How To Have An Eco-Friendly Christmas: 15 Tips To Help You Celebrate Sustainably

Before we all jump head first onto the usual Christmas merry-go-round, and get punch drunk on too many festive vibes, let’s talk about something that’s becoming increasingly important: how to make Yuletide celebrations kinder to our planet. Yes, I’m talking about an eco-friendly Christmas. And there are lots of easy and practical ways we can do this without compromising on the fun. Here are 15 tips to help you have an enjoyable Christmas while celebrating sustainably at the same time.

15 Tips for Your Eco-Friendly Christmas

Christmas is a time for celebration, joy, and spending time with loved ones. However, the excess of gift-giving, decoration, and holiday feasting means it’s also very often an incredibly wasteful time of year. But by adopting a few sustainable practices, we can all enjoy a festive season while also reducing our carbon footprint – doesn’t that sound like something worth celebrating? First up…

Choose a Sustainable Tree

There’s something magical about having a fresh, pine-scented real Christmas tree in your living room, isn’t there? But rather than going for a tree that’s chopped down and then thrown out for garden waste a few weeks later*, why not consider some alternative reusable, sustainable and eco-friendly Christmas tree options.

You could invest in a potted, rooted Christmas tree, ready to plant out in January and enjoy year after year as it continues to live and grow. We did this with Flora’s first Christmas tree, but if you don’t have room in your garden, donate it to your local school.

Or you could rent a tree and return it when Christmas is over. Some organisations allow you to give your tree a name and even have the EXACT same tree year on year as they store and nurture it all year until you’re ready to house it again. Head to Google and search, “rent a Christmas tree near me.”

If you’re set on getting an artificial tree or a plastic Christmas tree, and I completely understand there may be good reasons why, please make sure it’s one you’ll use for years to come. The longer you keep it, the better it is for our environment.

*Tip: if you do go for a real tree that’s been chopped down, look for anywhere that has goats to donate it too after Christmas – goats LOVE pine trees. 🙂

Go Handmade with Decorations

Instead of buying new ornaments every year, how about creating your own? Not just a fun activity for young children at school, you can DIY your décor with the whole family. Check out Pinterest for lots of ideas for eco-friendly Christmas decorations. Think old fabrics, beads, buttons, and especially recyclable materials for a Christmas wreath, for example.

We made sustainable Christmas decorations from old jam tarts one year and they’re still going strong several years later, bringing back the memories every time we get them out.

Natural décor such as pine cones, dried oranges, and cinnamon sticks are fantastic additions to your eco-friendly Christmas tree, as well as making your home smell fabulously festive. Or take a tip from my mother: go foraging for teazels, honesty, twigs, and other interesting plants, dry them, and then spray them gold and silver. In fact, she used to spray paint anything if it stood still long enough, but that’s a whole other blog post…

Go Handmade with Eco-Friendly Crackers

These are so easy to make. All you need are some empty toilet rolls, wrapping paper, string, handwritten jokes, hats made from newspaper, and a few small gifts to pop inside (homemade sweets are perfect). And get everyone to shout,”BANG!” when you pull them. 😊

Eco-Friendly Cards and E-Cards

Billions of Christmas cards are sold each year, and they contribute a lot to deforestation. Consider pruning your Christmas card list if possible and try to buy recycled cards – there’s a huge choice out there nowadays.

Or you could think about sending an e-card. Not just for the tech-savvy e-cards can be personalised and sent with love without cutting down a single tree.

If you really want to send a physical card, why not make your own from repurposing last year’s cards? With the added personal touch, and the perfect Christmas quote, these are among the best type of festive wishes.

Give Mindfully

Christmas is about giving, but that doesn’t mean we should flood our loved ones with piles of crap stuff they probably don’t want or need.

If you’re buying physical presents, consider sustainable brands or eco-friendly products and items that have a longer life span – such as personalised reusable shopping bags, funky bamboo toothbrushes, or a new plastic-free bento lunch box.

Or, what about gifting a future memory? Concert tickets, a spa day, a cooking class, or even just a lovely day out in Nature can mean more than any physical item.

And for the ultimate in eco-friendly gifts, a homemade present is very likely to go down well. One year I made everyone in our family a hand-knitted scarf (although it did subsequently put me off knitting for life). Nowadays, we give homemade jam and homemade vodka every Christmas instead.

Shop Second-hand for Gifts

There’s a growing movement around the world supporting the buying of second-hand gifts, also known as regifting.

Vintage stores, charity shops, local thrift stores, and flea markets can be absolute treasure troves. You’ll often discover one-of-a-kind items with a history and character that brand-new items just can’t match, particularly where vintage or antique jewellery is concerned.

Pre-loved books (in good condition) also make fantastic gifts. Pair them with a personal note about why you chose that particular book for a really thoughtful and personal touch.

Sustainable Stocking Stuffers

Shops are flooded with cheap plastic tat at this time of year and it’s all too easy to resort to these throwaway items for stocking stuffers. Why not choose eco-friendly beauty products like solid shampoos, conditioners, or handmade soaps that come with minimal packaging? Even better if they’re fair trade too. Small wooden toys are a great sustainable stocking stuffer option for kids.

