Finally! Some excellent tips from the Daily Green to ensure your Halloween fun doesn't result in a bag full of trash. (Well, unless your kids are going to be trick or treating - not everyone is as eco-minded ;)1. Reuse Costumes
Tap into the treasures hidden in your closet or attic to pull together a fun, no-cost costume (it won’t take any longer than going to the mall, and will be a lot cheaper). Trade costumes with friends and family if you don’t want to wear last year’s get-up. Shop for accessories at yard sales or resale stores. Use your imagination but don’t obsess. The point is to have fun, not be fashionable!
2. Trick and Treat
In lieu of junk food, hand out pencils made from recycled paper, erasers, nickels or dimes – be creative!. My husband used to live in the same neighborhood as baseball legend Casey Stengel – he gave out silver dollars. My neighbor started doling out small cups of apple cider when she realized how much kids love a drink of something when they’re running around like banshees. NatureMoms offers lots of great links to organic lollipops and other fun and healthy treats.
3. Reverse Trick and Treat
Global Exchange is encouraging kids to help educate adults about Fair Trade cocoa by handing Fair Trade chocolates back as they trick or treat. The chocolates are attached to a card explaining why Fair Trade offers an alternative to child labor, low wages for farmers and a healthier environment. Order by October 13.
4. Have a Party
If you opt to celebrate at home in lieu of trick or treating, put out bowls of snacks rather than serve up individual throwaway treat bags. Offer pop corn, hummus and pita chips, carrots and dips, fresh apple cider, bat-shaped cookies and muffins. Kids will enjoy painting pumpkins, decorating cupcakes, reading scary stories, bobbing for apples, and going on “flashlight hunts” in the yard (if the party’s after dark) for hidden Halloween surprises. Send electronic invitations to avoid wasting paper and postage.
5. Decorate with Nature
A trip to your yard or the farmers market will provide everything you need to dress up your house for Halloween: leaves and branches, hay bales, gourds, pumpkins, mums, dried flowers.
6. Light up the Night
If you string lights (especially to keep walkways safe for kids), use strands of LEDs like these fun spider lights. They use much less energy than conventional holiday twinklers. Illuminate carved pumpkins with candles from beeswax or soy. Decorate windows and glass door panes with these beautiful non-toxic window paints from Hearthsong. If kids need flashlights to get around in the dark, try the BOGO light recharged with solar energy.
7. Turn It Over to the Kids
Forget the store-bought hanging witches and skeletons. Have your kids make hand print spiders for the walls and windows. Upcycle egg cartons into bats. Carve and paint pumpkins.
8. Try a New Bag
The best option for candy collectors is last year’s bag; a pillowcase; or a reusable shopping bag with handles. But if you need something new, try the reusable Chico Halloween Bag. Kids will love its spooky design. You’ll love that it only costs $5.
9. Save for Next Year
When Halloween is over, pack up costumes, treat bags, lights, and decorations in one big box or bag. Store everything in an easy-to-find place so next year, you don’t have to start completely from scratch.
10. Get Even More Ideas
Between Green Halloween and the Green Moms Carnival, you’ll find everything you need to know to make your spooky night as eco as possible.
Source: The Daily Green
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