Christmas crackers are fun. But they produce an enormous amount of waste. In the UK alone, it’s estimated that over 100 million crackers are pulled each year! Imagine the plastic from this amount of crackers.
If it’s a tradition you don’t want to give up, consider making your own eco-friendly, plastic free and zero waste versions.
Advantages to making your own crackers:
1.) They are super easy to make. Once you have the materials you could easily make six in 30 minutes or less.
2.) You can save money by making your own.
3.) You can personalise them.
4.) You can recycle or compost the materials you use to make them.
In this article, I have suggested two ways of making plastic-free crackers. The first is by using brown paper (or any kind of paper which can be recycled). You can even use recycled paper to make them. Remember shiny wrapping paper can’t be recycled.
The second way uses tissue paper. I find the tissue paper method a lot easier and quicker to make crackers. The downside is you can’t recycle tissue paper. The fibres in tissue paper are too short to be recycled. However, you can compost it. So if you compost at home, just shred the paper after use and put it on the compost pile. White and colored tissue paper can be recycled. However, tissue paper can’t be recycled if there is any foil or plastic element to it.
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Christmas Cracker Method Number 1
Step 1
Take one of your toilet rolls
Attach your cracker snap to the inside of one side to the cardboard roll. Secure it in place with some brown tape.
Step 2
Then put all 3 rolls together.
Measure out your paper so it covers the 3 rolls.
Roll the paper around your 3 rolls and secure it in place with the paper tape.
Step 3
Slightly pull the cardboard roll from one of the ends out find where it meets the centre roll. Gently crease the paper between the two rolls and then slightly twist the paper moving the end around.
Use a piece of twine and tie a bow to secure it in place.
Then remove the cardboard tube. Secure the cracker snap to the end of the paper with some paper tape.
Step 4
Add your cracker filling – (jokes, hats, candy etc). I find that no matter how tight I tie the twine, the gap may still be big enough for jokes on paper to slip out the end. So I put all my bits in a reusable burlap bag. Another idea to stop it falling out is to wrap up jokes and paper hats with the brown paper or put it in a small envelope.
Step 5
Repeat with the other side.
Step 6
If you need to, you can trim the ends of the Christmas cracker to sure both sides are even.
Cracker method Number 2 – With Tissue Paper
Making crackers with tissue paper is super easy. Just remember that tissue paper can’t be recycled. You will need to compost it.
I got Christmas themed tissue paper from a craft store. It’s coloured tissue paper but there is no plastic or foil, so it can be composted.
You will Need
1: Toilet roll cardboard tube
2.) Tissue paper
3.) Paper tape
4.) A cracker snap (optional)
5.) Cracker filling
6.) Paper tape
Step 1
Secure the cracker snap in the toilet roll and to the ends of the tissue paper with paper tape.
Cut out enough tissue paper to wrap around the toilet roll and the cracker snap.
Step 2
Roll the tissue paper around the toilet roll and secure it in place with tape. For this cracker I used washi tape which is also compostable.
Step 3
Take some twine and tie it around one end of the toilet roll.
Put the filling in the cracker.
Paper jokes and hats are kept more secure inside this type of cracker as you can secure it tighter than with paper.
Step 4
Secure the other side of the cracker with twine by tying it in a bow at the end of the cardboard tube.
And you’re done!
How To Fill Your Zero Waste / Eco Friendly Christmas Crackers.
There are many eco friendly items you can use to fill your Christmas crackers. What you put in may depend on who’s going to be pulling the cracker. The great thing about making your own Christmas crackers is you can personlize what’s inside. Kids and adults may appreciate different things. Here are some ideas:
1.) Seeds (sunflower and cress seeds are great for children). Check these ones out on etsy.
2.) Paper hats – if you want to get very eco friendly, you can make your own out of recycled paper.
3.) Fabric handkerchief (encourage people not to use disposable tissues). Again Etsy.com is a great place to find these. Check out the fabric handkerchiefs below.
4.) A silly joke or riddle. You can find some online, copy them by hand or print them off and put in your crackers.
5.) A sweet, candy or chocolate – if you want your cracker plastic-free, these need to be from somewhere that doesn’t wrap it in plastic. We have a zero waste store in our town which sells package free candy and chocolate. If you don’t have that, you could consider making your own sweets / candy. Peppermint creams and chocolate truffles are super easy for anybody to make. Wrap your candy in aluminium foil which is recyclable.
6.) You can add a personal message in each of the crackers. For example, 3 things we love about Grandad – He’s tell the best jokes, he plays chess with the kids and always knows how to fix things. Or you could fill it with a memorable event or memory from the year just gone.
7.) If you’re feeling generous, you can put some money in your cracker.
8.) A poem or a story. You can personalize your poem or short story. Or you can write a classic poem the person may appreciate that they may not have heard before.
9.) A quiz question – it can be based on current events in the year gone buy – makes a quick game to play over dinner.
10.) Biodegradable hair ties (#amazonaffilatelink) for girls and women.
11.) Lottery ticket
12.) Recycled bracelet – check out etsy for lots of recycled bracelet ideas.
13.) Tooth tabs – encourage people to use eco friendly tooth tabs instead of toothpaste.
14.) A Year In Review question. These make a great conversation starter. See my example below.
Eco Friendly Christmas Cracker Paper Hats
Most Christmas crackers have a paper hat. I’m not a big fan of the paper hat, so I don’t put them in my crackers. However, many people love them and for those people there are some eco-friendly options:
1.) Fabric hats – you can purchase fabric Christmas hats on website like Etsy.com. These are a great idea as you can reuse them every year. It’s best to roll them up so you can fit them in your cracker. Or if you’re handy with a needle and thread you can make your own with scraps of fabric.
2.) Make your own paper hats. You can make from recycled paper or recycled tissue paper if you can compost it.
3.) Buy paper hats that you can recycle or compost after use. If you buy paper hats, make sure you can recycle the paper or compost it after use.