So much of Christmas is about nostalgia: the crackle of the fire, the smell of the pine needles, the taste of homemade Christmas pudding. I was incredibly lucky, I used to spend most Christmases with my grandparents, and numerous uncles, aunts and godparents would stack sparkling, ribbon-laden packages under the tree, which we children divided between us (“Who has the biggest pile?”) while our parents drank too much sherry and ate too many mince pies.
One thing I also remember is my granny (a duchess, no less) insisting that we didn’t rip the wrapping paper so she could use it again. She would spend hours collecting every piece of discarded ribbon. Often we would get the same wrapping paper a few years in a row – and similar presents, which were often things she already owned: trinkets and shells, or tapestries she had made. It used to make me and my brother chuckle.
My grandfather on my mother’s side didn’t want Christmas presents because he said he had lived through the war, which had led him to understand that the last thing he needed was new possessions. Today an eco-friendly Christmas is hard, especially for those of us dealing with children, nephews, nieces and godchildren requesting Paw Patrol toys, Lego and a Princess Elsa doll.
“No presents” isn’t going to cut it with an eight-year-old. So instead we may give fewer but better presents. Perhaps the godparents could chip in to buy a wooden toy kitchen, collectively giving through a website such as storcx.com. I have been investigating sustainable fashion companies for presents that provide recycled, carbon-neutral or plastic-free options. For men, who are always more of a challenge, I like Sheep Inc jumpers, Love Brand & Co swimming trunks and Reef Knots clothes. My godchildren are getting reusable fabric advent calendars, toy rental subscriptions (see the Toy Box Club), monthly deliveries from Daunt Books, or Mud & Bloom plastic-free activity boxes.
Having bought the presents, we then have to tackle how to wrap them. The waste of wrapping paper, cards and ribbon at Christmas is terrifying; about a quarter of a million miles of paper is thrown away – enough to reach the moon. Which is why, much to my mother’s chagrin, I will be emailing photos this year instead of printing them on Christmas cards.
Advertisement
While many of us collect our used wrapping paper for recycling, much of it cannot be recycled because it has plastic, glitter or tape on it. The ideal is to buy recycled and toxic-chemical-free wrapping paper (look at re-wrapped.co.uk, because one tonne of recycled paper would save 17 trees) and to re-use what you can. Banish glitter from paper and cards, and be more like my granny, who wrapped without tape and reused her ribbon.
Next, consider your Christmas tree. A real one is better than a plastic one, as long as your local council can recycle it into wood chippings, rather than sending it to landfill. The best option is to rent or use a live tree that can be replanted. London Christmas Tree Rental (londonchristmastreerental.com) will deliver a living tree, which you need to water daily, and then collect and replant it for you. You can even name it and have it back the following year if you grow particularly attached.
When it comes to decorating your tree, it’s far better to add sparkle with LED lights than those old energy-guzzling incandescent ones, which over a ten-hour twinkle might produce enough CO2 to fill five party balloons. I have boxes of decorations that get lovingly unpacked and repacked year after year, reducing the number of glass or wooden baubles I need to buy.
Festive food waste is the next greenhouse-gas creator. According to Unilever, more than four million portions of Christmas lunch or dinner are thrown away every year – or about a quarter of a million turkeys, 7.5 million mince pies and 11.3 million roast potatoes. Buying less and getting inventive with menus can help; some people just don’t like turkey or Brussels sprouts. Do the boring things such as using the leftovers, freezing things, making stock – and perhaps sharing what you make with a lonely neighbour.
If you can afford to buy a turkey from an ethical producer, such as Swillington Organic Farm, then do it. Avoid farmed salmon and buy sustainable wild Alaskan salmon. And buy your veg from local suppliers; I buy my entire Christmas lunch from Riverford, but Abel & Cole is great, as is Cross Lanes Organic Farm.
Advertisement
I’ve also started composting food waste, another thing my granny did. So although she is no longer around for Christmas, her spirit clearly is, abundant in those trinkets I kept, boxes of ribbons and my continuing struggle with tape-free wrapping.
