Prepare for the post-Christmas cleanup
Once the turkey or vegan roast is eaten, and we’ve all had plenty of festive cheer, the last thing we want to be doing is thinking about the clean-up! Nor do any of us want to brave the shops on the hunt for the materials we need to de-Christmas, detox, and clean up our homes.
That’s why we’ve made your life easier, by helping you plan ahead for the Christmas cleanup. We’ve even made sure it’s eco-friendly so that you can reduce your waste and your carbon footprint at the same time.
Keep things clean in the kitchen throughout the festive period
Christmas can produce an overwhelming amount of mess, spillages, and washing up. Where possible, it’s always better to clean as you go so you aren’t faced with pure kitchen carnage on Boxing Day.
If you’re hosting Christmas Dinner this year, you’ll probably be cleaning more than ever (we hate to break it to you) so you’ll find yourself going through cleaning materials at an alarming rate. To save on the plastic waste that comes with this, why not invest in cleaning sachets that simply need to be dissolved in water?
Our all-in-one refillable cleaning kit is eco-friendly, sustainable, and comes in a range of exotic scents. We’re sure they’ll help you keep on top of your cleaning this Christmas!
Hosting guests? Keep your bathroom shipshape
This year, we will probably be welcoming more footfall into our homes than we did last year. It’s safe to say you’ll probably want to give your bathroom a bit of a spring clean after your guests leave.
Swapping to an eco-friendly bath cleaner doesn’t mean you’re sacrificing effectiveness. Our cleaning paste lifts grime from baths, sinks and showers with ease, and you can even use it on your Christmas dinner filled pots and pans.
Once you’ve got a lovely clean bath, make sure you take the opportunity to have a nice soak - as you’ll definitely deserve it.
Effectively dispose of your tree
In the UK, between six and eight million real Christmas trees are sold every year. That means that there’s a lot of potential wastage.
There are three main ways of taking care of your tree once the festive season is over.
- Replant it. If you have a potted tree, why not pop it in the garden and use it again next year? Across the UK there are even schemes where you can return the tree once Christmas is over.
- Recycle it. Take it to your local recycling centre, or see if your local authority has a special collection service. The trees will be turned into chippings to create paths for local beauty spots.
- Treecycle it. Some local charities collect trees and turn them into flood defences. If you’re in a part of the UK that floods a lot, why not help out your local community by donating your tree?
Use your leftovers
It’s easy to get carried away with Christmas shopping which is why each Christmas we produce 30% more waste than we do the rest of the year.
Rather than binning your leftovers, think of creative ways to use them up.
Make stock from your turkey, pickles from your veg, or even just freeze foods as they are to enjoy at another time.
You can even use beeswax wraps safely in the freezer
Compost your food waste
A lot of organic materials can be composted, including food waste. If you’re stuck with scraps that you can’t reuse, consider composting them in a food caddy.
To remove the risk of vermin, and to prevent any unsavoury smells avoid composting the following items:
- Meat, fish & dairy
- Cooked food
- Coal and coal ash
- Cat litter
- Disposable nappies
- Any pet faeces, unless your pet is a herbivore.
Looking to keep your food waste sealed safely? Compost bin liners can keep your bin clean without producing any microplastics
Recycle your cards and wrapping paper
Sadly most Christmas cards and wrapping paper cannot be recycled due to the glue, glitter, and inks that are used.
Rather than let them go to waste, save up larger bits of wrapping paper and neatly fold them so they can be reused next year. If you have any cards with any nice design features, just cut off the design, store them up, and next year you can stick them onto a new card (bonus points if you use cards made from recycled materials)!
Regift unwanted presents
In the UK, we receive around £700 million of unwanted presents each year. Where possible, keep unwanted gifts and regift them either next Christmas or on someone’s birthday or just because.
If you don’t have the space or simply really can’t think of anyone, why not collect up everyone’s unwanted gifts and donate them to charity? This could be a local charity shop or even a local food bank (who normally accept a lot more than just food!)
These tips aren’t just for Christmas. A lot of these things can be done all year round to help you reduce what you throw away, and keep your home nice and clean. Win-win!