News — Trash Free Trick or Treat

Going Zero Waste during any holiday is tricky but Halloween is especially challenging.  The fun quickly turns into trash.

Here are some simple tricks to help reduce waste but don't procrastinate, DIY takes time.

COSTUMES-

• Organize a costume swap.   Costumes are typically worn just a few times and not made of sturdy material.  Extending the life of a costume keeps it out of the landfill.
• Use your imagination and the recycle bin for any cardboard based costumes.  
• Visit a thrift store for inspiration.  A prom dress can become a princess gown.  A bathrobe a super hero cape.
• A glue gun will become your new BFF.

DECORATIONS

This is the easy part.  Fall is the harvest season filled with natural beauty.  Pumpkins, corn stalks, gourds.  If you want a bit more, invest in quality items including wreaths, bunting and treat bags that can be used for years.  My best advice is to have a Halloween box filled with reusable decorations, favorite books and most importantly memories.  

TRICK OR TREATS

It's helpful to limit the number of houses you visit.  Planning an after party can help with the transition.  The after event can be a special video or family game with a big bowl of popcorn and fresh cider.  Instead of playing "Old Maid" switch it up to a Halloween theme.  Have your family make the cards together.  A fun memory is to use old Halloween photos for the pairs.  Yes, this takes time but if you have your Halloween box it's worth it and your deck can grow each year.  

REFUSE

Simply refuse some items including all cheap plastic ones that have an interest span of seconds but a life span of centuries.  

Pass out natural items.  A bowl of polished stones, rocks or shells is exciting.  Coloring sheets, puzzles or candy packaged in cardboard including Dots or boxes of raisins.

You need to start early for your DIY Zero Waste Halloween celebration.  It takes time to collect materials and craft.  You might also need time to set and manage your children's expectations.  

Let's take the truly scary out of Halloween- the trash and still have fun.

Halloween is coming.  I actually love this holiday especially when I was teaching.  It's an opportunity to celebrate the season, indulge in goodies and a chance to dress up and pretend. 

The problem with all holidays is our enjoyment creates mountains of trash- bags of candy, plastic decorations and tiny toys make a lot of trash.

Here are some ideas to help you put the green into trick or treat bags.  

Plastic free candy is a challenge, look for candy wrapped in foil or paper or cardboard boxes.  They will be bulk packed in plastic but it is better than handing out plastic wrapped candy.

It's easier to skip the candy and pass out other sorts of treats.  My favorite idea is a bowl of nature items including shells, sea glass, acorns and stones.  If you live in the city this would be a real novelty for some kids.

Paper straws are a great treat to help raise awareness about the problems of plastic.  Amazon sells boxes of 150-300 and depending on your street a single box could last a few years.  

Sidewalk chalk, tiny cookie cutters, pencils, erasers, bandages, magnets, coloring books or printed coloring sheets, remelted crayons all are lower waste treats and last quite a bit longer than candy.

You can also buy an activity card set and hand out one card per child.  Your local bookstore or toy shop will have a selection.  Expect to pay around $10-12 for a deck of 50 cards.

The website Teachers Pay Teachers has some different printables including Halloween Yoga cards and Halloween PE.   Download to make cute books, printable bookmarks are another option.  The downloads cost between $3-5 making these a fun and cheap treat.

The materials to make a craft are also nice treats.  Friendship bracelets made from embroidery thread are a calming way to end the Halloween frenzy.  You can make a kit for each trick or treater and include directions.  Here is a link-DIY Printable Friendship Bracelet .

I hope this blogs helps you think about ways to celebrate without making lots of extra trash.  Handing out an eco item can help raise awareness about our planet.  Let's all work to make Halloween more green.