Christmas has come and gone, your holiday guests have left to go back home, and it’s time to do some after-Christmas cleaning in the house. Do you have used wrapping paper that needs to be tossed? Leftover food to eat, and old toys and clothing that need to be removed in order to make room for new things? Use green cleaning practices when you are cleaning up after the holidays. Try these eco-friendly after-Christmas cleaning tips.
1. Reuse gift wrapping paper. Run it through the paper shredder and use it to stuff gift bags or baskets, or to ship items throughout the year. If nothing else, you can use wrapping paper to protect delicate ornaments as you are taking down the Christmas tree.
2. Save gift bags for next Christmas. I always reuse gift bags, unless they are too beat up to use again. I sometimes even use the bigger worn-out bags to hold smaller gift bags, ribbon and tissue paper that I can use throughout the coming year.
3. Use green cleaning products. After all your guests have gone home, the house might need to be cleaned and straightened up a bit. I like to make my own green cleaning products with safe ingredients. See the links at the end of the article for green cleaning recipes and product ideas.
4. Take reusable containers for leftovers. Rather than taking disposable dishes and plastic baggies of food home after your Christmas dinner, bring your own containers to hold leftovers. This way, you waste fewer resources and don’t have to worry about returning dishes to your mom.
5. Donate to the local shelter. This is a good time to go through old toys and other items to donate to charity. Another place to keep in mind is the animal rescue shelter; they can always use towels, dishes and other items for the rescued pets.
Some homes, especially those with larger families, might get turned upside down after the holidays. Our house was always littered with wrapping paper and toys after opening gifts on Christmas morning. Instead of tossing that paper in the garbage, find ways to recycle it. Use green cleaning practices once Christmas has come and gone, if not all year round.
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