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Green partying
From TipThePlanet
- Drink organic beer and wine. Organics use full dried hops rather than condensed pellets, and malt instead of sugar and rice. These create a drink with better taste and less chemical content. Organic wines, spirits and beers are becoming more widely available from farmers markets (find your nearest farmers market here), high street shops, catalogues and websites. Try also http://www.vinceremos.co.uk and http://www.vintageroots.co.uk. No promises that it will avoid hangovers, but definitely worth a try...
- Interesting decorations are an essential for any good party. Try using LED lights around your home instead of conventional bulbs. These decorations are cheap, easy to use and efficient. Priced at about $.50 each, these bulbs can last for as many as 100,000 hours and use minimal electricity.
- Choose reusable cups or compostable ones. Don’t stock up on plastic cups, plates and utensils. Instead, use real glasses, plates and silverware that can be washed and reused. For a more exotic solution, try using corn-based cups. They look and feel identical to regular plastic cups, but you can throw them in the compost pile when you’re done and they’ll become fresh fertilizer in as little as six weeks.
- Try to choose fair-trade juices or get UK grown apple/pear juice. Rather than opt for the predictable snacks of crisps and dips, how about UK grown produce such as strawberries and cream - or organic cheese and wine. If you've got the time, you could even make your own lemonade or ginger beer, and snacks such as cake, biscuits, pizza or tarts.
- Once you’ve got the organic food and sustainable dishware, take your green party theme one step farther. Try throwing a “no heat party.” Before your guests show up, turn the thermostat down or off. Once the party gets going, body heat from the crowd can warm your entire home.
