). However, if you want to create something unique, this is a great option.
- Stick Christmas Tree This is the tree of choice for our family this year. It’s an eco-friendly alternative helps you clean your yard and celebrate the holidays at the same time! I bought mine online, as I don’t have a yard to get raw materials, but I love the idea of making this. All you have to do is grab a few sticks, stack from from short to long and attach to some rope using a staple gun. Use your regular lights, popcorn on a string or any other decorations of choice and voila! It’s also a great space saver!
- Ladder Christmas Tree I saw this online and fell in love with the idea. We don’t have one but if we did, I would do this in a heartbeat. I love that they repurposed a ladder for a tree. The added bonus is you can stack your gifts under it. Gorgeous, right?
- Strand of Lights Tree I did this one year when we were living in the US and had our dog and two cats with us, and it was absolutely perfect. This space-saving and pet-proof “tree” will get you in the holiday spirit. All you need is a string of lights and either bits of tape or command wall anchors. You just place the anchors strategically to create an outline of a tree.
These are just a few of the greener things we’ve incorporated into our holiday celebrations this year. I hope these inspire you to try them too! There are also these great books to check out if you want to dig further:
- I’m Dreaming of a Green Christmas: Gifts, Decorations, and Recipes that Use Less and Mean More
- Green Christmas: How To Have A Joyous, Eco-Friendly Holiday Season
- A Greener Christmas
If you have any ideas or suggestions, definitely shout them out to us!
