Category: Holidays

bookmark_borderHow to Celebrate World Fair Trade Day

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Hey earth muffins! May 14th is World Fair Trade Day! If you aren’t familiar with this event, it is an annual global celebration held on the second Saturday of May. It is a time to support small farmers, producers, and artisans (and their families!) to create more sustainable and healthy communities around the world. Fair trade is amazing and impactful; here are my suggestions on how to celebrate World Fair Trade Day this year!

Shop from some fair trade stores!

While I don’t often shop for new items (I’m typically a new-to-me girl), I definitely support some fair trade shopping to celebrate this day! I bet you a ton of your local small businesses carry a plethora of items you can purchase – just look for a fair trade label. If you aren’t sure how to identify “fair trade”, ask a friendly staff person in the shop and hopefully they can help. 😊 There are also plenty of online retailers that only sell goods that are fair trade. WorldFinds has amazing accessories (see my Kantha jewelry haul from them) and Fair Trade Winds is another website that has an awesome selection of everything from home decor to felt flowers.

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bookmark_borderHow to Celebrate a Zero Waste Cinco De Mayo!

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Cinco De Mayo is this Thursday πŸ₯³ Regardless if you plan on throwing a party or just cook some authentic Mexican food by yourself, there are ways to make it more eco-friendly and good for the planet. Here are my suggestions on how to celebrate a zero waste Cinco De Mayo this year!

~Educate yourself on the history of the holiday

Just like with Earth Day, Cinco De Mayo is often a day where brands advertise their products without any reference to the true meaning of the holiday. Don’t fall into the consumerism trap – make sure you understand the significance if you end up celebrating! There are plenty of ways to educate yourself: doing a Google search, reading a book, or even listening to a podcast about the topic. Learning is a great way to be sustainable too, as it is an easy way to celebrate a zero waste Cinco De Mayo.

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bookmark_borderAwesome Earth Day Activities to Celebrate in 2022!

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Hey earth muffins! If you don’t know already, April is “Earth Month” and the eco-friendly festivities all lead up to Friday – Earth Day! While I try my best to live in a way that makes Mother Earth happy every day, I love to treat her extra special on this holiday… And I think you should too. If you aren’t sure how to celebrate this April 22nd, look no further. Here is the ultimate list of fun Earth Day activities to try! 😍

1. Subscribe to a few eco influencers to stay inspired!

On a day like Earth Day, it is easy to join a ton of people in celebrating our planet. But on a normal Tuesday in the middle of the summer, it can be harder to stay inspired to continue being eco-friendly. To make sure your Earth Day activities last longer than just a single day, I recommend subscribing to some eco influencers to keep sustainable living top of mind. Obviously I suggest following me and Life of an Earth Muffin πŸ˜‰ – but here is a list of my favorite sustainability influencers too!

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bookmark_borderEco-Friendly Easter Gifts: What to Put in Your Baskets!

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Hey earth muffins! It is crazy to think that Easter is only ten days away. Lent has gone by so fast! I hope everyone is looking forward to spending time with family and friends to celebrate the holiday; I know I definitely am. Most people make some sort of Easter basket… Which can totally be sustainable! 🌎 ❀️Here are my top suggestions for eco-friendly Easter gifts to give this year!

Go with secondhand baskets.

Most of the “Easter” baskets at the store are flimsy and cheaply made these days. Instead, check out the options at your local thrift stores to find baskets of all shapes and colors. You can always find a ton of basket choices secondhand, which makes it easy to avoid those crappy ones elsewhere.

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bookmark_borderHow to Throw a Zero Waste Party – Birthday Edition!

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Hey earth muffins! My boyfriend’s 25th birthday is just around the corner, so I thought it would be fun to write a themed birthday post today. 😍 I wrote a whole post about how to celebrate a zero waste birthday last year; but, I wanted to focus on a zero waste party today. Parties are super fun and a great way to celebrate your loved one – and they can definitely be eco-friendly too! Here are my top tips for throwing the coolest zero waste party this year!

