Think Christmas and I’m dreaming of some beautiful stars, a Christmas tree with thousands of ornaments, hot chocolate with marshmallows and candy cane, dozens of presents and greeting cards, snowflakes, Santa Claus and, of course, some hot toddy!

December is a month of over-indulgence and to make merry! But the sudden lockdown announcements brought all plans to a halt this year. The upside is that I indulged in a lot of sustainable Christmas craft. May have reduced the trash for the month by a quarter for sure!

So guess what I used to make Christmas pretty with buying almost nothing?

The journey from tier 2 to 4 in London gave me time to be more creative and what a journey it has been!

Here’s a post with all my favourite items I made in the quietest month of December (ever!) to celebrate a sustainable Christmas!

(Fashion upcycling took a backseat this month!)

1. Handmade Holiday Cards – Sustainable Christmas Greetings!

I made a bunch of greeting cards and the inspiration for these came from pinterest and etsy.

I bought a pack of recyclable cards and envelopes for this sustainable Christmas project and got down to making some handmade cards.

I’d bought a box of buttons to use for my fashion upcycling projects but hardly got down to using them. So I did this; stuck them on Greeting cards! I made some designs using a black pilot pen and marker pen. And then very patiently and carefully, between two pencil marked lines, I wrote “Merry Christmas”.

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And! Flip it over!

On the back of my cards, I wrote instructions to remove the buttons before recycling the card. I also suggested to use the buttons for upcycling.

We get the Evening Standard in our building and I had a copy lying. So I used the newspaper to cut out some snowflakes and stick them at the back of the card. They really looked adorable!

Lastly, I cut stars out of the newspaper to seal my envelopes.

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Things I used for my handmade cards:

1. Recyclable card and envelope pack (6″ x 6″)
2. Buttons
3. Glue
4. Ruler
5. Black and Green Pilot Pens
6. Black Marker
7. Newspaper
8. Scissors

2. Upcycled Wine Bottles

This was so simple and hands down my favourite! It looks very elegant in any corner of the house.

This is not a Christmas specific piece and will be part of my home for quite a while.

I used recyclable thin jute ropes on the darker wine bottles and dripped gold paint on the transparent ones. You can choose to keep or remove the capsule on the bottle neck but definitely remove all stickers 🙂

I put some dried twigs I found at the park in them and it gave it an even more rustic look. You can also use this as a flower vase or just put some fairy lights inside them.

It was my husbands favourite sustainable Christmas item of mine. He’s willing for me to sell these. Any takers? (Check out the video for this on Instagram)

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Things I used to upcycle wine bottles:

1. Empty Wine Bottles (or any other bottle you like)
2. Jute Twine or Rope – I used approx. 20 metres per bottle
3. Bar Knife (If you want to remove the capsule on the wine bottle’s neck)
4. Glue (I used regular for the dry display but for a vase or water bottle use a waterproof glue)
5. Antique Gold paint (I suggest glass paint or acrylic with a primer)

3. A Candle Cap!

Err.. I may have invented that thing!

I had that brilliant green tissue lying and was itching to use it for a tree. So, I did!

Received a letter in a thick dark envelope. I opened the seams of the envelope and from one sharp edge, twisted it around so it looked like a skinny birthday hat.

Next I cut the green tissue in long strips and cut frills on the edge. Then I stuck one circle after another bottom up till we reached the tip. (Check out the reel I made for this on Instagram)

I used the leftover envelope to cut out a star, painted it gold and stuck it on the tree.

Now I wasn’t sure what to make the bark out of so I rested it upon my new pillar candle.

It was a match made in heaven! I decided to call it my candle cap as it fit on it perfectly! (You can also try to use cardboard tubes from your kitchen or toilet roll as a bark)

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Things I used for my Candle Cap Tree:

1. A thick, old envelope
2. Green Tissue
3. Glue
4. Scissors/Blade
5. Gold Paint

4. Sustainable Christmas Cardboard Crafts

I started putting aside coloured cardboard cartons a month in advance so I could use them for craft.

With a nice sharp blade and some glue, you can create some really cool stuff!

I made multiple 2D Christmas trees and used them for my cabinet handles, dull corners and even as gift wrap motifs (suggesting people to use them as tree ornaments too!).

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I also got a delivery in this massive red and white, printed cardboard box that I then cut out and it served as my unconventional and sustainable Christmas tree.

Moreover, I had baked some cookies and cheesecake for my neighbours and used a box of Lindt Thins as a tray. I wish I had the final assembly but all I have is a picture of the lovely newspaper cutouts I found to cover the back of the boxes.

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And you know how you are left with multiple cardboard tubes from your kitchen and toilet rolls? Well, Use them!

I also used some toilet paper to make these flowers and add some frill to the space.

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