How to have a Sustainable Halloween

I like everyone else am trying to make better choices, understand the world we live in better and understand where things come from/how they are made. I did write a “Sustainable guide for Christmas” which you can check out as well from last year. However, I realised that I have never done one for my other favourite event and that is Halloween.

I do think that the last year we have seen a lot more positivity in terms of how products are made, but also awareness from people of what they are buying. Which of course I think is brilliant and the best way forward. However, we do still have a long way to go!

In case you are not aware…

What does it mean to be sustainable?

I understand that there are many different interpretations and ideas of what “sustainable” is. However, from my viewpoint I would argue that being sustainable means being kind to our environment and not depleting our natural resources, and so we are encouraging long-term ecological balance.

I am not going to lie I have always had this with me for years. For example, I have always shopped in Charity shops, I wear things over and over again (I still have a lot of clothes from when I was 13/14 years old) and I love products that will last me a long time. However, of course I am not perfect and there is still so much I can do as well, and still so much for me to learn.

I also understand that my lifestyle is completely different to everyone else and if you can only afford to shop cheaper stores then you do you and that is fine. I only want to raise awareness and get talking about sustainability, and maybe there are some small changes we can all make.

Onto today’s topic, I love Halloween (I mean I think everyone knows this by now), but I do also want to help the environment as well.

How to have a sustainable Halloween!

I have come up with some ideas that I hope will help others in making more sustainable choices when it comes to Halloween, but also hopefully I can offer alternatives as well. Let’s celebrate Halloween in the best way possible, whilst also benefiting our environment!

Eat/Shop Locally

Normally I would suggest this and love the idea of visiting my local farm and picking up the fruit and vegetables. Of course during this time it might vary and some local farms may not even be open for visitors. However, this can still be used for years to come.

I have mentioned previously in my transitioning into Autumn post that is it always good to move with the seasons and see what vegetables are available during this time of year. Therefore, going to a local farm and having a look around will not only support a local and small business but it will allow you to see what is available at the moment.

Also not to mention that it can make a cute date day or even a family day if you have kids. For example, you could go Pumpkin picking like I did last year and it was such a fun day out with my mum!

Reuse items

I have seen this a lot more around Christmas time but there are families that enjoy buying new decorations every year. However, this is just wasteful and I think if you are spending so much money on items then you need to be getting the most use out of them.

Therefore, if you buy items then buy them because you are planning on using them for the long term. However, of course if you don’t want the items anymore then definitely donate to charity, give to family or friends or sell them online. We just need to think of ways to discourage waste and encourage reusing items in our life.

Get creative

There are a lot of beautiful crafts out there and it inspires me all the time. But I encourage you if you have some spare crafts laying around the house then have some fun and create your own Spooky decorations.

Plus this again can be a fun activity to do with the kids or even as a date night if you are both crafty. Not to mention getting creative means you are creating unique pieces of decorations that will look great in your home.

Less Plastic

Unless you already own a product made of plastic that you are reusing then I suggest finding or looking around for products that are not made from plastic. I understand this may be difficult as cheaper stores do provide most of their decorations made from plastic.

However, I have seen a lot of products made from felt this year! I actually purchased the most beautiful felt garland last year in my Halloween Haul and I love it so much! Therefore, I just think sometimes it is worth looking around and seeing what is available, and thinking about what the product is made from.

Budget

I think something that is also important is to budget. I think when you set yourself a budget then you know that is what you need to stick to and you are less likely to buy stuff for the sake of it. This is because, you know you cannot spend over that certain amount.

I love a budget I am going to be honest. This year I actually created a budget for Christmas on Excel and I just love it. I couldn’t recommend it more to people, because you have a clear focus on how much you want to spend and you end up saving so much.

DIY costume

Similar to creating your own crafts I suggest having some fun and DIY your own Halloween costume! I have always done this and had so much fun doing so. I mean let’s be honest it is Halloween so you don’t have to have a great costume, the fun part is that it can look scruffy.

One year I bought a £2 white top from Primark, cut it up a bit and covered it in fake blood and there you go! I then used this a few times for various Halloween parties/events and even for different characters. I think at one I was a zombie, at another one I was a vampire etc.

Another idea is to buy second hand either through a charity shop or even on Depop! I have seen quite a few costumes on Depop so that could be a good idea for you.

I love the idea of looking through my wardrobe and just creating an outfit together. I mean I have quite a dark and grunge style anyway so that is perfect for Halloween.

How to have a sustainable Halloween!

There you have it some of the different ways you can have a sustainable Halloween! I am sure there are plenty of other ideas as well, but I thought I would start with these. Hopefully if we can all make small changes together then this will make a huge difference.

Do you have any ways to be more sustainable at Halloween?

Thanks for reading,

Gemma Jayne x

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