Conscious Kids | How To Throw A Zero Waste Children’s Birthday Party

I’ve been to my fair share of birthday parties in my grand ole 32 years, but it wasn’t until I started on this journey into zero waste living that I realized how dang wasteful they are. Sure, paper plates and napkins can biodegrade, but when you think about the circular story of things, how much energy and trees (which only do the small job of making oxygen, sequestering carbon, fixing nitrogen, distilling water, providing habitat for hundreds of species, accruing solar energy’s fuels, making complex sugars and food, changing colours with the seasons, creating microclimates, and self-replicating) actually go into the creation of things, it no longer seems so cool to celebrate ones birth, or the birth of others, by punishing the planet in the process.  


So, I gathered up some undoubtably imperfect solutions to the party waste problem for any upcoming celebration consideration, so we might as they say: “have our cake and eat it too” without causing any person, place or thing any pain.


BUNTING | Lost In Samsara – £20.00
Say “nopes” to throw away bunting and “heck to the yes” to reusable bunting like this colourful creation by Lost In Samsara which is ethically made from upcycled rice sacks. You can use it for parties or permanent decoration in your kid’s room, it’s waterproof, rip proof and each one is unique.
Where To Buy? lostinsamsara.co.uk


HOME MADE CAKE | Your Kitchen – $5.00+
You don’t have to be Betty Crocker to cook your a cake, there are tons of super simple healthy-esque recipes on Pinterest that’ll make you look like you’re the king / queen of all things. My favourite cake when I was a kid (slash now) was an ice-cream cake my mum used to make, which you don’t even need to bake. I couldn’t find the same recipe online, but this one is similar. You make a Rice Krispie base, either with marshmallows or chocolate then you spread ice-cream or a vegan ice-cream over the top and decorate it with fruit and a little figurine from your kid’s toy collection, then stick it in the freezer. It’s super easy, colourful, and looks amazing. If you really don’t have time to make a cake, which many parents or party hosts quite honestly don’t, buy one instead from a local bakery, rather than the store bought mass produced ones. You can make it whatever theme your child desires by popping a figurine that they already play with on it as decoration.


BIODEGRADABLE BALLOONS | Latex – $4.00+
Burst balloons end up in our landfills and waterways and are often mistaken as food by animals, causing injury and often death. While it’s better to avoid balloons all together, there are some made from natural latex which are biodegradable and will decompose on their own in six-months to four years. It’s important to dispose of them responsibly in your own compost or someone else’s, if you’re going to use them, otherwise in that six month period they will end up in the landfill and waterways anyway and still cause harm to wildlife. You can read more about the issues with balloons HERE. 
Where To Buy? Amazon.com // Smallable.com


REUSABLE CUTLERY | Light My Fire – $2.99 for 3
These super sweet and easily portable Light My Fire sporks are super useful and make a great goodie bag gift. They’re BPA free, super resilient, heat-resistant, and made from Tritan which won’t melt in hot or boiling water. You can write each child’s name on it with permanent marker or tape, let them use it for the party and then pack it away in their goodie bag. You can read more about why we need to break up with disposable cutlery HERE. 
Where To Buy? 3 for $2.99 Amazon.com

REUSABLE DINNERWARE | Biobu – $73.27
While it is a bit of an investment for an entire birthday party, having reusable (unbreakable) dinnerware for you to use at home, for parties or picnics is a excellent way to save money in the long run while protecting the planet. I love bamboo dinnerware by Biobu and Love Mae for kids specifically, but if you’d rather just invest in a full set for the whole family, I’d suggest getting enamelware from Shop Terrain or Falcon Enamelware … or anywhere else you can find it!