Thinking of throwing a party this weekend? Whether it’s just a few friends over for cocktails or a birthday bash for 25 screaming 10-year olds, your party doesn’t have to fill the trash can with one time use plastic waste. Here are a few ideas to make your parties a little more eco-friendly:

1. Ditch the plastic plates, cups and cutlery! There are plenty of partyware options out there that are made from environmentally friendly, plastic alternatives. While it may be a bit difficult to find these products in stores, they can all be found online like:

Ecovita Cutlery: www.ecovita.co is made from 100% compostable, plant-based resources

and

Eco Products: www.ecoproducts.com We're a green company that happens to operate in disposables.

Sustainable disposables sound like an oxymoron, but we live in a consumer culture where disposable products are ubiquitous. And they aren't going away anytime soon. We see this as an incredible opportunity to help change the world—and more importantly, each of the local communities we serve—by making sustainable disposable products that shift an industry.

And please, please, PLEASE stop using one-time-use plastic straws! There are MANY inexpensive, readily available alternatives. @aardvarkstraws is a paper alternative straw that is heavy-duty, reliable and is available in fun colors for any party theme. Get them at Aardvarkstraws.com

Look, even if you want to keep using the Red Solo Cups for your Beer Pong or Tailgating parties, consider saving the cups, washing them out and reusing at future parties. They can be reused! Also, BYO Reusable Bottle to parties is a great way to cut down on plastic waste! If your friends want to drink, ask them to bring their own @Hydroflask! Mason jars are also a fun alternative that can be used over and over again.

2. Be mindful of the beverages you buy! Avoid buying individual plastic bottles of whatever soda or juice you want to serve. Glass and aluminum are easier to recycle and are much better alternatives. Consider putting a recycling bin next to the trash cans to avoid time-consuming sorting later. Let’s face it, you’re not going to want to sort through all that once the party is over so make your life easier! If you’re planning on serving beer, consider renting a keg instead of buying cases and cases of individual bottles or cans. Same goes for water. Get a larger, self-serve container for water (Igloo 5-Gallon Drink Dispenser from Home Depot like: shorturl.at/uzKX6) instead of one time use plastic water bottles. Paper or reusable cups make for a great party favor, if you’re into that sort of thing. Also, mason jars….don’t ever forget about the mason jars!

3. Rentals! There are plenty of party supply places out there and they don’t just rent out bounce houses and chairs. You can rent glassware in bulk if you want a swankier affair. Wine glasses, champagne glasses, beer or water glasses are all rentable. So if you want to eliminate the one time use plastic cups but don’t have room for all those mason jars, consider renting. Most places even deliver to make your party planning even easier!

4. Get creative with your decorations! No kids party is complete without bright, colorful and even themed decorations. There are plenty of environmentally friendly ways to decorate a party. Ditch the balloons and confetti. Use fabric bunting instead of plastic streamers. Instead of goodie bags, consider a party experience where kids can make their own crafts to take home. Pottery making, tie-dye, or succulent parties are all the rage right now and much less wasteful.

5. Reinvent gift-giving! Because of dyes, glitter, and shiny laminates most wrapping paper is not recyclable. Consider alternatives to wrapping paper: old travel maps, newspapers, or even fabric that can be reused. Let your kids draw up fun and festive designs on plain paper and use that as gift wrap for their friends or their grandparents. And finally, let’s stop thinking of re-gifting as a bad thing. The fewer new things we buy and the more “old” things we reuse and repurpose, the better!

Have ideas of your own? Let’s hear them in the comments on our Social Media post! It’s time we all start working together to make our planet a cleaner, more sustainable place!

Did you know...if you have an Amazon Smile account, you can choose to support Drains to Ocean? Every little bit helps and we are extremely appreciative of your support!

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Drains to Ocean is a grass roots, non-profit organization with a mission to keep pollution from flowing into our rivers, lakes, and oceans.

@drainstoocean www.drainstoocean.org

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