Twelve Days of Conscious Christmas: Day 12, Recycle Your Christmas Tree

It's getting to be that time where you're thinking of taking down your Christmas tree (I do plan on keeping our lights up though January!). If you have a real tree, there are some considerations for disposing of it: 

• Check your local yard waste guidelines. In King County, WA you can only put branches less than 4" in diameter in your curbside bin. Many tree trunks will exceed this. If you have a slender tree, simply chop it us and put it in your regular curbside yard waste pickup. 

• Give your tree new life as wood chips. Check this flier for free or discounted disposal at various events and transfer stations.

• If you have room, let it decompose naturally in your yard. "The tree branches and trunk can provide habitat, shelter wildflowers, hold moisture and help build the soil, mimicking what happens with dead trees and branches in a forest." More information from the Nature Conservancy of Canada here. 

• If you have a fireplace or firepit, use it as firewood. You need to let it dry out first, so you may be prepping it for summer campfires or next winter's fireplace. 

• Support a local scouting group, who make be offering tree disposal as a service and fundraiser. This is the flier for Burien and surrounding areas. 
  

 

 This concludes our 12 Days of Conscious Christmas. I hope you all had a delightful holiday season!

 

Twelve Days of Conscious Christmas: Day 11, Enjoying those Holiday Leftovers

The best way to get bored with leftovers is to eat them exactly the way they were served the first time. Then a week after the holiday you end up emptying out a ton of spoiled containers that were pushed to the back of the fridge. Instead, gather a list of recipes to creatively re-use those leftovers in new dishes!

This applies to recipes that use parts of a food as well. For example, did you make eggs benedict for Christmas brunch that used a bunch of egg yolks only for the hollaindaise? Use the egg whites to make meringues or other baked treats.

Did you make a holiday ham and have a few pounds leftovers? Use some to make a bean or split pea soup, and some for a croque monsieur or madame.

Did you have a veggie and ranch tray? Roast or steam some of those veggies and add to a pasta primavera. 

Today for breakfast, I used leftover mashed potatoes (my mom makes the best with garlicky Boursin cheese mixed in!) to make a baked eggs skillet. Add the mashed potatoes to a cast iron skillet. Make 4 wells for eggs, add cheese, and bake for about 20 minutes. Watch towards the end and don't over cook: you want the whites just done and the yolks still runny. 

You can also use leftover mashed potatoes for potato pancakes. Don't be shy to think outside the box (or Google "[ingredient] recipes" for inspiration) and make something exciting and new out of those leftovers. 

 

Twelve Days of Conscious Christmas: Day 10, Swap to Non-dairy Alternatives

I am not one to preach, because I LOVE me some dairy, in any form: cream cheese, sour cream, etc. But, did you know that dairy milk produces 3x the greenhouse gas emissions compared to plant-based?

I'll be honest: I tried making some oat milk to replace my coffee creamer (both dairy-based and the #1 source of plastic containers in our house), and it didn't work as well as I hoped. The milk tasted fine on its own, but I couldn't help but feeling like I was putting the leftover milk from cereal in my coffee.

Therefore, baked goods will be my next foray as a good way to ease in to alternative milks. While each alternative milk has its pros and cons, I'm interested in oat because: 

1. It's sooo easy to make at home and not purchase in a tetra-pak, which has limited recycling options. 
2. This baker on Epicurious did a comparison test, and determined that oat milk was a great option due to its similar texture to dairy milk and flavor that compliments baked goods.
   

Here's the super easy oat milk recipe I tried, recommended by an acquaintance:

• 1/2 cup oats
• 1 cup water
• 2 teaspoons maple syrup
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• Pinch of sea salt

Blend for about 30 seconds and then strain. Super easy!

I strained in these nut milk bags ($7.95 for 2-pack, washable and reusable). My friend used yogurt strainer. Any very fine mesh should do.

Strain into a container to store in your fridge for several days. It does separate, so you will need to shake before use.

There are tons of tips you can find online, for example, make sure to use cold water, rolled oats not quick oats, and don't over-blend. But this was by far an easy recipe for a novice. 

At an average $4 for 32 oz of packaged oat milk, you can save quite a bit by making it at home.

Twelve Days of Conscious Christmas: Day 9, Gift of Time or Experience

The last few years I've been trying to strike the balance between minimalism and zero waste, basically by not bringing new things into the house, and gifting what I don't need anymore. For gifting, that translates into asking for more experiences, like theater tickets and gift cards to restaurants.

This year, experience gifts take a little more creativity. You can swap theater and sporting tickets for live-stream event tickets, in-person cooking classes for virtual cooking classes, and tour tickets for virtual tours or subscription boxes. Do you have a creative skill, and could spend time teaching them your own master class?

And don't forget the old school homemade coupon book:

With COVID draining people financially, emotionally, and stretching people thin, what do you're loved ones really want or need for the holidays?

 (Image from @becomingminimalist)

So, if you don't want to do the Christmas Eve rush to the mall for a last-minute gift, take a moment to think about what could brighten your loved one's winter, and make a personalized gift certificate!

Twelve Days of Conscious Christmas: Day 8, Swap Your Wrapping Paper

This is the week! Time time get those gifts out of closets and attics and get wrapping! :)

It may be time to start rethinking what you use to wrap those gifts though. Did you know: 227,000 miles of wrapping paper is used each year, or the equivalent of 30 million trees? Crazy! And depending on the type of paper, much of it isn't recyclable.

Here are some options to not add to the problem: 

1) Use what you have: If you already have paper, you may as well use it or donate it. No sense in swapping something that already exists for an alternative. 

