4 simple ways to be more eco-conscious this festive season

Whilst Christmas is not celebrated by everyone, most can appreciate the season so often synonymised with gift-giving.

But how can you gift responsibly this year? Read on to find out some of my favourite ways to be eco-conscious over the festive season 🎄

1. Recyclable wrapping paper

As pretty as commercial wrapping paper is, it isn’t conducive to a zero-waste lifestyle. Much of it cannot be recycled, so no matter who you’re gifting to, you can guarantee the wrapping will end up going to landfill. You can, however, get some pretty nice looking recyclable paper – and for not much extra! Just look at this cute bee wrapping paper from WHSmith.

You also don’t need to spend extra for recyclable paper – if you’ve been shopping in places like Primark or Fatface, you can reuse their paper bags to create wrapping paper! Take a look at this cute instructional video posted by Fatface for inspiration.

2. Buy second-hand

Not everybody needs brand spanking new items for Christmas – and even if they did, chances are you can find a brand-new version of an item for slightly less on places like Facebook Marketplace.

The best place, though, to buy second-hand is your local charity shop. If the person you’re buying for loves reading, then definitely start at a charity shop – you can often find bestsellers and hidden gems for great prices, and even greater conditions. Plus, your money is going to a great cause.

3. Say no to plastic

Saying no to plastic can come in lots of ways – for one, you could use a real Christmas tree instead of a plastic one. Real trees (with intact roots) are great as you can replant them outside after the Christmas season – whilst plastic trees are often non-recyclable, so if you are going plastic, make sure it’s a tree that will last a good decade or so.

Another way is to ensure you don’t purchase toys or products made predominantly from plastic – wood is a good alternative, and sourcing Christmas crackers that are “fill your own” is great too – I’m sure you won’t miss all of the little plastic things like jump frogs that come within standard crackers.

4. Look at your food

How much food do you usually waste over the Christmas period? If you know you always end up throwing lots away at the end of the month, then now is the time to stop over-stocking. You can also look at where your food is from – maybe this year you could buy from your local butcher (though I would get those orders in quick!), or you could see the air miles from your supermarket purchase – how far away has this food come from?

For more tips on being sustainable at Christmas, check out these resources below ✨

🎁 WWF.org.uk 🎁 Woodlandtrust.org.uk 🎁 Kids Against Plastic 🎁 Which? 🎁