By tweaking a few Halloween traditions, we can reduce the amount of plastic used. These tips give you the opportunity to get creative and show others how Halloween can be celebrated minus all of that petrifying plastic.

Costumes

If you head over to a party store or those pop-up Halloween shops to search for the perfect character to dress up as, you will be inundated by cheap plastic costumes wrapped in plastic bags. Although it may be easy to just grab one, these costumes are wasteful and require resources that increase carbon dioxide emissions. Check out some of these greener ways to dress up:

Borrow from family and friends. Many families have a bin filled with costumes and accessories that are just collecting dust. Get some family members and friends together to do a costume share, and mix and match some unique pieces into inventive costumes. Besides saving money, you will be reusing items and giving old costumes a new life.

Make your own. Just think how meaningful it will be if you design your own costume for yourself and kids. Go hunting for fun clothing and accessories at a thrift shop, and during this time of year, many thrift stores set up a section dedicated to costumes. Look around your house for materials you can reuse, such as old T-shirts, buttons, wrapping paper, food containers, bottle caps, etc. Need ideas? Google and Pinterest are your friends!

Rent a costume. Consider renting a costume from a local costume shop or checking out the many costume rental companies online. You can also borrow or purchase from a resale store or thrift shop.
Make a statement. If you are crafty, make your costume completely out of plastic bags, bottle caps, cups, food containers and food wrappers to provide a meaningful learning experience and an opportunity to get people thinking about taking action.

Decorations

Everyone wants to out-spook their neighbor with the best Halloween decorations, but be aware of the endless plastic décor at the store. Typical Halloween decorations often include synthetic spider webs, black plastic spider rings, plastic pumpkins and skeletons and more.

There are many plastic-free decoration options. First, look for ghosts, witches and other decorations made from paper or cardboard, which will decompose much faster than plastic. You can also cut them out yourself; try hanging some black paper bats to frighten your guests. Next, go a bit more natural and choose edible and compostable decorations like colorful gourds, sunflowers, dried fall leaves, wheat or a bale of hay. And, of course, you can’t go wrong with carving pumpkins into all types of jack-o-lanterns to set the mood.

Another way to go green this Halloween is to reuse materials you already have. Weave a spider web with some old natural twine. Make a ghost by stuffing a towel in a white sheet, tying with string and hanging it in a tree or near a door. Add a scarecrow to your yard using some old shabby clothes and a jack-o-lantern head. Finally, challenge your family and friends to use Halloween wrappers from previous years to create custom Halloween decorations to be used in future years.

Trick-Or-Treating

One of the most frustrating Halloween traditions is using plastic bags or pumpkins to collect candy. Try using cloth bags, pillowcases and natural wooden or wicker baskets. You can even coordinate with your costume, such as a basket for a Dorothy from “The Wizard of Oz” costume or a pillowcase when dressed up as a baby.

Treats

Those bite-sized, individually-wrapped treats cause a plastic waste problem, as most candy wrappers are not easily recyclable. While we wait for candy wrappers to go green, here are some ways that you can cut back on plastic candy wrapper waste during your Halloween festivities:

Choose non-plastic wrapped candy. Look for candy wrapped in paper boxes or foil so they can be recycled. Some ideas for plastic-free candies include Smarties, Dots, Hershey kisses and chocolates wrapped in pumpkin-looking foil.

Find other types of goodies to give out. Skip the plastic-wrapped sugary candy altogether and opt for something more interesting and creative to hand out to the kids: friendship bracelets made from thread, Halloween-themed pencils and notepads, Mad Libs or coloring books.

Recycle candy wrappers. Recycle your candy wrappers by participating in Terracycle’s Candy and Snack Wrappers Zero Waste Box. This is how it works: choose the size box you need, purchase it, throw your used wrappers in it, and ship it when filled. The collected waste is separated into fibers that are recycled or composted and plastics that are molded into new plastic products.

Reuse candy wrappers. Artists are now getting really creative with waste products. You can find items like artwork, clothing, handbags, wallets and jewelry made from candy wrappers. Donate your wrappers to an artist, or try your hand at making a masterpiece.

– Sandi Schwartz

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