For example, instead of ribbon, use compostable twine or twine with clippings—a holly branch, a cut eucalyptus, or a fir branch—tucked into it. It’s a rustic look that stays even if you pack things in advance. Alternatively, place something less durable, such as flowers or berries, before you hand out the gifts.

Don’t Forget the Tape!

The last thing you want to do is make all the changes and ruin it by using standard plastic tape that can’t be recycled. Sellotape now offers a no plastic version of its famous tape, which is 100 percent plant-based and fully compostable. Alternatively, consider paper-based options like washi tape. These often come in pretty patterns too, which also help to jazz up the plainer brown paper.

Send Fewer Cards—or Go Digital

If you have a family with a lot of holiday cards, it’s hard to give them up, but there are about 2.65 billion Christmas cards sold each year in the US, and sending one card less each can save 50,000 cubic yards of paper. , according to Stanford University.

It helps that there are now great digital options to send to friends and family via email, completely eliminate waste—and can be sent at the last minute when it’s too late to send anything else. Make an extra effort to discuss in advance with your loved ones about everything going the digital route for a greater environmental win.

If you can’t bear to mess with family tradition, then make sure you choose your cards like you choose your wrapping paper. Avoid glitter and foil, and look for cards that are marked as recyclable. Even better – look for those made from postconsumer recycled materials as well. You can even buy cards filled with seeds and cans Plant!

Of course only you have control over the cards you send. If you receive some cards that can’t be recycled, consider keeping them and cutting them up to reuse the pieces with holiday symbols as gift tags for next year.

Choose a Real Christmas Tree, if You Have One

It may seem counterintuitive, but even though real trees are only used once before you throw them away, they create less waste than their artificial counterparts. That’s because a real tree can be completely recycled if disposed of properly, and can be used for things like firewood, wood chips, or compost.

Fake trees, on the other hand, are made of materials that cannot be recycled and are only headed for the landfill when their time to spread Christmas cheer is over. The Carbon Trust it is estimated that you need to reuse an artificial tree between seven and 20 times (depending on the size) to offset the carbon footprint created in its manufacture, packaging, and shipping. If you’re buying real wood (if you haven’t already) be sure to buy something that’s grown locally, which is the more sustainable option because it doesn’t have to be shipped far.

DIY Decorations

When decorating your tree and your home, the same rules apply. Plastic and foil are a no-no, and being creative is the best way to cut waste. For great DIY ideas, I send you to YouTube, which is full of DIY holiday decoration tutorials: paper garlands, hanging paper dreidels, salt dough ornamentsa DIY Kwanzaa lanternsand many more. These decorations may not stand the test of time in storage, but they are completely recyclable and compostable once the holidays are over, meaning you can change your color theme every year.

Store-bought holiday crackers—those cardboard tubes that you pull at both ends to pop open—should be avoided. Traditionally they use shiny and glossy materials, which, like cards and wrapping paper, cannot be recycled. And that’s before you consider the awful, often plastic gift inside that usually finds its way into the trash almost immediately.