3 ways to green up every celebration in 2010, from anniversaries to Valentine’s Day

As you may know by now, we are big fans of Corey and Lynn from Celebrate Green. These women have amazing ideas on how we can “green” all our holiday celebrations. This month, Corey and Lynn share with us some simple ideas to implement today that will send you on your way to creating celebrations that are better for the planet and people. An added bonus? You’re likely to save a bunch of cash as well.

1. Plan.

• Take advantage of the new year to get a calendar and fill in the dates for every event you think you’ll celebrate this year. Include birthdays, anniversaries, baby showers, weddings, graduations, family reunions, even office parties, then add every holiday you celebrate in any way big or small.
• Now make a list of items you’ll need, i.e. tableware, decor, gifts, food etc.
• Check off what you already own. Then list what you need to beg, borrow, exchange or purchase.
• Print out the list (on recycled paper of course) or put it in your phone, PDA or calendar you carry with you.
• When you’re at the thrift store or a garage sale, or see a great local sale, check the item off your list. Or, if you’re into setting up an exchange, one month before the event on your calendar, add in a date for a neighborhood get together to trade costumes, decor, plates or anything else you come up with.

2. Throw no-waste celebrations. No waste doesn’t mean no trash (unfortunately). It means that everything purchased around a celebration can be recycled, composted or reused. Planning ahead (see tip #1) helps a lot.

Here are a few ideas to make it easier still:

• Be sure to have labeled bins available.
• Ask guests to bring unwrapped gifts, then hide them (the gifts, not the guests) and have the recipient hunt for them
• Collect glass jars, decorate them if you like and have them available for guests to take home leftovers
• Resist purchasing throw away decor–plates, cups, tablecloths etc.–no matter how cute or how well they match your theme

3. Make gifts and decor from items you already own, can collect, trade with friends or re-purpose. Before throwing anything away, ask yourself whether it can be turned into a gift or decor item. Once you start looking at “trash” this way, you’ll be amazed how often the answer will be, “Yes!”