Materials we normally discard, such as wine corks, colorful coffee capsules, or old furniture stored in the storage room, can be used to give a more sustainable touch to Christmas decorations and promote the circular economy.
If Christmas sweets in all their variations are on the supermarket shelves, and cities are flaunting their starry lighting displays, it must mean that Christmas is here.
An enchanting and magical time reflected in our home decorations, now with an increasingly sustainable trend. Giving a new look to Christmas decorations while also thinking about the planet is certainly possible. That's why we’re proposing several Christmas decoration alternatives using the circular economy in a creative and original way.
- 1. Reinvent the tree:
First off, here are two suggestions for a unique and more sustainable Christmas tree. Those who live on the coast or have the opportunity to visit it soon can collect the fragments of polished, whitish wood that the tide washes up on the shore. Otherwise, in inland areas, organic matter resulting from forestry activities, such as branches and bark, can also be used.
It is advisable to use wood branches of different thickness and size, pine cones, or dry leaves. All of this will be raw materials for putting a puzzle together in a staggered way, held together not with screws but with jute rope, cotton thread, scraps, or recycled fabrics.
Bamboo is another alternative for building the structure, which, along with old hangers, chairs, and even pallets , makes the options multiply. If you have an old lamp in the house, the shades can fit into the structure and give it a different touch.
A second option to update your tree is to go to a local nursery specializing in natural fir trees. In this case, it is important to consider two key issues: that the same company is responsible for collecting and converting it into compost/biomass, or that it is replanted in gardens. In this way, the tree can return to the earth.
- 2. Ornaments:
Let your imagination soar. Wine corks, garlands stitched with colorful coffee machine capsules and strips of dried orange and lemon peels can give an original (and aromatic) touch to a sustainable tree. You can also hang small stars made with twigs and string, giving it a rustic touch.
Old scraps of fabric are very useful for lining and covering ball ornaments; eco-friendly water-based paints (white, gold, etc.) can add a shiny touch.
- 3. Centerpieces and candles:
You can make a unique, circular centerpiece with branches and small pine cones intertwined with leaves, aromatic herbs, and other natural elements, such as cinnamon sticks.
A glass jar and a LED candle, a bit of rock salt to represent snow, and a few pine twigs are transformed into a lantern that can be added to the table to give it warmth.
- 4. Children's creativity:
Christmas is a great opportunity for children to discover the value of reusing and creating. With a little imagination, you can make garlands from recycled paper chains, snowflakes cut from cereal boxes , origami figures, and new ornament balls made from slightly dampened magazine and newspaper molded as desired, glued, and decorated with biodegradable glitter.
Yogurt cups can also be transformed into clever alternatives to baubles, while soda bottle caps can serve as hanging photo frames on the tree. In addition, old plastic bottles can be transformed with the right colors into Santa Claus or King Balthazar.
- 5. Lighting:
And lastly, some Christmas lighting ideas include replacing lights with low-consumption LEDs, carefully using bee or vegetable wax candles, and adding color to rooms with cellophane paper. A timer can be a great help to schedule the lights going off and minimizing consumption.
Small yet great ideas for reusing everyday household materials for creating unique Christmas decorations in the home, with the circular economy in mind and a dash of imagination. A different, sustainable, and personalized Christmas for each family.