1. Use e-invitations

As a kid, I remember getting invitations in the mail for birthday parties. While I personally love getting something special in the mail, you don’t have to use paper invitations anymore. Instead, try electronic alternatives! There are tons of great websites that allow you to send invites. If you don’t want to be limited by their designs, use sites like Canva to create your own and email it out to friends. You could also start a group on Facebook that invites everyone. This is a great way to mass send all the details for the party! Paper invites are usually thrown in the trash, so definitely choose electronic instead.

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bookmark_borderHow to Increase Your Sustainable Living this Lent

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Hey earth muffins, happy Fat Tuesday! πŸ˜ƒ Tomorrow is Ash Wednesday, which marks the start of the Lenten season. I’ve always loved Lent, as it gives me time to reflect on my life and strengthen the areas that I value most. Plus, it means Easter and spring are just around the corner – definitely helps me power through the last few weeks of winter and busy season at work. In today’s post I will be sharing my tips on how you can have a sustainable Lent this year. Let’s jump right into it!

1. Give up something that is not-so-eco-friendly.

It is custom for people to give up something if you celebrate Lent. In the past I have given up things like YouTube, desserts, social media, etc. The season is a time to improve your relationship with God – but also to improve your life as well! It is one thing to give something up for 40 days because your religion tells you to; it is another to choose an unhealthy habit that you want to continue to avoid once Lent is over. I always try to pick something that I know has been hurting my life or my relationship with God – it is easier to force myself to go cold turkey when I have a legit reason to stop doing it altogether! This year, I challenge you to find a not-so-eco-friendly habit of yours and give it up for Lent (and maybe for good). It doesn’t have to be something big; remember, every small change helps!

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bookmark_borderThings to Give Instead of Valentines: Sustainable Valentine Alternatives

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Hey earth muffins! It is crazy to think that Valentine’s Day is just around the corner. Not sure about you, but January flew by for me! I wonder if the same will happen for February… Valentine’s Day is such a fun day to celebrate with your loved ones. It is totally possible to have a zero waste Valentine’s Day, but what about actual valentines? From kids to adults, it is common to hand out valentines to the people you love. While not the most eco-friendly tradition, it begs the question – are there sustainable valentine alternatives? And there are! Here are my top suggestions of things to give instead of valentines this year.

❀️ An experience or dinner

Don’t be afraid to give your loved ones something that isn’t tangible. While valentines are fun to keep for a few months, they often end up in the trash after that. To avoid excess waste, treat your partner to an experience that they would love. This can be a fancy dinner out, a home cooked meal in, or some sort of event in your community. Pick something that you know they would absolutely love! I personally would love to hit up the local roller skating arena, the ice rink, or get some boba tea with my boyfriend. (hint hint if you’re reading this 😊)

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bookmark_borderThe Environmental Impact of Returns: What To Do Instead!

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Hey earth muffins! I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday full of family and fun – I know I sure did! Now that the gift giving is over, you might find yourself with things that aren’t exactly what you were hoping for… 🎁 Maybe your grandma thinks you are three sizes smaller than you are or your mom bought you a set of mugs that you actually already bought a few weeks ago. There is ALWAYS an increase in returns after Christmas; and there is a huge environmental impact of returns because of this. To be a bit more eco-friendly this year, I suggest avoiding returns as much as possible. Instead, here’s what to do with those unwanted Christmas gifts!

What is the Environmental Impact of Returns?

About 30% of the items bought online are returned… And that doesn’t take into account products purchased at the store. Did you know that most companies just throw away returned items? Five BILLION pounds of returned goods end up in landfills around the US each year. 😳 This is highly confusing to me, as there are plenty of secondhand places that could easily find new homes for these items. It’s also really upsetting that huge corporations don’t care to even TRY to re-distribute what they have already produced. It proves that they only care about producing more and more goods to make a profit. Instead of supporting the destruction of the planet by making returns this year, I suggest the following options instead:

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