Go green this Halloween
With the cost of living crisis becoming scarily apparent and climate change at the forefront of people’s minds, everyone is looking for ways to save money and be more sustainable. So, we would love to share some of our easy ways to create, not only a more cost-effective Halloween but a more sustainable one too. Whether you’re planning on trick or treating with the kids or hosting a spooktacular party with your friends – we know plenty of successful ways to host a marvellous party whilst keeping the cost down and considering our planet.
Dress it up
Firstly, let’s talk costumes. When faced with rows of outfits at your local supermarket, it is often easy to fall down the rabbit hole of expenses. But did you know that 2 out of 5 Halloween costumes get thrown away each year? That’s 7 million items that are sent to landfill every year in the UK – simply frightening. However, there are many other ways to make this process more sustainable, and enjoyable.
Allow your imagination to run wild in the creation of your own outfit designs. Keep old and worn clothes or head to your local charity shop to find cheap handy garments or fabrics. If you’re part of a school parent or community group, swapping worn costumes could also be a great solution. And save both time and money. Use face paint instead of buying plastic face masks. You can be as crazy as you dare! And face paint keeps so can be used until it runs out, creating significantly less waste. Check this out for some scary face inspiration.
Feed me
If hosting a party, making treats with excess food is a fantastic way to reduce waste. If pumpkin carving is your thing, don’t throw away those seeds as they can be an excellent addition to your meals. They are incredibly tasty and versatile. Roast and sprinkle them on your granola in the morning. Or blend them to make a wholesome pumpkin and chilli soup. Any leftover sweets (maybe we are wishful thinkers!) can be saved for gingerbread houses at Christmas. Make sure to read our previous blog posts on how to be creative with food and make the most of pumpkin to help spark your imagination.
We like to think we’re pretty experienced when it comes to party hosting. And getting quantities right is extremely important. We encourage you to only cater for guests that are coming and monitor portion sizes. Overbuying is one of the biggest culprits in food waste. If you’re not sure how to plan this correctly, look at the back of packs for serving sizes and pick items with a longer shelf life. We are huge fans of charcuterie boards because the contents are longer lasting. Cheese and cured meats can keep for up to three weeks if stored correctly.
Spooky decorating
Make the decorations yourself – another fabulous way to get the creative juices flowing. Our favourite creations include toilet roll ghosts, bats and Frankensteins. All you’ll need is toilet rolls, pens, paper and googly eyes. Any excess paper you can use to create spider webs. Or, maybe try to make these fabulous edible decorations – hanging bat biscuits – bound to go down a treat with guests, require few ingredients and save on rubbish.
Recycle recycle recycle!
Every event or party is bound to have some rubbish at the end of it. So, just make sure to dispose of any waste correctly. Placing pumpkins in the food waste bin or any plastic wrappers in the recycling bin. It can be as straightforward as that. Some farms also collect pumpkins for animal food after 31 October, so look out for these too. If you’re dreading washing up after your boozy bonanza and settled for paper plates and cups, try to use the biodegradable variants. Or, even better use a caterer for your party who will supply, wash and return any used crockery. We’ve got you covered for extras like this as we can supply the crockery and even wash up after!
If you’re based in London and fancy a stress-free shin dig this Halloween, get in touch with us. We are advocates for food-waste-free parties and can work within your budget for any spooky-themed event. We cater all sorts of themed events – our harry potter party is a popular choice and perfect for Halloween (or any time of the year in fact) – and we love the challenge of any new ideas. So, talk to us if you have a theme in mind – then you can hang your washing-up gloves up for the night and be free to pull out your best party moves.
