Fun and laughter, mistletoe and wine. It’s such a wonderful time of the year! A wonderfully wasteful time of the year, unless you think carefully about making sure you’re keeping it conscious at Christmas.
The good news is that it’s not that hard to make it a zero-waste Christmas, and you can have a whole heap of fun in the process! Have you seen the fab stuff going on at the Brighton store this season? Pop in for plenty of eco-friendly Christmas spirit! But even if you’re not local to Brighton there’s heaps you can do to make your festive season zero-waste. Here are our top tips!
1) Get out your fabric bags!
We think really carefully about our packaging and each pair of dungarees, every hoodie and boilersuit comes carefully wrapped in a beautiful recycled fabric bag. And they make the perfect gift wrapping that is completely zero-waste. You can even use them as stockings this year. They’ll look gorgeous hung up in a row on Christmas eve!
There are more ideas about the best ways to wrap gifts here. One of our favourite suggestions is to hide presents rather than wrap them. A treasure hunt on Christmas morning is always going to go down well! Or brown paper and string or ribbons can look really classy as well as being better for the environment for conventional wrapping paper.
2) Buy local, and buy careful
Think carefully about how you’re going to source your food over the festive period. Plan each meal to make sure you only buy what you need. Then leave at least one meal unplanned; that’s the one to make using your leftovers. There are some delicious recipes for leftovers here.
If you can buy from local farm shops, or if that’s not possible there are loads of good online organic food providers that are worth checking out. Riverford and Abel and Cole are two I would recommend but there are lots of other options too. Sometimes a trip to the supermarket is unavoidable, but make sure you take your bags with you. Check out our zero-waste range to help make that easier.
3) Buy pre-loved
There are so many options for this now. Did you know you can buy online from Oxfam now? It’s super-satisfying to find a fantastic pre-loved bargain. You get heaps more for your money and you’re not adding to the pile in landfill. It’s win-win! It’s also a good option if you receive a gift that you’re not going to use. Don’t wait until August when it’s been shoved in the back of the cupboard and forgotten about. Take it straight down to your local charity shop. You’re saving on waste and giving a gift in perfect condition to someone else who can enjoy it.
4) Make the most of it
There’s no getting away from it. You’re almost certainly going to receive gifts in disposable wrapping paper and a pile of Christmas cards. So what can we do with it to make it a bit less wasteful? Check out these fabulous ideas.
Some of our favourites are to line shelves and the insides of cupboards, using wrapping paper for placemats and making bows to decorate next year’s presents. For instance, Christmas cards can become notepaper which could last for most of the year! Whilst we’d rather not receive mountains of wrapping paper and cards, the zero-waste mind sees what comes through the door as a resource and an opportunity. Just don’t throw it in the bin!
5) Make your own
This is one of the reasons we’ve loved our creative workshops in the Brighton store! They are all about using what we already have to make something new. And then you can give someone a fabulous and completely personal gift. And if you’re not feeling crafty, how about some delicious baked goods? Or even some handmade soap, a lavender bag or something funky to hang on the wall? There’s something really special about a homemade gift, not only because you’ve made it yourself but also because you can make it zero-waste too!
What are your top tips for a zero-waste Christmas? Let us know on Instagram and Facebook. We’d love to hear your ideas!