2) Purchase paper with recycled content. Simply add recycled to your search terms or look at specialty sites like Green Field Paper.

3) Purchase paper that's recyclable. This one is harder, because you need to check your local rules to avoid "wishcycling". In general, avoid glitter and foil. You've probably seen some amazing beautiful packages with simple brown kraft paper. 

(Source) 

4) Use alternative papers. Do you still read a physical newspaper? Paper grocery bags? Or have outdated paper maps? They can make a fun alternative wrapping. One of my great joys each year, is my friend Andrew, who makes his holiday card and envelopes out of old maps. 

(Source)

5) Try the furoshiki wrapping method, where you wrap the gift in fabric. You can have specific wrapping fabrics that you reuse each year, or make part of the gift into the wrapping, like a scarf. Here I used a tea towel.

6) Make reusable fabric gift bags. Again, these can become part of the present, or be re-exchanged with your family and friends each year. 

Each of these will also save you $$$. The tea towel for my furoshiki wrapping? Since it was part of the gift, I paid $0 for wrapping. A fabric reusable gift bag? Costs the same or less than a paper gift bag, and lasts for many more uses.

Happy Wrapping!

Twelve Days of Conscious Christmas: Day 7, Swap Your Holiday Candles

Nothing makes a holiday cozier than twinkling lights, and for me that includes candles. 

If you aren't seeking a fragrance, faux electric "flameless" candles can be a good way to go. They can be safer for forgetful people, and now come with energy-saving LED bulbs.

For those who still love the look of a traditional candle and may want the house-warming scents of pine or cinnamon or sugar cookie, an easy swap can be looking at the materials your candle is made out of. 

You'll want to look for coconut or beeswax vs paraffin or palm oil.

Coconut (pros): Vegan, sustainable, no major red flags for impacting habitat. It's a softer wax so sometimes blended with beeswax or soy.

Beeswax (pros): Beeswax is collected at the same time as honey. Strict vegans may be opposed.

Soy (pros and cons): Soy wax is made from the oils of soybeans, and renewable. However, soybean farming is tied to impacts to the Amazon, jaguar, and local farmers in South America. Consider looking for organic labeling. 

Palm oil (cons): Palm oil is a major driver of deforestation and habitat destruction for species like orangutans and tigers.

Paraffin (cons): Paraffin wax is derived from petroleum, both a non-renewable resource and releases benzene and toluene when burned. (Source)

Where can you buy better candles? The good news is: anywhere. With coconut, beeswax, and soy becoming more popular, you'll find them at popular stores and websites like Target and Amazon. Here are just a few examples: 

(Coconut and soy blend. Scents include gingerbread, pine, snickerdoodle.) 

 

(Holiday Fir beeswax candle)

 

(Red beeswax tapers, subtle honey scent)

Another resource I love is The Good Trade. They aren't a shopping site, but rather a resource site for sustainable shopping. Check out their guide for 11 Natural Candles here.

Twelve Days of Conscious Christmas: Day 6, Second Hand Gifts and Decorations

(courtesy of greenpeace.org article)

When you think of second-hand gifts, you may think of half-used presents, the re-gifted unwanted or white elephant present, or of items that might be dirty or broken. 

This is where we need to shift our thinking:

Unless it's a collectible, how many times are you going to read that book, or assemble that puzzle? Does a book become unusable after a couple reads? Do you not borrow books from friends or the library? 

For parents of young children, do you not love when you get a bagful of hand-me-down clothes from your friend or neighbor? After all, those clothes only got 3 months of wear before they were outgrown. 

So why, for gifting, does second-hand become taboo? 

Now, don't get me wrong: items from thrift stores or pulled out of storage should definitely be washed before re-use, especially during COVID. But the need for that quick extra step shouldn't eliminate it from the options. 

Here are just a few of the quality, gently used items I've found recently while thrifting:

Assorted holiday tins, average $0.99 each. Perfect for mailing or wrapping any gift, but my eye is on these for fudge or peppermint bark!

These ceramic ($2.99) and melamine ($0.99) treat dishes. Pile these with cookies, and do a porch drop off to your friends as a socially-distant version of a cookie swap.

Mugs galore (average $1.99, compare to $8 new). Fill these with your favorite hot-cocoa mix and gourmet toppings.

This festive doll ($6.99, compare to $25 new), for the kid on your list.

Or this porcelain doll ($9.99, compare to $50 new) for the older kid or collector.

Or these wooden Peace and Joy signs ($0.99 each), for your home or your friend who needs a bit of holiday cheer this season.

For more specific selection, expand beyond the thrift store: 

• Antique stores: Great for collectibles and jewelry, and perhaps carries a classier image than Macklemore poppin' tags?
  
• Game Stop takes trade-ins and carries used video games, consoles, and accessories. 
• Half Priced Books carries not only books, but also movies and music. 
• PoshMark, ThredUp, and Swap.com carry clothing and accessories, including brand names, and filterable by "like new" condition. 
• Even Amazon: select Used condition when looking at a particular item, or choose "Amazon Warehouse" from the categories list to see a wide range of used selection.

You won't be alone in the second-hand gifting market (an Accenture survey showed 56% of participants would welcome used gifts) but you also wouldn't be alone in worrying if it was acceptable (a lower 48% said they would give used gifts). However, since over half said they would be happy to receive them, let's erase the stigma and normalize secondhand gifting! 

Need more convincing? 

CNBC Article: I love this one. Key takeaways were the Accenture study referenced above, and that Macy's and JC Penney have partnered with ThredUp to offer second-hand apparel at select stores. 

Yahoo Finance article: love that this is from the point of view of a mom and her sons' perspectives.