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Tell Whirli your tips for little ways you can make Christmas more eco-friendly: £200 voucher prize

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    • Consider wrapping your gifts with reusable wrapping materials and decorate them with a spring of holly instead of using throwaway tags and ribbons.
  • Merry Christmas All , 

    Use only  paper plates , paper napkins  ,cups and plastic cutlery  ..... , you save electricity & water for washing up .........then you recycle EVERYTHING including the leftover food in THE RIGHT BINS .
  • We have begun swapping toys with friends which is great. We reuse Christmas wrapping paper year on year too.
  • we re-use gift bags to save buying them each year and also we like to shop in charity shops for gifts and toys 
  • Everybody get a present that is home made like cake or jam, one thats upcycled like a limp, and one one thats regifted or a hand me down
  • Have picked up some lovely gifts from our local charity shops, and some reusable fabric crackers at a Christmas fair.  
  • I keep all my last years cards and with pinking scissors make labels for the gifts , or tree decorations for this year , the children love to help. Not just up cycling but saving money to. 

  • Rent a Christmas tree, grow a small one in a pot to reuse or reuse a synthetic one.
    Buy Christmas gifts from charity shops.
    Buy food, decorations etc. through the year to spread the cost (and buy in sales for next Christmas.
    Reuse Christmas wrapping paper, cake, house and tree decorations and lights.
  • Presents don’t have to cost the earth, or harm it. Too often we buy our loved ones presents that get unused or even thrown out, especially when panic buying, if your unsure of what to gift people. Choose a gift that lasts, by giving something with purpose or meaning, that will hold more value with the recipient.

    Making your own presents for people show that you have spent time and effort in creating something you think they’ll love. A great homemade gift is food, especially sweet treats! Cookies and Christmas? The perfect combo.

    Also we recycle christmas cards into gift tags by cutting around the pictures with a pinking scissors.

  • We reuse Christmas bags, make next year’s gift cards from this year’s Christmas cards. Local second hand sites have great secondhand toys to buy. Wrap presents in plain brown paper and the children decorate it. We replant the Christmas Tree from year to year.
  • I use my own home-made version of 'furoshiki' to wrap gifts. I recycleold bedding or clothing that has seen better days and cut into squares of various sizes with pinking shears. A pretty pattern on the cloth helps.  
  • Look in car boots for good quality toys, sterilise them and wrap up. Tots won't know the difference.
  • By buying from charity shops where I can buy good quality second hand gifts whilst at the same time helping charities
  • Artificial decorations are more eco friendly than real ones. Store them well and they will look great for years.
  • Make Christmas cards into gift tags
  • Use local markets and makers for food and gifts to avoid the high carbon footprints of goods coming from abroad.
    Reduce your energy consumption by doubling up dishes in the weeks before Christmas. Streaming some veggies? Lightly steam sprouts at the same time and pop them into the freezer in a reusable container. Baking a cake?  Bake your Christmas cake at the same time. Roasting a joint? Roast your turkey and pop it into the freezer. 
  • Trying not to buy too much plastic.  Trying to buy gifts that will last a long time.
  • we re use xmas cards and use them as postcards afterwards
  • If everyone took on board all these amazing ideas, the world would be in a better place.
  • we only buy what we know people want so that gifts dont end up in landfill the next week. no novelty presents
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