A greener Christmas

Well, it’s November (how did it come around so fast?!) and our thoughts are turning festive as we begin to plan for Christmas. Whilst it can be a lot of fun, the festive season can be costly for us and the planet, but with a bit of planning we can make our celebrations greener and less expensive too.   

To help us think about how to reduce our festive footprint and save money for the important things we’ve divided our greener celebration tips into 5 chunks: gifts, foods, decorations, energy use and clothing.   

Greener gifting: 

• Instead of running yourself ragged trying to get a present for every member of the family or friendship group, why not organise a  Secret Santa gift group.  Instead of stressing about what to get multiple people you can focus on getting a gift your secret santa giftee will really treasure.  You’ll save everyone time and money as well as avoiding buying mountains of stuff – which is better for the planet.  If you’re ready to up your green credentials specify that all gifts have to be preloved or handmade.
• Take time to select gifts that will last, that the person really wants. Rather than buying more ‘clutter’ consider getting them a gift experience which won’t end up in landfill in a few weeks.   
• The festive season can be a difficult time for many so spare a thought for those who are struggling and consider donating to a charity such as the Samaritans, NSPCC, St Mungos or Crisis for a gift that will help make the world a better place for someone. 
• Most wrapping paper cannot be recycled and simply ends up in landfill, so look up how to use fabric as Furoshiki wrapping; see online for tutorials like this one from wraprecyclenow Alternatively use fabric gift bags; check out this video from Ash L G of how to make some super simple gift bags, or this one from the Bramble Patch. 
  
• Instead of sending mountains of greetings cards through the post why not send e-cards .  If you like to give a physical card, bear in mind that they cannot be recycled if they have foil or glitter on them. Consider instead sending reusable cards like e.g. https://greentings.co.uk/ or cards printed on seed paper like these from little green paper shop
• Consider giving gifts you have made yourself like bath bombs or hampers rather than gifts overpackaged in plastic.  It’s much more personal and better for the environment too.  There are loads of videos online to show you how to make things, or check out www.eventbrite.co.uk to see if there is a how-to event near you. If you don’t want to make the items yourself you can purchase handmade items from local shops or markets as well as online. 
• Buy local and preloved for gifts. By doing so you’ll be supporting the local economy as well as helping to reduce your environmental impact.  At this time of year there are lots of lovely local markets and Christmas fairs where you can pick up some wonderful and unique gifts. If you do your shopping online then try and source your purchases from British companies (like us) which make their products in the UK for a more sustainable option.  Check out facebook groups like https://www.facebook.com/groups/britishmade/ to find companies making some unique and sustainable products. 

Greener feasting:

• Plan meals so you don't buy too much.  Do some food preparation in advance when you are preparing pre-christmas meals. By making your own ready-roast potatoes, pre-prepared brussels etc. you’ll save yourself some time on the big day and save energy too.  We love the made in advance recipes and youtube videos from The Batch Lady (https://thebatchlady.com)
• Cutting  down on meat.   Meat has one of the biggest carbon footprints of all the food on our Christmas table and is super expensive too.  Cutting down on how much you eat or, even better,  switching to vegetarian options will do the planet and your wallet a huge favour.
• Buy wonky veg or a veg box (we love these from Oddbox  or Mr Brown’s Fresh Produce).  You’re chopping the veg up anyway so embrace the wonky ones and rejoice that veg boxes often use less plastic. 
• Grow your own fruit, veg and herbs.  Ok it’s too late to grow anything for this Christmas, but you could plan to grow for next year.  From a  few herbs to a whole veg plot, growing your own is eco friendly and rewarding, it’s a great activity for all the family to help you reconnect with your food.   
• Look out for local and handmade foods at farm shops or festive marketplaces to find some culinary treasures and support local businesses into the bargain!
• Love your leftovers! Using your leftovers to make new meals will save you money on your food bills and prevent waste from going to landfill/incineration.  Plus it can be really satisfying to create a meal out of ‘nothing’. Check out the Foods and Recipes section at https://www.lovefoodhatewaste.com/ it has a useful search function for recipe ideas for your leftovers by ingredient.    Freeze leftovers which you don’t want to use straight away and your festive food can be a useful bounty for months to come.  
• Use apps like Olio (https://olioapp.com/) which connects people in their local area enabling them to receive and share excess food (from local stores etc.) as well as non-food items.  
• Compost.  By composting at home or participating in a kerbside scheme you are saving food waste from landfill or incineration and producing a useful soil improver too.
  

