How To Approach The Unsustainable Season More Mindfully

We’re about to head into a flurry of unsustainable events over the next five months, and this may be the last time we can check in with ourselves before it all kicks off. From October to February there is at least one event each month that encourages us to spend more money, buy more things and, inevitably, throw away more waste.

From October to February, we have five unsustainable hurdles to tackle; Halloween, Black Friday, Christmas, the January Sales, and lastly, Valentine’s Day. Throughout these next five months we’ll all feel that pressure to buy new clothes for events and parties, change decorations for each new event, stock up on themed food and drink, and even change our home decor!

But we can do things differently this year. If we go into these next five months with the awareness and mindfulness that we don’t always have time for, we can avoid impulse buys and wasteful traditions, and instead enjoy this time of year more authentically and sustainably.

Blogger Sarah King shares her ideas for how to handle these five hurdles over the next five months…

 

 Halloween
·      Make your own costume with clothes you already own or head to a charity shop for second-hand pieces
·      Thrift or make your own decorations – check out these easy DIY Halloween decoration ideas for some inspiration!

 

 

Black Friday
·      Unsubscribe from any unwanted marketing emails as you’ll no doubt be bombarded with them in the run up to Black Friday
·      If you are planning a big purchase, there’s no harm in getting it in a sale if it’s something you already intended to buy. Just check out the price of it a month before Black Friday and then see how much it is when it goes on sale as many brands raise their prices before the big sale to make the savings look better than they actually are!
·      Try and shop at smaller, independent brands instead of the giants like Amazon, Currys, Very.com and fast fashion brands.

 

Christmas
·      Buy experiences not material items, like day trips or spa gift certificates
·      Shop locally for your gifts, supporting small businesses and giving people something that’s been made with love.
·      Delete Amazon. If you have the app and rely on it for shopping, consider switching to a more mindful way of buying goods and sourcing presents more locally instead of from overseas.

 

January Sales
·      Take this month to focus on saving money, rather than spending it. Spend time with friends at their houses, go for walks in nature each weekend or even try a social media detox for the month.
·      Shop your own wardrobe. Take stock of what you already own and remind yourself of clothes that you maybe haven’t worn in a while.
·      Give, don’t buy. January is often a time where people in need are really struggling, you could donate money, volunteer at a local charity or donate your good quality clothes to your nearest charity shop.

 

Valentine’s Day
·      Instead of the normal gifts, cards and bubbly, why not plan a fun day out for each other, maybe even a day trip somewhere?
·      Put the money that you’d normally spend on flowers, cards, chocolates and stuffed toys towards something you both actually want. Maybe you’ve got a trip coming up that you’re saving for, or a new piece of furniture you need.
·      Invest in a houseplant instead of roses, it’s much more sustainable and can help with the air quality of your house.

 

 

For more tips and to read the full article, click here!