Holiday decor is notorious for creating plastic waste. From the Halloween costumes and trick-or-treat bags to the decor and costume makeup, many elements of this holiday are used only once before heading to a landfill.
One mother didn't want to buy into the hype of buying new fall decor for her home, so she instead DIY'd her own Halloween garland. She posted her creation in the r/Anticonsumption subreddit.
"No buy decor. Just wanted to share this cute garland I made for my two kids out of paper milk cartons. I don't have many fall decorations and absolutely do not want to buy anything new. So I used what I had on hand. It turned out better than I had hoped!" the OP shared.
The picture shows a garland of used milk cartons that have been styled and painted to look like ghosts and jack-o'-lanterns.
This tip is handy for people who want to save money, reuse recyclables, and reduce plastic use in the home. This project will only cost a few dollars to create, and it's also a fun seasonal activity for a family.
A 2019 study by Hubbub examined the extreme wastefulness of Halloween. Around 2,000 tons of plastic waste are generated annually from textiles, costumes, candy wrappers, and decorations. It was found that 83% of Halloween costumes use non-recyclable materials, and many are also only used once before they are tossed.
Retail stores love to push new decor for every holiday. Looking at Target's website, you will find over 3,000 listings solely under Halloween decor, offering everything from stickers and stationery to light-up tombstones and eight-foot-tall witch props. While it's assumed that the pricier decor is kept for many years, the smaller items under $10 often end up at the thrift stores or in the landfills after only a few weeks of use.
When consumers switch to making items at home instead of buying new ones every season, this can reduce the demand for new plastic over time.
The Redditors were quick to compliment the OP's creative use of milk cartons.
"This is extremely cute!" one user complimented.
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Giving me money back 💰 "My daughter is a teacher and I am going to show her this because this would be so cute for the kids to make," another commenter wrote.
"These are far cuter than anything store-bought!" another user responded.
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