7 Ways to Recycle Your Holidays

Written by: Kelsey Chernak, Marketing Coordinator and Holiday Hopeful

On the day after Christmas my true love gave to me, a very big mess and a sad looking, brown tree. From cards and wrapping paper to ornaments and pine needles, your house probably looks a lot like a holiday tornado came marching through like a drummer boy.

This year, we encourage you to rethink what goes in the garbage and repurpose your holiday decorations. Here are 7 fun, eco-friendly (and some kid-friendly) ways to reuse holiday waste!

1) Reusable Candles

The wick has burned out as the scent of your favorite candle fills the room, but what if we told you there is a way to use the remaining wax to create a new candle? Grab a spoon to shovel out the leftover wax, microwave for a few seconds, and then pour the liquid into the jar with a new wick from your local craft supplies store. Voila!

2) Cardboard Castle

Do you want to build a… castle? Tis the season for giving, but what no one tells you is you are left with a large amount of cardboard and waste. Instead of throwing out all of the boxes and toy packaging, get creative with your children and design a cardboard castle. Build the castle as tall or wide as you want, then decorate with old wrapping paper and ribbons to make it your own.

3) Holiday Card Gift Tags

One of the easiest ways to repurpose holiday cards is to cut the decorative image into smaller shapes, such as circles, squares and rectangles. Store the shapes and reuse them for next year’s gift tags. We love a good money-saving, eco-friendly hack!

4) Pine Needle Potpourri

Dread the fallen pine needles no more! The delicious scent of a holiday potpourri will make gathering up tree trimmings worth the hassle. Pine needles pair well with cinnamon sticks, cloves, raw cranberries, and oranges. Store the mixture in a decorative bowl or bag and smell the festive past for months to come.

 5) Holiday Ornament Mosaic

Using all of your old and broken ornaments that are lying around, you can curate a beautiful mosaic masterpiece. With adult supervision, break the baubles into tiny tiles. Then, arrange and glue each piece with an artistic flair to create colorful artwork. Warning: You must be old enough to read this blog to perform this activity.

6) Wrapping Paper Confetti

New Year's Eve is right around the corner. While you're waiting for the clock to strike midnight (or maybe you set the clocks forward a few hours for your kids…we don't judge), you can shred the leftover shiny wrapping paper into festive confetti. Your kids will love celebrating the new year with fun decorations that you can feel good about using again and again.

7) Christmas Tree Mulch

Okay, maybe this one isn't for the kiddos. Before you dump the Christmas tree, consider all of the natural benefits it can have in your yard and garden. The foliage makes excellent mulch and wood chips can help revive your home's greenery.

Whatever crafts and projects you decide to do, we hope you keep in mind the benefits of recycling the old into the new. Being conscious of our actions and our impact is a healthy practice for our mind, life, and this beautiful world we live in.