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Halloween is one of my favourite times of year, I love all things orange and spooky. Sadly, it is also one of the times of year where there is so much waste created. There are 7 million costumes binned each year, 18,000 tonnes of pumpkins are thrown away each year and around 2000 tonnes of plastic waste created each year (source here). This is terrifying considering this is waste all caused from one festivity.
Whilst this is terrifying, there are some easy and cost effective ways to go about reducing waste this Halloween. This blog post will take a deeper dive into tips on reducing waste.
Reuse from last year
The best way to reduce waste is to reuse from previous years. I have decorations saved up from 4 or 5 years ago because I didn’t see the point in binning them. Especially when money has been spent on them only to have them out for two weeks. I thought i may as well save the decorations to use the following year! This is a great habit to get into as it will reduce the plastic waste from Halloween decorations being binned and will save you money from buying decorations the next year.
Use what you have
Following on from the previous point of reusing from last year, using what you have can help reduce your waste. For example, shopping your wardrobe. Any clothing that you have that you potentially don’t use anymore you could use to put together an outfit. Or if you have children and you are not bothered about the item of clothing you could use some creativity and turn it into an outfit for them. This will then save you having to buy an outfit and not only reduce waste but save on pennies.
Buy Second Hand
The next best option for Halloween outfits is to buy second hand, rather than from a store. With second hand clothing apps such as Vinted and Depop becoming more popular there will more likely be more Halloween options available for yourself or little ones. I’ve already been searching Vinted since mid September and found some great costumes for great prices when payday comes around!
Don’t Throw Your Clothes
Whilst it may be tempting to chuck the outfit once it has been worn, try and reconsider what to do with the outfit. Could you wear this again next year? If you don’t want to wear the outfit again next year, consider donating it or selling it on Vinted or Depop. If the outfit is broken, try and fix it so it is wearable for the next person.
Reduce Pumpkin Waste
One of the major factors in waste around Halloween is waste that comes from pumpkins. I’m in no means saying do not carve any pumpkins this year, just be more mindful about what to do with the pumpkins to reduce waste. For example, eating the flesh and seeds of the pumpkins can help to reduce a significant amount of waste that gets thrown out each year. Find out ways you can Reduce Waste When Pumpkin Carving in this article.
What do you think of these ways to reduce waste this Halloween? Are these methods you have tried before or something you may try this year?
Let me know below, I’d love to hear what you do each year.
