Christmas time is an enjoyable holiday; however it can be quite expensive if we aren’t careful. Why not aim for a more eco-friendly Christmas this year?
As well as having to purchase all your gifts and decorations, there are additional expenses involved. Food for Christmas parties, postage expenses for sending presents – there are a lot of costs to Christmas. Let’s try something different!
Here are some tips on how to make Christmas time more affordable and green.
How to Have a More Eco-Friendly Christmas:
Switch off the Christmas lights over night to save money
It’s hard to keep a lid on the electricity costs during the holidays! Keeping your Christmas lights lit can put quite a dent in your electricity bill.
Along with this you are using up a lot of electricity or gas in order to keep your home nice and warm in the chilly weather.
If you want to save on the electric bill you need to make sure that you switch these lights off when they aren’t in use. Don’t forget to turn them out before going to bed!
Rather than leaving any lights on overnight you could save extra money by turning all the lights off in the house.
As an exception you could invest in some energy saving light bulbs; this will save you a lot of money and still keep your home lit up.
Use alternative methods for Christmas cards – think eco-friendly Christmas cards!
Over 1.7 billion Christmas cards are sent over the Christmas holidays. These cards just get thrown away after a short period of time.
If you want to do your part for the environment, why not use something more renewable.
There are in fact recyclable Christmas cards which are available to purchase. As an alternative you could even send Christmas cards via e-mail.
You could even make your own cards, this would be especially fun if you get your little ones involved in the whole process. Take a look at these Kid Friendly Crafts to Make for Christmas.
Save on wrapping paper – use recycled paper!
A lot of Christmas wrapping paper is wasted during the holidays. Why not consider using recycled paper to wrap your gifts in?
Or, you could send gifts to friends which do not require wrapping. For example, why not send your relative or friend a gift card instead?
Get yourself a real Christmas tree
Although an artificial Christmas tree can just be placed in your loft and reused for a number of years, a real tree is a better alternative. Get one in a large pot.
Once you have used your tree you can simply move it out to your yard until the following year. A real Christmas tree will look a lot better than an artificial one and have a more Christmassy feel to it.
Recycle gifts you do not want
Most people receive gifts which they love. However, sometimes we get a gift which we do not really need or want.
Rather than being unappreciative, you could easily donate gifts to a charity instead. Local charities will be thankful of receiving any gifts which you may not want.
Reuse your Christmas decorations
This tip is quite straightforward, save money by using the same decorations each year. You can easily store away your decorations in a safe crush proof storage case and they will still be ideal to use the following year.
Start a family tradition of buying one special decoration each Christmas. Hang it on your tree and buy another special decoration next year.
Now you have a number of useful tips on how to save money and recycle around Christmas time! Think about the environment this year round and also save a lot of money on utility bills by following these tips.
Let’s all do our part to have a more eco-friendly Christmas!
More about having a low spend Christmas:
Budget super tight this year? Here’s how to enjoy Christmas on a Tight Budget
Want more ideas for Christmas on a Shoestring Budget?
Want to save money on holiday lighting? Here’s why you should buy these!
Sophie Eagan works as a real estate agent for Glasgow property and enjoys sharing home improvement tips with others.
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