Everyone is going green these days. More and more people are realizing the importance of respecting the environment in which we live, so that our ecosystem will remain healthy for ourselves and our children. Most people also are realizing that even little contributions add up. One thing you can do during the holidays to do your part for the environment is to try implementing some eco-friendly holiday decorating options. Here are some ideas to consider.

Eco-Friendly Holiday Decorating Options: Avoid Plastic

This is one of the easy ones. It’s tempting to decorate your tree with typical store-bought plastic ornaments. They’re cheap and easy to find and use. They are not, however, very good for the environment. Ornaments made of wood, glass or even paper may be a little tougher to come by, but they often showcase finer craftsmanship and your eco-friendly efforts in this regard will probably be appreciated by your guests.

Eco-Friendly Holiday Decorating Options: Use Edible Decorations

This option is not only eco-friendly, but fun. Decorate trees with popcorn strings, display colorful fruits and vegetables around the house or apartment. Candy canes and gingerbread men are classic holiday decorations that can be eaten instead of thrown away when the celebrating is done.

Eco-Friendly Holiday Decorating Options: Grow Your Own Tree

Of course, growing a Christmas tree probably isn’t a realistic option for those living in apartments in San Francisco CA  or New York City, but if you’ve got a backyard of your own, why not consider planting a tree for next year? If you do live in an apartment, maybe substitute some attractive live plants that you can cultivate in a smaller space for a traditional Christmas tree. Failing that, think about picking up a cardboard Christmas tree. These come in some attractive designs, are easy to set up and put away, and are a great eco-friendly alternative.

Eco-Friendly Holiday Decorating Options: Reuse, Recycle, Repeat

You should definitely be bringing that box down from the attic and dusting off the old holiday decorations for use again this year, and everything that survives this year’s holiday fun should be safely and neatly stored for next year. Much of what you can’t use can be recycled, such as many paper products. There are also plenty of decorations you can make yourself. You can repurpose old, unusable clothing to make stockings for the fireplace, and design your own decorations with recyclable paper and biodegradable inks or paints.

More on Eco-Friendly Holiday Decorating Options

Whether your holiday parties are in those apartments in San Francisco CA, suburban homes in Cleveland OH or hotel conference rooms in New York NY, you can see there are plenty of ways to have fun while being kind to the environment.  Now that you have your decorating ideas started, go all the way with eco-friendly plates and flatware instead of the traditional disposable plastic kind, and gift packaging that can be recycled as well. Being eco-friendly can only add to the general good cheer and spirit of the holiday season.

Posted by Keren Fathi-Poor at 16 December, 2009

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