How to have a sustainable Christmas

1. Use reusables when hosting

I’ve been to a few too many parties and gatherings where the food is served on single-use plates with plastic cups to drink from. Sure, it’s convenient. It’s so much easier hosting a large group to have everyone throw their dishes away at the end.

But it’s also so wasteful. Not just for the environment but also for your money. If you have a dishwasher, make sure it’s empty before guests arrive so you can quickly clean up. If you don’t have one, enlist a friend to help you wash them after. It truly doesn’t take as long as you think, it’s a nice place to have a conversation and it helps the planet out big time.

Read more on how to host a low-waste party here.

2. Gift ethically and sustainably

While it’s also convenient to fill your Amazon cart and be done shopping, most gifts end up in a landfill. This year, give something meaningful that won’t harm the planet or the people who made it. I have a few gift guides on the blog already for everyone on your list, check them out here!

3. Wrap your presents sustainably

Did you know that wrapping paper isn’t recyclable? And even if you get recyclable wrapping paper, when you throw it in your bin the recycling plant is more likely than not to think it’s not recyclable and it will get trashed anyway. It’s a flawed system.

Some quick sustainable gift-wrapping ideas are:

• Reusable gift boxes
• Reusable gift bags
• Furoshiki fabric wrapping
• Brown paper bags
• Brown paper wrapping

Read my full guide to sustainable gift wrapping here.

4. Decor

Decor is always tricky when it comes to the Holidays. Most advice would be to not buy holiday decor. But I think I’m an environmentalist on the opposite side. Most decor you can find at the store is reusable. As long as you’re investing in holiday decor that you like and will use year after year, it’s sustainable!

My other tips would be to make decor, use natural elements and buy sustainably when you can!

Read: Are real or fake Christmas trees more sustainable?

Read: Zero waste Christmas decor

There you have it! Having a wasteful Christmas doesn’t have to be the default. Just like having a sustainable Christmas doesn’t have to be hard or expensive.

I hope this post helped give you a stepping stone to a more sustainable Christmas and holiday season! Please don’t forget to share this post and follow me on Instagram for daily low waste living inspo!