Waste at Christmas is about 25% higher than the rest of the year. Therefore, this is certainly a time to evaluate what we are purchasing and how to make more sustainable choices. Here are our six best hacks for an eco-friendly Christmas.
How To Have a Sustainable Christmas
Plan Plan Plan
If you don’t plan, you plan to fail. And getting started early and thinking about ways to reduce your impact on the planet during a consumer-heavy time, such as Christmas, is a great way to find eco-friendly solutions.
The good news is that since you are reading this sustainable Christmas hacks blog post, you are likely already discovering new ways to reduce your impact this holiday season!
Reusable Gift Wrapping
We collectively wasted 227,000 miles of wrapping paper! That’s about enough to get from Earth to the moon. Luckily there is a solution.
Of course, you can always save wrapping paper from your own gifts throughout the year to reuse at Christmas.
However, a more creative solution is using reusable wrapping, like Furoshiki Gift Wrap or reusable gift bags. The Good Lane has even partnered with Your Green Home to give you access to their 100% organic cotton gift bags.
Gift your loved one reusable wrapping with their present, and they can use the cloth again when they gift something to another person.
Shop Your Stash
Ok, for this sustainable Christmas idea, we aren’t talking about packing up that scarf from aunty Susie in the back of your wardrobe that you never wear and passing it off as a secret Santa gift.
But we do think sustainability is as much about reusing what you already have as it is about buying eco-friendly choices. So next time you have an invite for a work party or a family Christmas dinner, see if there’s anything you can wear from your wardrobe or borrow from a friend to avoid purchasing something new.
Buy Second-Hand
Similar to the previous point about using things you already own, why not shop second-hand for things you need during the holidays? You might be surprised by what you can pick up on sites such as:
- eBay
- Facebook Marketplace
- Poshmark
- Depop
- Vinted
These second-hand sites give items a new lease of life. For example, you can buy your new work drinks dress, some extra Christmas ornaments to replace the ones the dog broke last year, and you can even find brand new or vintage items to use as gifts!
Give Your Time
This year it’s time to quit searching the internet for ‘presents for a dad that has everything’ or scouring the shops for your fussy sister and thinking ‘will she even use this?’. Instead, this year you can gift your time.
Everyone could do with a helping hand, but they may not always feel they can ask for it. So why not gift your friends and family your time while sorting out odd jobs for them, reorganising their pantry, cleaning their house while they are out at work or offering to babysit for a day to give tired parents a chance to spend time with each other or themselves?
Gift Experiences
If you read the previous ideas and thought, ‘how can I give my time? I am busy enough as it is!’ Don’t worry - Another great idea is to gift experiences.
Think about something your loved ones enjoy doing or want to try out. Then find a voucher to send them off on an adventure. Not only is this a more sustainable choice, but it is also a more memorable gift.
Experience ideas:
- Cooking schools
- Adventure sports, such as indoor skydiving
- Museum tickets
- Spa days or beauty treatments - you can’t go wrong with a massage for anyone who seems stressed or works at a desk!
(And selfishly, if you send them a voucher for an afternoon tea for two, there’s always a chance they will take you as their plus one, haha.)
Food Sustainability Practices
66% of people admit to overbuying food during the Holidays. Therefore, if your goal is to be more sustainable, the best thing you can do is only to buy food you can actually eat before it goes bad. If you find that your fridge is becoming too full, try and prepare meals, sauces, soups or desserts that can be frozen for later in the month or the next year.
Having an eco-friendly Christmas doesn’t need to be complicated and little changes add up! Hopefully this list gives you a few ideas for a sustainably minded Christmas season!
