17 Oct Tips For A Waste Free Celebration
From Shannon Skye AKA JourneyToZero_
TIPS FOR A WASTE FREE CELEBRATION
Parties of any sort can produce a lot of unnecessary waste. Think rubbish bags full of paper plates, cups, napkins, wrapping paper and all sorts of food packaging… With just a bit of thought and planning, you can have a great celebration without it costing you or the planet more. These are my tips for having a ‘waste-free’ celebration.
CHOOSE NATURAL AND REUSABLE DECOR OVER SINGLE-USE
Choose decorations such as fresh flowers/foliage. If possible, buy them from a florist or flower stall to avoid the plastic they’re often wrapped in. Or pick your own.
Say no to balloons, even ‘biodegradable’ latex balloons. Natural latex may be biodegradable, but after adding chemicals, plasticizers and artificial dyes, the balloons are not.
Reuse jars and bottles as vases, instead of buying new ones.
GET CREATIVE
Bunting always adds a lovely look/vibe to any celebration. Make your own from paper or fabric. Or if you’re not the DIY type, these are a great plastic-free option: Recycled paper bunting.
USE REAL GLASS, PLATES AND SILVERWARE
Use what you have — the more mismatched the better!
You can find great inexpensive crockery from secondhand shops or borrow some from friends and family.
Use fabric napkins instead of paper ones. This not only reduces waste but also looks so much nicer.
Make or buy glass bottles of cordial to mix with water rather than buying drinks in disposable bottles, or choose drinks in returnable/refundable bottles. You can add lemon slices or edible flowers to your drink dispenser or bottles/pitchers.
If you don’t have enough glasses, reuse jars as drinking glasses. They’re typically stronger and you won’t be too upset should some of them break.
Go strawless or have a jar of reusable straws handy instead of plastic ones. They make lovely party favours as well. I really like glass ‘Stream Straws’ and Bamboo ones from ‘We care collective’’
They also look great in cocktails.
FOOD
Cook/bake from scratch. Most baking ingredients can be found in paper or glass and fresh ingredients can be bought without packaging using Freshbags.
If this isn’t possible, at least avoid buying over packaged food and drinks. For example, instead of buying a plastic tray of cupcakes, order from a local bakery where you can use your own containers.
Use Reusable bowl covers or Beeswax wraps instead of cling film to cover your dishes before and after the party.
PARTY FAVOURS
This is where you can get really creative.
I chose to make seed bombs and package them in Flax gift bags. Little packets of seeds also make lovely party favours.
For a kiddies’ party, you could repackage bulk sweets in small fabric bags or small glass jars.
We hope these tips have helped/inspired you to reduce your waste next time you have something to celebrate. Follow Shannon on her journey to zero waste on Facebook and Instagram.
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