Easter
How can we have a plastic-free Easter?
Eggs – 3,000 tonnes of packaging every year!
If you have been following our series through Christmas /Valentine’s Day/Mothering Sunday, there are several ideas around cards, gifts and flowers that also may apply to Easter. But the BIG one, as far as Easter is concerned are the eggs of course.
Quite apart from the potential plastic waste, Easter eggs are inordinately expensive, often yielding very little chocolate within a case of expensive and non-reusable/recyclable packaging. On their website, Friends of the Earth comment: “ A few years ago the government's waste advisory body, Wrap, calculated that the 80-odd million Easter eggs we buy each year come with around 3,000 tonnes of packaging – a significant amount of it plastic waste.”
A scout around the various chocolate egg manufacturers in 2019 with the Evening Standard will lead you to a range of plastic-free eggs, but these do tend to be aimed at grown-ups and are generally on the pricey side. The Co-op also has a range of plastic free eggs, but these also seem to be aimed at grown-ups.
For children, take a look at some of these ideas on The Vendeur.
Or alternatively, you can make your own! These, for example are made by securing onion skins around eggs and then hard-boiling. It takes a bit of patience but every one is different. In the north of England, these are known as Pace Eggs.
Alternatives to eggs
If it doesn’t have to be an egg, there are loads of great ideas for gifts on Etsy, many of which are plastic free.
Decorations
Easter Trees are now becoming a ‘thing’. These don’t need to cost the earth (!) and look lovely when using a few branches coming into leaf.
There are some lovely hand made decorations – or maybe you can make some yourself
Almost all of this display was hand made using branches of willow, hazel and blackthorn. Blown eggs were dyed or painted and wooden Butterflies and clay hens added. The spotty and striped eggs were made from card and threaded to hang (carefully) across the fireplace. You might also spot some felt and fabric hens and rabbits – a true work of art!
Another idea is to create a door wreath. This one was made re-using the cardboard from commercial eggs with buttons, ribbon etc.
Easter Cards
Nowhere like as popular as Christmas Cards, but some are still sent.
As ever, aim for cards without glitter and embellishments.
