Going Green for Christmas

A 2020 Christmas. This has been a challenging and difficult year for many of us. Nevertheless, the pandemic has afforded us an opportunity to focus on what is truly important. If this year has taught us anything, how we treat our planet can make a drastic impact on its health and the health of everyone around us. Aiming for a green Christmas is a good goal to make after reflection on 2020.

As I currently sit and type this I am two weeks into fighting off Covid 19, I’m one of the lucky ones as I haven’t needed to be hospitalized so far (knocking on wood as I type that). With economic uncertainty a concern for many, I find that spending has not really been at the forefront of my mind. That cute knick-knack you see at Target and usually would buy on a whim, now that money could be better spent on food, rent, and potential healthcare needs. Consumerism has always been a driving force in America, however as this pandemic has played out, my focus has turned towards what really matters. I find that buying things has just become less important.

Which leads me to Christmas. Although my favorite holiday of the year, it’s also an easy time to forget about the lessons 2020 has taught us and return to our consumerist ways. The good news is, we don’t have to! Don’t feel like it has to be an all or nothing prospect either, small steps in the right direction are better than none at all. Some ideas I’ve implemented this year:

Buying local. Support your local businesses! My boyfriend and I have a local family owned frozen yogurt shop that we enjoy going to for the occasional date night, although we’ve been less able to frequent recently. This year I bought gift certificates from them for my friends and boyfriend. It’s fun to enjoy a frozen individualized concoction - if I want gummy frogs AND Reese’s peanut butter crumbles as toppings, by golly no one can stop me! I can also feel good that my money is supporting a place that brings me quality time with my main squeeze and helps keep people employed.

Handmade gifts! Not only are these a great sustainable option, but they are made with your time, love, and creativity and are more likely to be cherished over something purchased at a store. This can even include baked goods. I’m making my Mom’s recipe for no-bake drop chocolate and peanut butter cookies to distribute to co-workers this year as these are personal, easy on the environment and not likely to go to waste. Trying to be more eco-conscious with the containers I’ve opted for mason jars. This is a great option too if you feel like gifting from hot cocoa kits with marshmallows. I have in years past put together homemade soup mixes with ingredients and a recipe attached on the top. These were a hit and are an affordable, memorable gift truly enjoyed by its recipients.

I do love a real Christmas tree, it’s nostalgia from my childhood. Also the smell of a real tree can’t be beat; as a Florida kid used to palm tree the aromatic scent of a Frasier fir tree was incomparable. Companies are now selling Christmas tree rentals that you can return to the farm once Christmas is over. This even allows for you to have the exact same Christmas tree for years to come! I love this idea although unfortunately we don’t have a local farm doing this, there may be one in your area.

Try to avoid going with a plastic tree as real trees are the more sustainable option. Artificial trees are made of petroleum products and use up resources in manufacturing and during distribution. While they theoretically last forever, studies actually show they’re typically discarded after they become less attractive over the years and end up in landfills. Live trees, however, are a renewable resource grown on tree farms and are replanted. They also contribute to air quality while growing. The majority, after living their life as a Christmas tree, are recycled into mulch.

Christmas lights are always a fun and whimsical way to spread holiday cheer. Why not consider using more environmentally friendly bulbs? This year we went with LED lights and I feel good about the change. Switching to LED or Light Emitting Diode lights is a great choice for a greener Christmas. They use significantly less energy than traditional light bulbs. Because LEDs are made with light-emitting diodes instead of filaments, they produce almost no heat when turned on. This means more electricity goes towards producing light, rather than wasted as heat. They also are more sustainable as their lifespan is magnitudes longer than than traditional bulbs. This saves money and energy, which is a win win. Your wallet and planet will thank you.

Finally if you have a large circle of friends and are overwhelmed trying to cover gifts for everyone, why not suggest doing a secret Santa exchange? This way everyone can still feel spoiled by having one person give them a thoughtful gift or two, but you’re not having to find something for everyone in the group. Sustainable gift ideas can include buying second hand unique gifts from your local antique store, or even re-gifting something you have at home you know they’ll appreciate. You don’t have to spend a lot of money to make someone you care about feel special.

If you’re not very creative (like me) but still want to try your hand at hand-made gifts don’t lose hope! Just network. As a veterinarian, I am much more comfortable in the cerebral, analytical, thinking aspects as opposed to the free-wheeling, creative, crafty side. I am fortunate that I have some fairly crafty friends, so I asked if I could come over and use their Perler beads. I made one that represented my boyfriend and our dog Bean for something hand made that I know he’ll love.

For those of you unfamiliar with Perler beads they are small, plastic beads, also called Hama beads (in Japan). They can be arranged on a special pegboard to form designs. Then, using an iron and wax paper, you melt the beads together. Once cooled you have a cool design. Video games and pixel art are great ideas to start with as you’re forming patterns on a grid. I modeled my boyfriend after Mega Man pixel poses. This added another cool element for us as we’re both fairly nerdy and like to play video games together. The sky is the limit with these beads! You can follow pixel templates for your favorite Pokemon or Nintendo characters, to seasonal items like Candy Canes or Santa, or snowmen. If you’re not so creative there are templates you can follow online.

Perler beads, Hama Beads and Pegboards are all made from a food-safe plastic, which makes them non-toxic and safe to use. More importantly they can all be recycled with normal household plastic waste! Fun, creative, unique gifts and recyclable to boot.

If you feel inspired to create one yourself it’s fairly easy to set up, just need an iron, some pegboards you can buy cheaply at a craft store as well as the beads, and some wax paper.

I would advise if you want to try doing Perler beads yourself make sure you get tweezers. They make the process infinitely easier as the beads are quite finicky to place otherwise.

Get creative and add a magnet to the back so they can stick things on your fridge.

All in all find what ways work best for you and small steps in the right direction are better than none at all. 2020 has been an extremely difficult year for many of us, but I also feel it’s encouraged us to focus on what’s truly important - health, relationships and the environmental impact we have on this beautiful world we live in. I’ve made changes to try to use my money more wisely and I’ve busted out my creative side which hasn’t been exercised in quite a bit. Find something that speaks to your heart and go for it!