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Thursday 14th December 2017

Greener Christmas

 I’m dreaming of a greener Christmas…

Christmas has turned into a time of mass consumerism, greed and WASTE! But it doesn’t have to be that way; with just a little effort we can restore the magic of the festive season without the looming guilt over our eco-conscious. I’ve split this blog post into two parts; firstly my top 5 zero waste tips for the festive season and secondly my top 10 zero waste gift ideas.

 

Zero waste tips for the festive season:
1) Re-think how you wrap it! You don’t need to buy rolls and rolls of brand new wrapping paper (often wrapped in plastic itself) to cover the presents under the tree;
• You can use fabric to wrap in the fushimi style (think origami for gifts!)
• You can use newspaper and decorate with fabric ribbons.
• If you use ‘Who Gives A Crap’ toilet roll, save the paper cases and use their funky designs as a wrapping alternative.
2) Re-think Christmas cards. You can either skip these completely or if you have family members who really cherish your written words, do we what we did last year and purchase Christmas postcards. These can often be bought loose so you skip the plastic wrap and it also emits the need for an envelope.
3) Re-think decorations; making fabric bunting is a wonderful way to add decoration to your home. It can be used year after year and even passed down through generations. Accessorizing with seasonal foliage such as pinecones, holly and mistletoe is another beautiful way to decorate without creating waste, just simply add to your garden compost when Christmas is over.
4) Everyone likes to indulge in sweet treats over the festive season and these normally come with a lot of plastic packaging. Put on your apron and bake from scratch this Christmas. Cooking your own involves less plastic, is healthier and is a meaningful past time that can even be given out as gifts.
5) Often a subject for debate on zero waste forums is real tree vs fake tree? We would strongly urge you to use a real tree as the plastic ones are toxic to produce, (often made in China too, so are heavy on travel miles) and not recyclable. When buying a real tree opt for locally grown and choose potted if available. We have dear friends of ours who have been using the same tree for several years now, each time replanting it in the ground and digging it out again the following year. We tried this ourselves last year but due to the garden we had at the time, it didn’t survive sadly. We hope to have better luck this year! Of course you can skip the tree altogether and get creative, a little search on Pinterest and you’ll come across some fun ideas such as a tree of books or drift wood trees.


At the back of the shop we have a ‘zero waste lifestyle’ section where we stock items that make living plastic-free a little easier. Below I’ve written our top 10 items that would work wonderfully as gifts this Christmas;

1) Bamboo Cutlery
2) Keep-cup
3) Lunch Tiffin
4) Thermos Hot or Cold Flask
5) Loose Leaf Tea and Tea Caddy
6) Shampoo Bar
7) Stainless Steel Razor
8) Wooden Hairbrush with Replaceable Pins
9) Build-Your-Own Jar (come in and fill your mason jar with layers of goodies such as chocolate almonds, choc drops and toasted coconut- yum!)
10) The Gift of Zero Waste Shopping; our very own gift vouchers to spend at Earth.Food.Love!

          

Whatever stage you’re at in your quest for zero waste, there is a way that you can make your Christmas greener and cleaner this year.

Warm winter wishes to you all, Happy Christmas xxx