How to waste less this Christmas

Tags

antique markets, art class, best intentions in the world, bight, bills, bin, BOGOF, books, bottles, box of chocolates, brand new, budget, buying gifts, cans, carbon emissions, carnage, charity shops, Christmas, Christmas lights, comics, cooked, cookery course, curries, dad, December, decorations, drink wine, eat food, environment, foil, food, fridge, Frozen, give and receive gifts, good time, Grazia, gym membership, high waste alter, hospice, January, kids, landfill sites, LED lights, leftover, library, list, local hospital, loved, physical products, Plastic, Radio Times, ramp up, recycle, shelter, shiny, sister, soft toys, soup kitchen, soups, spark nostalgia, supermarket, tree, unique gifts, Veg and meat, vintage clothes, vintage scarf, waste, wrap, wrapping, wreaths

Let’s face it, Christmas can be a time of waste.

With all the best intentions in the world, as we give and receive gifts, eat food, drink wine and generally have a good time, there will be things that get leftover and thrown in the bin which puts the environment on a high waste alert.

We aren’t saying don’t have fun and relax, but we are going to look at how you can enjoy Christmas without adding to landfill sites and blowing your carbon emissions out of the water.

Buy pre-loved
When buying gifts, you don’t have to get something that is bright, shiny and brand new. Spending an afternoon at antique markets and visiting charity shops is a fun way to find some really unique gifts that will be just as good, if not better, than something going to a new home for the first time. Books, soft toys, vintage clothes and china are all out there for the taking and you never know, you could spark nostalgia with the gifts you give this year and make someone feel really loved.

Think about gifts that keep giving
You don’t have to buy physical products. How about a pass to the local petting farm? A gym membership? A cookery course or an art class? These could really help someone out and they will know you have thought about them with your choice of gift, and of course an experience means no waste.

It’s all in the wrapping
Once you have a present, think about how you wrap it. If your sister is fashion mad, wrap that vintage scarf in the pages of an old copy of Grazia, for kids, use comics, and for your TV bonkers dad, the Radio Times covering his box of chocolates will be perfect. This means you recycle and cut down on glitter and ribbon that isn’t good for anything at all.

Be a smart shopper
We have all been there – the night before Christmas and the supermarket is carnage and not a lot of fun as people buy as much food as they can. Make a list of what you need, don’t go for the BOGOF offers and keep to a budget.

Don’t waste food
If you do over do it on the dinner front, don’t just put the remains in the bin. Veg and meat can be put in the fridge and eaten the next day, soups and curries can be cooked and frozen and if you have more than you need, make up parcels and give them to a local soup kitchen or shelter – someone will be very grateful you don’t bin what is probably great food.

Save power
We all love Christmas lights, but they don’t need to be on 24/7 for the whole of December and January. Put them on in the evening and turn them off when you go to bed. Use LED lights and go easy on outside decorations, as they can eat electricity and ramp up your bills as well as your emissions.

Recycle
The tree, decorations, wreaths, cans, foil, bottles, plastic and food are all recyclable. It might seem like a pain, but if we all do this it does make a difference. Also, if you have gifts that aren’t for you, why not give to someone who would like them, take them to a local hospital or donate to a charity shop or library. You might not want it, and you might not want to offend the recipient by asking for a receipt, so do something for someone else and you will be glad you did.

Got a create less waste tip? Send it our way, we are all ears.

Team Pure Beauty

Give up stress for Lent

Tags

alternative, anxiety, bike ride, brisk walk, bus, celebrity culture, change of scene, chocolate, cold, Computer screen, damp, dark cloud, donating time, drinking, elderly person, emotions, exercise, Find a friend, food bank, friend, fun run, give back, good feeling, GP, helping others, hospice, indulgent, lazy, Lent, lonely, love, lungs, Me time, modern day living, move, mums, obsession, outside, perspective, pressure, problems, process, pub, relaxing, run, school gates, sedentary activities, selfies, social media, socialising, solutions, stress, support network, surprise, tennis club, training, trust, volunteer, watching TV, wine, working

 

We know that during Lent you are meant to give up chocolate, wine or something you really love but given how bad stress is for us, why not try to live without it for a few weeks and see how you get on?

It is little surprise that more and more people are dealing with anxiety and stress related issues given the pressure of modern-day living. Celebrity culture, an obsession with selfies and social media on tap 24/7, life is one long hamster wheel and sometimes you need to jump off and see what really matters.

Rather than light up another cigarette or down one more vodka and orange, why not have a look at some alternative ways to deal with stress and see if you can combat it for once and for all.

Move
Exercise isn’t a magic wand that will make your stress disappear, but it can help reduce the intense emotions you might be feeling. A run, brisk walk or bike ride can help you clear your thoughts and find a way to deal with problems in a different, maybe more rational way.

Find a friend
Yes, there are people at work, people on Facebook and mums at the school gates, but us can still feel lonely and this is where real friends, you can trust, come into play. It won’t happen overnight, but try to create a support network of people, you enjoy being with and you will find that as much as they will help you find solutions to problems, you can do the same for them and that’s a pretty good feeling.

Me time
We are often made to feel as if taking time for ourselves is lazy and indulgent but this couldn’t be further from the truth. To be able to fire on all cylinders, it is important to take time out for socialising, relaxing and exercise, time that is just for you. A couple of hours a week doing something you really love, either alone or with friends, can really help you shrug off that dark cloud that has been following you around.

Get a pet
Never underestimate the love of a dog, cat or even hamster. A pet not only gives you a new interest but also a little bit of company, a lot of love and if you do get a dog, you have to take them outside for a walk each day which is good for both of you.

Be a volunteer
It is easy to get caught up in our own problems, so helping others can be a good way to put things into perspective. Visiting an elderly person, donating time at a local hospice or sorting out donations at a food bank are all ways you can give back and you never know, you could make friends and even find a new career in the process.

Go outside
Sitting indoors watching TV, working at a computer screen and drinking in the pub are all pretty sedentary activities where you rarely see the light of day and probably all make you feel worse. A walk, even when it is cold and damp, by the river or a dash around town will not only give you a change of scene but also put fresh air in your lungs and give you a break from the norm. Joining a tennis club, training for a fun run or just getting off the bus a stop early, can be enough to get you, and your mind, out of a stressed rut.

Of course, if you are really struggling talk to a trusted friend or your GP but don’t suffer in silence.

Team Pure Beauty