Have a Magical Yet Earth Conscious Christmas

When people think about keeping Christmas sustainable it can seem a bit dull. Who wants the kids to miss out?

At a time when we are all concerned for the future of our planet, our children are still children, and we want to let them experience delight at Christmas time.

We believe that you can keep the magic of Christmas without compromising the earth. We believe that immersing children in nature and providing them with conscious, planet-friendly choices, means children will grow up valuing and protecting the earth.

If you have young children this is your chance to start some cool new family traditions. If your children are a little older give them the facts and brainstorm ideas together.

Here are just a few of our suggestions for a magical yet earth conscious Christmas:

1. The Tree

First, use what you have. If you still have a plastic tree use it anyway. You do the Earth no favours throwing away a perfectly good tree and buying replacements too soon. But when it finally dies, think outside the box. There are so many innovative ideas out there for modern Christmas trees.

Have a living Christmas tree. A little native tree in a pot will hold just the right amount of decorations. Just think about where you will plant it in January. Native trees get big! Maybe you have an existing tree in your garden that you can decorate year after year.

Make a tree. There are so many beautiful ideas out there - from pallet or drift wood trees to tree wall hangings complete with hooks for decorations.

2. Decorating

A big part of creating the festive feel is how you decorate the house.

Again, use what you already have. But why not make your own. You could roll out clay, cut Christmas shapes, then let the kids decorate them with an array of beautiful things from mother nature. Just don’t forget to make a hole so you can use some string to hang it up. You could make and add something different to your collection each year. If you name and date them, it can be a lot of fun when you pull them out and reminisce in coming years. We have been doing this for a while now and it gives my kids a huge feeling of pride and ownership over our tree.

You can make beautiful wreaths for the front door from branches of greenery and tie a big bow at the bottom. If you use a natural string just remove the bow and put the whole thing in the compost when you are finished. You can do the same for garlands. Cut bits of fabric and tie to string to create an earth conscious tinsel. You could even repurpose the family’s old clothes for something extra special. If you have strong ideas about how a tree should look think quality. You can buy decorations; just think about the materials that they are made of, where they have come from and how long they will last.

3. Advent Calendar

There are so many options for reusable advent calendars that I love.

Our calendar is made up of a cloth bag garland in Christmas themed shapes and colours into which go a collection of tasks to be completed and small treats to be enjoyed.

We do tasks that promote the Christmas spirit, like baking goodies for a neighbour, a family outing to admire Christmas lights or donating doggy treats to the local shelter. I add in a few yummy treats and small gifts on some days, as much to give me a break on busy days. I am only human after all!

This year we have been given an Advent Calendar made with little books. We open one each night for a bedtime story. These books could be wrapped and reused every year. Maybe buy second hand books and then donate afterwards.

4. Gifts

This seems to be an area of great debate in a lot of families. Why not try only giving gifts to the kids this Christmas. It cuts back on a lot of stress and costs.

Go for good quality gifts that will last over cheap plastic gimmicks. Or maybe something upcycled or homemade when it’s the thought that is required.

Consider how you wrap your gifts this year. I like using fabric or scarves that can be used over and over. Look up Furoshiki - the Japanese method of wrapping with fabric.

By using natural paint on plain paper, you can create beautiful wrapping paper that can be composted later.

A clean and decorated glass jar is great recyclable packaging for bath bombs or freshly baked cookies.

Remember that you can influence other people by modelling your own modern choices this Christmas. Slowly change something each year without lecturing people and it will become a sustainable way of celebrating the festive season every year. But most importantly create some magic for your children.