Easy ways you can reduce your carbon footprint this Christmas

5 Minimalist ways to prepare for the festive season

1. Clear out the old

It might feel counter-intuitive, but the best way to begin is by getting rid of any decorations that have seen better days and give ornaments that you’re keeping a thorough clean. Starting the winter festivities this way will set you up for a more relaxed (and stylish) holiday season.

2. The Christmas tree 

A natural tree can be the perfect centrepiece, however, 8 million trees are felled and most end up in a landfill just a few weeks later. There are now fantastic rental alternatives available which allow you to rent a tree for the holidays before returning it to the forest.

A synthetic tree can be problematic as they aren’t usually biodegradable, however they are more convenient. If you do decide to go for a synthetic tree then make sure you buy a quality tree that can be reused for years to come.

3. Au natural gift wrap

Gifts stacked carefully under the Christmas tree are just as much a part of the decorations as the baubles and tinsel. Make gifts a part of your minimalist decor by using environmentally friendly kraft paper and adding simple touches such as sprigs of evergreen or hand-drawn motifs. Many sparkly or colourful wrapping papers are made with plastic and therefore can’t be recycled, by using kraft paper the wrapping can be. Even better, consider using cloth wraps or reusable bags to package Christmas gifts so that the wrapping can be reused or become a part of the gift.

4 ways to reduce your festive waste

Christmas waste in the UK

The media is full of the dangers and damage that plastic waste is creating and we all want to do our bit to reduce it. At Christmastime many of us give to charity in an effort to do our bit for the world, but what about waste?

Many of us are so busy preparing for the season that we forget to consider just how much waste is being created, here are the statistics on festive waste in the UK alone:

• 3 million tonnes of waste
• 83km2 of rubbish from wrapping paper alone
• 54 million platefuls of food
• 189 million batteries
• 40 million rolls of sticky tape
• 100 million black bags of packaging from toys and gifts

So what steps can we all take to reduce our impact? 

1.  Recycle wrapping paper

You might have thought ahead and kept last year’s wrapping to reuse, but if not make sure to use easily recycled kraft paper. You could also consider other reusable options such as wrapping gifts in fabric or scarves, although more expensive this does mean the wrapping becomes part of the gift.

What can be recycled?

Christmas decorations, wrapping paper, cards and packaging. Christmas creates a lot of rubbish and sometimes it can be a bit confusing figuring out what can be recycled and what can’t.

But don’t worry, here is your handy list of things that can and can’t put in the recycling bin:

Can be recycled:

• Christmas cards and envelopes                 
• Wrapping paper and cardboard packaging
• Empty bottles
• Jars
• Cans
• Plastic containers

Can’t be recycled:

• Soft plastics
• Tinsel
• Christmas lights
• Leftover food
• Cellophane wrapping
• Christmas trees
• Broken crockery

Don’t feel overwhelmed though, you could just pick one or two of the things from this article to help reduce your holiday waste this year. It could be as simple as wrapping your presents in recyclable wrapping and making a dinner that doesn’t leave lots of leftovers going to waste.

Whatever you decide to do to reduce your carbon footprint, the team at High Life North hope you have an amazing holiday season.