Greener decorating:

• Make fun filled advent calendar rather than a commercial one- put a fun activity in for each day- e.g baking , making pine cone bird feeders, - Disconnected Energy will be sharing ours on our facebook page in December, so if you want some inspiration follow us. https://www.facebook.com/DisconnectedEnergy/.
• Use the decorations you already have: The most eco-friendly decorations are the ones you already own, even if they are plastic, don’t ditch them and get new ones until they are past their useful life.  But when it comes to buying new, opt for more sustainable, plastic free options, like wood, paper or metal (and avoid glitter as it is a microplastic). 
• Have a go at making your own sustainable decorations using natural materials like salt dough, dried oranges, popcorn or pine cones. Check out this article from  moralfibres.co.uk for some fabulous festive decoration inspiration. 
• See if you can rent a tree from a company near you or make a wooden one like this one made from a pallet.
• Make own crackers like these from Just fabrics  or these, no-sew ones from Melanie Lissack or make some nice surprise boxes for the table and fill with preloved or handmade gifts 

Energy saving: 

• Embrace the festive jumper and turn the thermostat down.  Also, if you are cooking and have extra people over to visit they’re all generating heat so you can dial down your central heating a bit more.
• Channel your tetris skills and make sure the dishwasher is fully loaded before you switch it on and use an eco setting if you have one.  
• Keep the lids on pans when you are using the hob as it saves energy and helps food cook faster.  
• Make sure your oven door is clean before the big day so that you don’t waste energy opening the door to check on the food.  We know, cleaning ovens is a job no-one enjoys, but it will save time and money when cooking festive fare.
• Switch to LED Christmas lights, which are much more efficient than old fashioned bulb lights, put them on a timer so they are only on when you need them. 
• If you can, for outdoor lighting use solar power, rather than electricity supplied by fossil fuels.  Many LED lights have an integrated  solar panel supplied, or  you can switch to a green tariff from your energy supplier.  Customers with an Ark are sitting pretty here as they have plenty of free electricity, generated on-site, to power their Christmas lighting extravaganza! However you power your outdoor lights though put them on a timer, perhaps just for a few hours from dusk.  You don’t want them on all night as they are a source of light pollution which is both detrimental to wildlife and obstructs the view of the night sky, which, particularly in winter, can be an awesome sight.  
• An easy one, but one we can often forget, switch off appliances at the plug when not using them, standby modes still drain power.  
• For lots more tips on how to reduce your energy use check out www.energysavingtrust.org.uk . 

Greener Clothing:

• Breathe new life into your wardrobe without spending a penny by swapping clothing items you no longer need with friends or relatives.  Throw in some seasonal drinks and you’ve got a sustainable fashion swap party to kick off the festive party season!
• If you “need” an item you don’t have, or a different size, buy it secondhand. Check out local charity shops or preloved marketplaces like Ebay, Preloved or Vinted to find a festive fashion bargain.
• Upcycle a piece of clothing to be more festive. A simple iron on transfer,  festive tie-die or fabric paints can turn an old t-shirt into a festive favourite. Or get creative with sewing skills to add some festive touches to your clothing.
• Reuse your festive accessories every year. The most sustainable festive fashion is the items you already own. Embrace the nostalgia and wear it again! 
• Don’t buy gimmicky t-shirts, jumpers or socks for family and friends unless they will really love and wear them. 

We hope this has given you some ideas on how to make this Christmas your greenest ever. Merry Christmas from the Disconnected Energy Team!