The festive season, with all the joy of giving, receiving and celebrating with food and drink, can often be a time when wastefulness is hard to avoid. Buying things online is often fraught with the knowledge that items will arrive overpackaged and wrapped in plastic, decorations are often covered in glitter (which is basically just a form of pre-prepared micro-plastic) and we’ve all been guilty of overcatering, or letting those unused sprouts go yellow in the fridge.

But there is plenty we can do to help limit our impact on the climate and on our local ecosystems over the festive period. And so much of it is also fun! Here are our five top tips for ditching excess plastic:

1. Christmas decorations

Making your own decorations doesn’t have to be difficult – but can certainly be rewarding. Whether you make your own crackers from loo rolls and recycled paper, use popped corks to shape a whole sleighful of reindeers or gather some reclaimed wool from an old jumper and crochet a few baubles for the tree, making something that would otherwise be thrown away into something fun and festive can be great fun.

You could get your family, friends or work colleagues involved, too. We run an annual competition for our staff for the best recycled festive decorations – and here are a few inspiring images from our colleagues to help….

2. Using and storing leftover food

Leftovers after a festive dinner or three are almost inevitable. But rather than using cling film to store food how about using beeswax wraps? They’re reusable many times and can be composted once they’ve worn out.

And don’t forget to try to think about how to use food up rather than wasting it – those leftover bits of cheese make excellent fried cheese sarnies when mixed together with a bit of chutney. In fact, there are loads of Christmas leftover sandwich recipes!

3. Christmas jumpers

According to Hubbub two out of five Christmas jumpers are only worn once over the festive period. This is a terrible example of fast fashion as it takes resources, and usually plastics, to manufacture. So consider buying second-hand from a charity shop, knitting one from wool and reusing year on year, or passing on to friends or relatives once you no longer need it.

Or maybe think about getting a plain jumper and decorating it – you could pin on pompoms to look like snow, or attach any manner of baubles and fairy lights with safety pins. The bonus is that the jumper can then be returned to a plain one for the rest of the year!

4. Gift wrapping and tags

Much of the wrapping sold in shops can be coated in plastic. Consider recycling old scarves, newspaper or cotton cloth instead. It can be a win-win for the planet and to the gift receiver if they can reuse the wrapping, too.

And if you do receive Christmas cards by post this year, then how about making tags out of the images and saving them for next year’s Christmas gifts? It saves buying more, and with a pair of scissors and a hole punch you can make them any shape you like.

BONUS TIP: Do you cut out those short loops of ribbon from new clothes that are attached at the inside of the shoulders? Keep them and use them as gift tag ribbons!

5. Present ideas

Going plastic free also means seeking out gifts that aren’t made from, or wrapped in plastic. There are lots of ways to be creative. Nestle some loose gifts in a ceramic plant pot (rather than a plastic box), hand craft some gifts such as bath bombs and wrap in a paper bag, or fill a reused jar with jam, chutney or sweet treats bought loose from your local sweet shop. Check out Rebecca Neal's blog for a whole host of ideas.

Alternatively, consider shopping at second-hand shops, local craft markets or fairs, online marketplaces for individual makers such as Etsy (where you can search with the word ‘sustainable’ as a keyword) or Ethical Superstore. And, of course, don’t forget our own online shop and Visitor Centre at the Nene Wetlands for some great wildlife-themed gifts. And if you don't want to give more 'stuff' at all, you can gift a 'sponsor a species' or a membership to the Wildlife Trust BCN! All the money raised from our own shops goes to help support our vital work protecting nature and the local environment.