Any holiday can easily top our budgets, ignoring our careful instructions to ourselves to just provide “a few goodies to our kids”. But, when we think of their glowing faces on Easter morning, how can we resist?

But making a few adjustments will help you not only stay on budget but also stay sustainable. Extra costs go to accessories that often get tossed aside while grabbing for those lip-smacking chocolates, candies, and other treats we long for. From the extra-packaging of the treats, to the basket itself, extra costs and eco-impact easily slide their way into our Easter holiday.

Tackling the top four contenders in the creation of the beloved basket is a simple way to switch to sustainability.

The Basket

Plastic baskets, although often cheaply found at the local dollar store, are just, really, added waste. Not too many children seize their basket and keep it by their side for the remainder of the year. And although we could use them for years to come, the plastic, itself, isn’t the most planet-friendly of options.

You might opt to weave your own: a great project for the kids, using recycling as a creative tool when you use up leftover wall paper scraps. The folks at FunRoom have designed an easy-to-follow, step-by-step guide to creating your own Easter basket.

Realistically, we aren’t all that ambitious, and if you still want to give your child their goods inside of something new, some companies, like Envirosax, offer reusable bags designed for your little ones, educating your kids about the importance of reducing their use of plastic bags. With different animals and colours adorning each one, the reversible bags are only $8.50 each – and include some Easter-related designs.

The Grass

Plastic Easter grass drives me mad; we buy it, use it once, and toss it away. It leaves a huge mess (do you really want to pick up all those bits?), sticks to everything, and it strewn aside as the kids dig for their favourite treats.

Alternatively, try growing your own, like in our article DIY Easter grass, or just use shredded paper. If you have a paper shredder, run through old letters, documents, and similar (the more colours the better), and use it instead. No shredder? No problem. Get out those scissors, mom and dad. Assuming you don’t have more than a dozen kids, the extra effort should not take very long.

The Treats

Undeniably the most important part, most parents and kids connect Easter with various chocolates and candies. With increasing companies adopting organic practices, you might want to seek out who sells some in your area. Try local bakeries - thereby, promoting local business – who undoubtedly will include Easter-shaped or chocolate covered confections.

Or if you like to create in the kitchen, make some treats yourself. Buy reusable molds from a local craft store and melt your own chocolates, and make some personalized, decorated sugar cookies.

Try to keep it local, reduce the amount of packaging… and a little healthier, too.

The Extras

Growing up, my mom always threw in a few non-food items in our baskets. Okay, she actually hid them around the house with everything else, and we seeked them out on our morning hunt. Instead of giving us dollar store items that we’d eventually grow weary of and toss away, she gave us useful, practical things, like books, craft supplies, or other things that supported our interests in sports, music, and art.

Instead of spending dollars on knick-knacks, we were provided with one or two gifts of things that we really loved.

Are you planning an eco-Easter this year? Add your ideas below!

Image courtesy of Envirosax

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