Is a plastic-free Christmas achievable, or is it an impossible dream? As I strive to live more sustainably, I’ve made great progress in eliminating single-use plastic in all areas of my life. But every once in a while, I see plastic that I hadn’t noticed before—and Christmas is no exception. In today’s post, I’ve got an update on several changes I still need to make in my quest for a plastic-free Christmas.
I’ve come to the conclusion that some plastic is unavoidable in many areas of our lives. When it comes to Christmas, there are a few sweet treats in plastic packaging that will continue to find their way into our stockings. I wouldn’t want my family to start referring to me as the Green Grinch, after all.
I still stand firmly behind my motto of progress not perfection, but I can’t get complacent. Over the last few weeks, I noted a few areas where I can do better. I’m sharing these now as a reminder to myself to look into alternatives in time for next year.
With that in mind, here are changes I need to make as I continue to work toward a plastic-free Christmas in 2022.
Christmas cards
In an earlier post, I wrote about my love for Christmas cards and why I’m not ready to give them up. As I usually do, I bought my cards for this year on sale after Christmas last year. When I got them out in November, I noticed a couple of uh-ohs.
First, they were in a box with a non-recyclable plastic cover. And second, some of the cards contain glitter. While it may be pretty, most glitter is made from plastic, and it contributes to our microplastics problem.
Note to self: Buy Christmas cards with no glitter and no plastic packaging!
Christmas crackers
I love Christmas crackers—and I’m not talking about the kind you eat, although they’re okay too! Pulling a Christmas cracker at the dinner table on Christmas Day, and then donning the paper hat inside, takes me back to my childhood in England.
Since we didn’t have a large Christmas gathering the last couple of years, I have a couple of boxes of crackers stashed away.
Again, the crackers come packaged in a non-recyclable plastic box. Even worse, the trinkets inside are usually cheap plastic items that will probably end up in landfill at some point.
Note to self: Look for eco-friendly alternatives to Christmas crackers!
Wrapping
I’ve done a decent job finding reusable and eco-friendly wrapping options for our Christmas gifts. These days, I use very little wrapping paper, and once I use up my supply of plastic ribbon, I don’t plan to buy any more. I’ll use fabric ribbon or string instead.
Despite my resourcefulness, there are some items that are too large for gift bags or reusable boxes. Brown paper or recyclable wrapping paper is a great option. But what about the tape? Yes, using plastic tape even on recyclable wrapping paper is a problem that could result in the paper being rejected during the recycling process.
Note to self: Look into paper tape for wrapping.
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So, I have a few things to improve on next year. Watch for an update on these items in 2022!
Are there Christmas-related items that are made from plastic that you’d like to eliminate? Have you found any creative solutions to the above problems? I’d love to hear your thoughts on ways to achieve a plastic-free Christmas below.
It is a challenge to avoid plastic at Christmas! Shopping at craft shows and local small business helped me to cut down on excess packaging this year. Like you said though, there are just some things that are difficult to avoid.
I found paper tape last year that was recyclable. I wrapped everything in brown craft paper and let my girls decorate them.
I definitely need to look for paper tape. I notice a lot of online stores use paper tape to seal up their boxes, although I got a package from Staples recently that had so much plastic tape on it. 😬
What a great idea to get your girls to decorate the packages!
I celebrated Christmas with my boyfriend this weekend and I noticed waaaaay more plastic than I would have liked. Treats are a big one. And tape too. Plastic covering some gifts too.
There are ways to make our own Christmas crackers that I was looking into, but then chose not to because I didn’t want to get a pointless toy for them. I made a little gift bag and even made paper crowns for us instead😄 There was no “pop” when opening them though, but still fun.
I did something similar a couple of years ago—small gift bags with useful eco-friendly items. I like the idea of making your own paper crowns. You could even print some silly jokes and include them. Hmm…the wheels are turning for next Christmas now.
Do you know, I have never pulled a cracker before! I’d love to read a post about the alternatives you find in the interest of avoiding plastics, and will be searching Etsy to see if people make handmade, reusable crackers.
Thanks for sharing!
Thanks Jaya. One year I didn’t have any crackers so I made some small gift bags for the table instead. It was fun but I missed hearing the pop of the cracker.
It is hard! I opted for a second hand plastic Christmas tree. My family have had a fake one for over 20 years and I plan to make this one last the distance too! I was happy to pick up some lights in a supermarket which came just in cardboard with no plastic – also half price so win win! Hope you have a wonderful Christmas and I can’t wait to see what content you have in store next year!
Glad to hear you found a second-hand tree. We’ve had our fake Christmas tree for about 15 years and it still looks good. We’ll probably have it forever!
Thanks so much for reading and engaging on the blog this year! Merry Christmas to you too.