Hello December. Don’t we all just love this time of year as we get thoroughly immersed in all the Christmas feels?! Although I have to be honest, the last few weeks have been so heavy on the shopping and sales coming at us from all angles, that I start to get a little grossed out by all the commercialism going on.
It’s so easy to feel the need to buy all these Christmassy things and come up with new decor ideas each year, but with little kids in the house, I try to focus on keeping it simple and real. Familiarity with our old decorations and the sense of tradition in putting the same ones up year after year is part of the process for us.
Here at The Home Studio the idea of a minimalist and simplistic holiday season never gets old with us, especially if we can make it a little more eco-friendly and sustainable. We like to start the month of December with a little palette cleansing, and focus on our favourite waste reducing and eco-friendly Christmas traditions, that you can use year after year.
In addition to simplifying your holiday decor , these four easy steps will help you make a start.
Minimal Waste Christmas Decorating
We know how tempting it is to get caught up in all the new, glittery Christmas decorations adorned in every shop window. However, buying new decorations each year can lead to a lot of waste. Instead, think about decorating your Christmas table with fresh foliage and flowers from your garden and, perhaps, even making your own ornaments from paper, pine cones, dried fruit or salt dough.
Another idea if you want to change the current colour scheme of your baubles, is to tie a small piece of fabric or tissue paper around them in your chosen colour, therefore, ensuring these ornaments will be used year after year.
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Eco Gift Wrapping
Not only is wrapping paper expensive to buy but it is hugely wasteful as after being ripped apart it just gets thrown in the bin. This year we are putting all those old scraps of fabric to good use by using them as wrapping instead of paper. A handkerchief or tea towel can also be used to wrap a small gift, forming part of the present itself.
One of my favourite trucks is to keep old delivery boxes and paper stuffing for the wrapping of Christmas presents. This ensures the packing gets used more than once before you (hopefully) recycle it.
Sustainable and Alternative Tree Options
We love a real (and artificial tree) as much as the next person, however deep down we know that eventually they get disposed of and are difficult to recycle.
Instead consider using a selection of tree branches or a potted plant that can be decorated in much the same way as a traditional Christmas tree.
Eco-Friendly Gift Giving
Buying eco-friendly or sustainable gifts is not quite as easy but we came across a couple of local ideas which we really liked, such as, bamboo air purifying bags, bamboo straws and a sturdy Upcycled Choob Duffel bag from Sealand.
Homemade gifts are also a great option. We especially like the idea of beeswax candles, bath salts, bread bags and homemade cookies and jams.
And if you really are not sure what the recipient of your gift would like, it’s always a good option to buy them a gift voucher instead of something that will just be stored and wasted.
Yes, I agree with you 100% on tradition and using the same decorations. That is why I will keep using the plastic tree I bought at the Hyperama 29 years ago, even though it is not fashionable to have one. My tree decorations I have built up slowly over the years, but I can safely say that the only new ones in the last 20 years have been gifted. Using the same ones year after year makes them precious as you reminisce about Christmases past. My last parent, my father, passed away 2 months ago and one of these days I will be going through the box of decorations in his house, to select some to keep. It will be a very emotional task…