Or you could encourage the growth of green thumbs by gifting seeds of their favourite plant, or a small potted herb. One year our low-maintenance, allergy-friendly Aloe Vera plant had 14 babies (pups), so we potted them up and gave them away as living eco-friendly Christmas gifts.

Wrap It Up – Sustainably

Did you know plenty of wrapping paper can’t be recycled because it’s dyed, laminated, or contains non-paper additives like gold and silver? Another case for choosing environmentally friendly gift wrap instead.

Or you can reuse old wrapping – remember to save paper, ribbons, and bows from previous years. You’ll be surprised at how much you can recycle. My mother used to iron her favourite pieces afresh every year, and I saw them reappear in my stockings for years and years.

And, of course, you can go natural. Brown paper, tied with string and spruced up with a little sprig of holly or rosemary, looks and smells super festive and is easily recycled.

Feast Without the Waste

Family Christmas meals are the stuff of legends, but they can generate a lot of waste. So, take a tip from Santa and plan your meals carefully. Make a list, check it twice, and avoid buying excess food during your holiday shop. After the main event, embrace your leftovers by thinking of creative ways to use them in meals post-Christmas. Anything except turkey curry will be a welcome change…

As it’s Christmas, why not treat yourself to something from your local farm shop? Yes, they’re more expensive than the big supermarkets, but buying locally not only reduces your carbon footprint, you’re also supporting small businesses at a crucial time of year too – win, win.

Lights – Shine Bright, but Wisely

It wouldn’t be Christmas without lots of twinkling lights, but they can be real energy vampires. Opt for LED lights where you can as they use up to 80% less energy and last longer than traditional bulbs. And remember to set your LED Christmas lights on a timer too, so they’re not on all night, saving both energy and money.

Don’t forget to light a few lovely natural candles for a fragrant eco-friendly Christmas too.

Re-think the Party Fashion

Yes, it’s great to have a new outfit for the Christmas party, but disposable fast fashion is a significant environmental problem. Rather than follow the herd, why not use the opportunity to scour your local vintage stores and second-hand shops. You’re almost certain to find unique (maybe even high-quality) pieces no one else will have.

Alternatively, look at clothing rentals for one-off high-end and/or designer outfits. You get to rock a new look at a fraction of the cost and without commitment.

Travel Responsibly

Many of us travel during the holidays, whether it’s hopping between parties or going long distances to see family. Provided you don’t have too much luggage (or too many presents!), if several of you are attending the same event, why not lift share or carpool to reduce the number of vehicles on the road. Singing throughout the drive is strictly optional though…

Similarly, you could consider public transport for longer journeys (provided there are no train strikes). As well as reducing your carbon footprint, the added bonus is you all get to relax and maybe even enjoy some scenic views from your bus/coach/train windows.

Eco-friendly Activities and Party Games

Christmas is about spending time with family and friends so, rather than all being glued to our phones, think about some activities you can do together, both in the run up to the big day and on Christmas Day itself.

If the weather permits, think snowball fights and building a snowman. If a White Christmas is off the cards, you can still go for nature walks in your local park or woods. Rain or shine, we do this every year, after Christmas lunch, it’s a great way to clear the cobwebs and meet other people in our village too. Other eco-friendly Christmas activities could include attending a free outdoor carol concert, a tree lighting ceremony, or a Christmas parade.

Bringing it back indoors, you could get together for some family baking in readiness for a Christmas movie-fest evening, or a card and board games extravaganza. Or you could be really organised and borrow a big stack of Christmas books from your local library and curl up with some hot chocolate and throws on a wet Winter afternoon.

One of my abiding childhood memories was a Christmas Family Trivia evening. Everyone brought a little-known fact about themselves on a piece of paper, which were then read out after the meal had finished and we all had to guess which fact belonged to which family member!

Responsible Disposal

Post-festivities, our homes can be swamped with packaging, decorations, and leftover food. Fortunately, most councils in the UK are good at recycling, provided you separate out all the different recyclable materials first. And, if you have room, you could start a compost pile with organic waste in your garden. Cooked food waste does need to go in your rubbish bin though (if you can’t use it in other meals) as otherwise it will attract rats.

Create a New Tradition

Traditions are one of the things that make the holidays special. So why not start a new, eco-friendly Christmas tradition this year? After the festivities are over, you could gather family and friends together and plant a tree. As the years pass, you’ll have a grove that represents every festive season you’ve celebrated together.

Save up all your useful recyclables over the course of the next year, and then have a craft day in December where you make decorations for your next Christmas.

Give something back. And not necessarily money either. You could volunteer at your local charity, animal shelter, or retirement home. The gift of time often means so much more to an elderly relative or neighbour. You could help them decorate their home for the festive period or simply spend a few hours chatting together – truly the spirit of Christmas.

Going Green this Christmas

So, there we are, 15 eco-friendly Christmas suggestions to help you celebrate the holiday season more sustainably. While I do think aiming for a zero waste Christmas might be a goal too far (for me at least) by embracing a few of these ideas, it should be perfectly possible to Go Green this Christmas, don’t you think?

What do you think of my tips for how to enjoy a festive eco-friendly Christmas? How will you be celebrating the festive season this year? What are your top tips for a sustainable Christmas?