5 Easy Green Holiday Ideas

1 - Eco-Friendly Holiday Decorating

For holiday lighting, go with LED lights. LEDs are more efficient than standard lights (up to hundred times!), more durable, and much safer and cooler. Operating ten strings of mini-LED lights (as compared to ten strings of wasteful incandescent mini-lights) saves more than $12 in one month. Unplug or use a timer to turn off holiday lights during the day.

Don't let traditional petroleum-based candles ruin your indoor air quality. Use a Tub-O-Carbon to naturally capture (rather than just cover) odors, and use soy-based candles to fill your home with an earth-friendly scent.

Decorate naturally. Head out to your yard and find tree branches, bush stems loaded with berries, flowers whose seed heads have dried on the stem and flowering grasses to fill tall vases or baskets. It's more sustainable than buying a plant or flower that may be flown in from South America. You can also create a natural tablescape with natural elements or fresh fruit like pomegranates, pears, and apples.

For those with a Christmas tree, try an organic potted tree from your local nursery that can be replanted after the holidays. A single tree can absorb more than one ton of CO2 over its lifetime, so imagine the impact if we all replanted our trees! A few companies in the U.S. allow you to rent a Christmas tree. They'll pick it up and replant it after the holidays are over. If you have a cut tree, be sure to look into local recycling options. Many municipalities and some organizations collect the trees to use for mulch and erosion control. This is much better than having your tree end up in a sealed landfill.

For years, many considered the purchase of an artificial tree to be the environmentally friendly choice. However, most artificial trees are made from mainly non-renewable plastics, often containing PVC. They are non-recyclable and non-biodegradable.

Make recycled holiday ornaments from natural materials in the yard or material you find around the house. Not the crafty type? Many stores now offer ornaments made of recycled materials for sale. Another simple option is to string popcorn and cranberries or use hardened gingerbread cookies.

2 - Green Gifting

Buying online will help to reduce your holiday shopping carbon footprint. When you do want to brave the store crowds, do research online beforehand so that you know which stores carry what you're looking for - you'll be able to reduce your driving between stores searching for those perfect gifts, which will save you on gas and on stress.

Consider e-cards rather than traditional greeting cards to reduce holiday paper use. When paper cards are more appropriate, make sure to use cards with recycled content. Also don't forget to recycle any paper cards you receive.

The average American's trash output goes up 25% between Thanksgiving and New Year's. Reduce the number of bags thrown out by bringing reusable bags for holiday gift shopping.

Consider gifts that help the recipient implement their New Year's Resolution to live a more sustainable life. Gifts that accomplish that AND save the recipient money are especially thoughtful.

Consider gifts like concert tickets and gift certificates to reduce packaging waste and the need for wrapping material. Charitable donations in the recipients' name make great gifts.

Consider the durability of a product before you buy it as a gift. Cheaper, less durable items often wear out quickly. Check product labels to determine an item's recyclability and whether it is made from recycled materials (buying recycled encourages manufacturers to make more recycled-content products available). Avoid any gifts that may contain toxic ingredients like lead or that off-gas Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs).

About 40 percent of all battery sales occur during the holiday season. Buy a rechargeable battery kit to accompany your electronic gifts this year.

Every home really must have a Carbon Monoxide Detector, and surprisingly many people (wrongly) assume they are covered with just a smoke detector. Bring a Carbon Monoxide Detector if you are staying at someone's home for the holidays. It makes a thoughtful gift you can plug in by any combustion appliance (like a gas hot water heater). If they already have one, plug an additional one into an outlet in the bedroom your family is sleeping in.

3 - Reducing Gift Wrapping

When newspaper comics aren't quite the look you're going for in wrapping presents, consider reusing any gift bags that you received last year. Also, try saving wrapping paper for use next year. When buying gift wrap, make sure to find recycled paper content.

Don't burn that leftover wrapping paper in the fireplace. The inks and foils used in wrapping paper may contain chemicals that become toxic when burned. If you can't reuse the paper, don't burn it: recycle it.

For a quick gift tag, reuse last year's holiday cards. Cut off the side that has the signature, thread a ribbon through a corner of the remaining card, and voila!

4 - Eco-Feasting

If you're cooking for the holidays, go local with your food shopping to reduce your carbon footprint. See how much of your meal you can find at your local farmers' markets. For supermarket purchases, try to choose items with minimal packaging to reduce waste. As always, bring reusable bags to reduce waste from disposable shopping bags. If you're bringing your food to someone else's house, pack your dish in a reusable container.

Go organic with your ingredients. Don't forget to go organic with beverages as well; look for organic and local wines, beers, and non-alcoholic drinks. Fair-trade chocolate, tea, and coffee will also add some green to your holiday table.

Serving turkey? Choose a heritage bird. Prized for their flavor, heritage turkeys may cost more than conventional birds, but they are raised naturally rather than in an industrial setting. Purchasing a pastured local bird or an organic bird from your supermarket are also other possibilities to consider when looking for the best holiday turkey for your family.

Recycle and compost while preparing food. Keep a bin handy for glass, plastic and paper trash you can recycle rather than toss. Add vegetable scraps from cooking and dinner to your compost.

Adjust the thermostat down a couple of degrees during holiday gatherings in cooler climates. The heat from cooking and from your guests will keep your home warm.

Disposable plastic ware is energy intensive to produce and can take thousands of years to degrade in a landfill. Providing cloth napkins and reusable tableware is the best option, but can make for a lot of cleanup work. When reuse isn't an option, go green at your holiday parties by using biodegradable tableware.

If you're traveling to enjoy dinner at someone else's house, carpool with family, friends, or neighbors. If you need to fly for the holidays, consider purchasing carbon offsets to keep your travel carbon neutral.

Use all the food you make. Send guests home with leftovers in glass or stainless steel rather than wrapped in plastic or aluminum foil. Freeze leftovers in easily re-heatable portions.

5 - Get Crafty With The Kids

Have the kids cut up old holiday cards to create collages to decorate your fridge, picture frames, or anywhere else in your house.

For a unique holiday craft project, make a simple decorative dough clay with the following recipe: mix 2 cups of plain flour, 1 cup of salt, 1 tablespoon of cooking oil and 1 cup of water together. Use your creativity to shape the resulting dough into unique holiday decorations (just don't mold your dough too thin or too thick, so it doesn't crack or stay uncooked after baking). Glaze your shapes with a beaten egg yolk. Bake the clay for 45 minutes in a medium oven, and then color your decorations with eco-friendly paint.

Create a holiday wreath with evergreen clippings from the yard. Add cranberries strings and LED mini-bulb strips for some color and light.

Make your own votive by recycling a tin can. Remove the label from an empty can and freeze water in it overnight. The next day, sketch a design on the outside in marker and then carefully use a hammer and nail to tap the holes that create the design (the ice will prevent the can from denting). Once the ice melts, add a soy or beeswax candle to create an interesting homemade votive.

Article courtesy of GreenIrene.com